Washington vs. Alabama: Odds and Score Prediction for Peach Bowl 2016
The No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide have been college football's best team throughout the season, but in order to play for a national championship, they must get past the No. 4 Washington Huskies in the Peach Bowl.
The Peach Bowl is the first of two College Football Playoff semifinals that will be contested on New Year's Eve, and the Crimson Tide are more heavily favored than any other team on the bowl schedule despite the Huskies' impressive, one-loss season.
Ahead of the game, here is everything you need to know about where and when to watch it, along with the latest odds and prediction for how the Peach Bowl will play out.
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Where: The Georgia Dome in Atlanta
When: Saturday, Dec. 31 at 3 p.m. ET
Watch: ESPN
Point Spread (via OddsShark): Alabama (-13.5)
Alabama and Washington appear to be opposites in many ways, not the least of which is the fact that the Tide are fueled by their defense, while the Huskies rely primarily on an explosive offense.
'Bama boasts the No. 1 defense in the nation in terms of points allowed, total yardage allowed and rushing yardage allowed per game, while Washington is fourth in the country offensively with 44.5 points scored per contest.
The biggest key to Alabama's success figures to be possessing the football and limiting the effectiveness of Washington's high-octane offense, led by quarterback Jake Browning and wide receiver John Ross.
Defensive lineman Jonathan Allen and the dominant Crimson Tide defense may be able to do that largely on their own, but the Alabama offense can help in that regard.
A smart, efficient performance devoid of turnovers by freshman quarterback Jalen Hurts is a must, as is an effective running game.
Also, Alabama is third in the nation in sacks, while Washington is solid in its own right in 17th, which suggests Hurts could find himself under pressure.
One way to alleviate that while also winning the time of possession battle is a healthy dose of running back Bo Scarbrough.
The 6'2", 228-pound sophomore carried the ball just 90 times this season, but he topped 90 yards in each of the past two games and will enter the Peach Bowl fresh.
Despite Alabama's potential ability to wear down Washington's defense with the running game and then beat it in the passing game if needs be with weapons such as Calvin Ridley, ArDarius Stewart and O.J. Howard, the Huskies remain confident.
Ross is chief among the Washington players who firmly believe an upset is possible despite the aura of invincibility surrounding the Crimson Tide, according to Christian Caple of the Tacoma News Tribune:
If Washington is going to knock off Alabama, the Browning-to-Ross connection likely needs to fire on all cylinders.
Ole Miss managed to move the ball and put up points in a one-score loss to Alabama earlier in the season with a spread offense similar to what the Huskies like to run.
In addition to that, Washington boasts a head coach who knows how to win big games when the chips are stacked against him, and Chris Petersen is embracing that challenge ahead of the Peach Bowl, per the game's official Twitter account:
Petersen led Boise State to an undefeated record in 2006, which included a Fiesta Bowl victory over Oklahoma.
He pulled out every trick in the book to win that game, and he may have to do something similar in order to prevail against Nick Saban's Alabama squad.
While Washington has enough explosiveness on offense and talent on defense to keep the Peach Bowl closer than the point spread suggests, Alabama's smothering defense and remarkable depth on both sides of the ball will prove too much to overcome.
Prediction: Alabama 27, Washington 17
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