Free NCAA Football Prediction: Crimson Tide vs. Bearcats Odds
Looking for Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Cincinnati Bearcats 2021 Cotton Bowl free picks? College football betting sees the Crimson Tide taking on the Bearcats on Friday, December 31st, 2021, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas Cappers Picks provides complimentary handicapping picks all NCAA football season long so stay tuned for more FREE college football 2021 Cotton Bowl game predictions like this Alabama Cincinnati free pick.
College Football Handicapping Analysis: 2021 Cotton Bowl
(12-1,7-1) Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Cincinnati Bearcats (13-0, 8-0)
Date: Friday, December 31st, 2021
Time: 3:30 pm EST
Venue: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
NCAA Football ATS Spread Odds: Alabama -13.5 | Cincinnati +13.5 (Bet Now!)
NCAA Football Moneyline Odds: Crimson Tide -575 | Bearcats +410
NCAA Betting Total Odds: O/U 58.5
The 2021 College Football Playoff will kick off with the Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Eve from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The top ranked Alabama Crimson Tide will make their 7th appearance in the CFP playoffs, top among all FBS teams. The Crimson Tide knocked off the top ranked Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship to keep their season alive.
The Cincinnati Bearcats will look to prove doubters wrong as they officially became the first non-power 5 team to clinch a spot in the CFP Playoffs. The Bearcats finished with another perfect regular season and handled Houston at home to clinch another AAC Championship.
Are we in line for a historic upset or will the Tide keep on rolling?
Alabama Crimson Tide
Bryce Young carved up the nation’s top-rated defense, throwing for three touchdowns and running for another as the fourth-ranked Crimson Tide rolled over No. 1 Georgia 41-24 in the Southeastern Conference championship game on December 4th. For Alabama, it clinched the teams seventh trip to the CFP Playoffs in the eight year of its creation.
After falling into a 10-0 hole on the first play of the second quarter, Alabama outscored the Bulldogs 41-14 the rest of the way. John Metchie had 6 catches for 97 yards and a TD before his knee injury. Jameson Williams picked up the slack for his injured teammate, finishing with 7 receptions for 184 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Bryce Young certainly solidified himself as the Heisman frontrunner with an electric performance. Young, who set SEC championship records with 421 yards passing and 461 yards total offense, found his groove in the second quarter and it was over from there.
Star Wide Receiver John Metchie III tore his ACL in the SEC Championship and will miss the remainder of the season. Alabama will also be without Cornerback Josh Jobe who underwent surgery on his injured foot this week and is expected to miss the postseason.
Cincinnati Bearcats
The Cincinnati Bearcats had the odds stacked against them all season due to their spot in a non-power 5 conference. The BCS and CFP committee have notoriously discredited countless Group of 5 teams in the past in preference to bigger and more notable schools.
The Bearcats finally broke the glass ceiling and clinched a spot in the playoffs. There were countless high ranked teams knocked off this season which opened the door for Cincinnati and with a perfect record it was virtually impossible they could be left out.
Cincinnati wrapped up their second consecutive perfect regular season, going undefeated in the American Athletic Conference. The main reason for their ability to stay in playoff contention this season was due to a huge road win over Notre Dame who finished the year #5. It was the Fighting Irish’s lone loss and kept them out of the playoffs.
UC defeated #21 Houston at home 35-20 to clinch an AAC championship and a playoff berth. The Bearcats held a slim 14-13 lead at halftime but came out of the locker room fired up and outscored the Cougars 21-0 in the third quarter. As time expired the fans rushed the field in a historic night for the University and city of Cincinnati.
NCAA Football Handicapping Trends
- Alabama is 7-6 ATS this season
- Alabama UNDERS are 8-5 this season
- Cincinnati is 8-5 ATS this season
- Cincinnati has covered in their last 3 games (8+ points over spread)
- Cincinnati UNDERS are 7-6 this season
4* Free Cotton Bowl NCAA Betting Pick: Cincinnati +13.5 & UNDER
Cincinnati has been jeered all season due to their strength of schedule and lack of notable wins. Many have remarked they hope to see the Bearcats make the playoffs just so they could lose by 50 and we would never have to talk about a group of 5 team again.
The negativity around this program is downright disrespectful. Cincinnati has finished back to back seasons undefeated heading into Bowl Week. They played Georgia last year in the Peach Bowl and led 21-10 but were outscored 14-0 in the final quarter and lost a game many said they’d be rolled in.
The Bearcats handled Notre Dame with ease on the road and controlled the game against ranked Houston just a week ago. This is a deep team filled with playmakers including arguably the best defensive back tandem in the country between All-American Sauce Gardner and Jim Thorpe Award Winner Cobe Bryant.
I’m not sure if Cincinnati will pull the historic upset but they’ll certainly hang tough throughout and silence a lot of doubters.
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