Owls vs Crimson Tide NCAA Football Spread/Handicapping
The Alabama Crimson Tide is looking to make their second-straight BCS National Championship appearance, and simply put, the Florida Atlantic Owls couldn’t be further from it.
Florida Atlantic Owls (1-2) vs Alabama Crimson Tide (3-0)
Saturday September 22, 2012
Bryant-Denny Stadium, Tuscaloosa, AL
5:00 PM ET
Moneyline: OFF from GTBets.eu
Spread: Alabama -49.5
O/U: 57
Head coach of the Tide, Nick Saban, knows better than to begin looking ahead to his Nov. 3 match against the LSU Tigers, but he must also realize that a game like this against the Owls should be simply considered a warm up for what they’ll have coming their way later in the year.
Alabama Crimson Tide
The Alabama Crimson Tide is the No. 1 team in all of college football, and for good reason. Quarterback A.J. McCarron has seven touchdowns to zero interceptions, and the team’s rushing attack has been good enough for 186.7 yards per contest. Their points per game (42.7) are impressive, but their average of 4.7 points allowed is what makes them downright dominant.
GRAB OUR BEST Expert CFB Picks for 2012 NCAA FOOTBALL Betting! —–>
The Tide has posted shutouts in their last two matches. A 35-0 victory over Western Kentucky was great, but a 52-0 showing against the Arkansas Razorbacks was one of the great performances of the early season. Even the then-No. 8 Michigan Wolverines struggled mightily, scoring only 14 points against Alabama in week 1—they’re averaging 47 points per game since.
With just one turnover on offense all year—compared to 12 forced—the Crimson Tide has outscored its opponents by a total of 114 points through three games. That’s the kind of number that champions boast, and that’s the kind of production Alabama hopes to display all year long.
Any team in the country is capable of slipping up throughout the season, but with a relatively easy schedule until Nov. 3—a BCS title rematch against the LSU Tigers—Alabama should prove to be the best team in the nation moving forward.
Florida Atlantic Owls
If you’ve never heard of the Florida Atlantic Owls, you’re not alone. The one-win Sun Belt team from 2011 has only one victory this season, which came in a 7-3 snoozer over the Wagner Seahawks in week one. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Having averaged just 14.7 points per game up to this point, the Owls are giving up twice as many points to their opponents on a weekly basis.
Graham Wilbert, the team’s quarterback, hasn’t been terrible—he’s completed 67.9 percent of his passes for four touchdowns and only one interception—but he and his running crew have proven to be nothing spectacular, and they should struggle to make much work against the Tide’s defense on Saturday.
Florida Atlantic did put up 27 points against the then-No. 7 Georgia Bulldogs last week, but that was against a team whose defense comes nowhere near matching the prowess of the Alabama Crimson Tide.
This game isn’t even going to be close, so don’t be surprised to see Alabama call off the first-stringers early. The total points in this game will be high, but with virtually no help from Florida Atlantic, it should float right around the over-under projection despite a shootout from the Tide.
Trends
- Crimson Tide are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games after scoring more than 40 points in their previous game.
- Crimson Tide are 9-2 ATS in their last 11 non-conference games.
- Crimson Tide are 6-1 ATS vs. a team with a losing record.
- Crimson Tide are 11-2 ATS in their last 13 games following a SU win of more than 20 points.
- Under is 7-0 in Crimson Tide last 7 home games vs. a team with a losing road record.
O/U Pick: Over 57
Score Prediction: Alabama 55 – Florida Atlantic 3
