Line movements for College Football Playoff, including Alabama at Oklahoma and Miami at Texas A&M
SportsLine college football expert Gene Menez tracks the biggest point spread moves for the College Football Playoff

It's the most wonderful time of the year. That time, of course, is College Football Playoff season, and the 12-team bracket kicks off on Friday, Dec. 19, with an all-SEC matchup: No. 9 seed Alabama at No. 8 Oklahoma squaring off for a spot in the quarterfinals.
The game is a rematch of one played in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Nov. 15. In that matchup, the Sooners overcame a punchless offense by forcing three turnovers to pull off a 23-21 upset. That victory helped Oklahoma (10-2) end the season on a four-game winning streak, which included three wins over ranked teams. Meanwhile, Alabama (10-3) is coming off a listless 28-7 loss to Georgia in the SEC Championship Game and had to sweat out the CFP selection committee's bracket reveal.
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The winner of Friday's rematch between the Sooners and Crimson Tide will advance to the Rose Bowl for a CFP quarterfinal matchup against the No. 1-ranked Indiana Hoosiers.
Top sportsbooks have made Alabama a 1.5-point favorite over Oklahoma. The line originally opened as a pick 'em.
So what should you make of that line movement? Is it a market correction or an overreaction? Here's a look at the Sooners-Crimson Tide point spread, as well as the line movement of the three other CFP games. All times Eastern.
No. 9 Alabama at No. 8 Oklahoma (8 p.m. Dec. 19)
Open: Pick 'em
Current: Alabama -1.5
The season's first College Football Playoff game opened as a pick 'em at Circa but has remained steady after some initial betting. Considering that Sooners beat the Crimson Tide one month ago in Tuscaloosa, the fact that Oklahoma is an underdog in this game is telling. Alabama outgained Oklahoma 406 yards to 212 and had a 95% win expectancy in that game but was done in by three turnovers. What are the odds the Sooners will force three turnovers again? This line movement seems like a reasonable market correction.
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No. 10 Miami at No. 7 Texas A&M (noon Dec. 20)
Open: Texas A&M -4
Current: Texas A&M -3.5
This line opened at -5.5 in some places but has moved in favor of the Hurricanes (10-2). This likely is a reaction to the Aggies' last game, a 27-17 loss at No. 16 Texas, which really put A&M's season in a different light; the Longhorns were the only SEC team in the top half of the conference standings that the Aggies (11-1) played. A&M's best win this season, by far, came against Notre Dame, but Miami beat the Irish, too. The -3.5 seems fair, but Hurricanes backers shouldn't delay as betting trends don't suggest this line will return to its opening line barring an injury.
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No. 11 Tulane at No. 6 Ole Miss (3:30 p.m. Dec. 20)
Open: Ole Miss -16
Current: Ole Miss -17.5
This is another rematch of a game played earlier this season. On Sept. 20, the Rebels blew out the Green Wave 45-10 in Oxford in a game that wasn't as close as the final score suggests. Ole Miss outgained Tulane 548 yards to 282 and led 45-3 that day before giving up a meaningless touchdown with 3:42 left in the game. That 35-point margin is certainly a major reason why the early money came in on Ole Miss (11-1) despite the Rebels losing coach Lane Kiffin to LSU. Obviously bettors don't believe Kiffin is worth 19 points on the point spread over new coach Pete Golding. If you agree with the bettors that Ole Miss will not regress without Kiffin, you should jump on this number now as it's only likely to go up.
No. 12 James Madison at No. 5 Oregon (7:30 p.m. Dec. 20)
Open: Oregon -20
Current: Oregon -21.5
This is the kind of game in which the Ducks usually roll. Since Dan Lanning took over as coach in 2022, Oregon is 10-0 against non-major conference teams with an average margin of victory of 36.3 points per game. However, this game may be a little different. First, James Madison is not your run-of-the-mill Group of Five team. The Dukes can run the ball (245.8 rushing yards per game, sixth in the country) and stop the run (76.2 rushing yards allowed per game, second in the nation). Also, even if this game gets out of hand, will the Ducks want to keep running their starters out there knowing they have a quarterfinal matchup against Texas Tech ahead? Oregon deserves to be a big favorite, but a backdoor cover is a possibility.
















