CFP National Championship 2019 Odds for Potential Matchups Before Heisman Reveal
December 8, 2018
With the College Football Playoff semifinals set, point spreads became available Saturday for the four potential CFP National Championship Game matchups.
OddsShark tweeted the lines, as well as the over/under totals for each possible national title game:
Alabama is heavily favored to win it all regardless of its opponent if it can beat Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl.
Meanwhile, the Sooners have been installed as underdogs against both Clemson and Notre Dame even if they are able to upset the Crimson Tide.
Per OddsShark, the undefeated Tide are 14-point favorites against Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl despite the presence of Heisman Trophy finalist Kyler Murray at quarterback for the Sooners.
Bama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is also a Heisman finalist, but an ankle injury knocked him out of the SEC Championship Game against the Georgia Bulldogs, and his status for the Orange Bowl is uncertain.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban is optimistic, though, as he said this week that Tagovailoa is "right on schedule" to return to "explosive movement" in two weeks after undergoing a procedure on his ankle, according to Andrew Olson of Saturday Down South.
The Orange Bowl will feature the top two scoring offenses in college football, but Bama has a considerable edge due to its far superior defense.
In the Cotton Bowl, Clemson is an 11-point favorite in a battle of unbeatens against Notre Dame.
It can be argued that the Tigers have the most balanced team in college football due to their ferocious defense and an offense anchored by running back Travis Etienne and quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
The Fighting Irish have a great defense in their own right, and their offense has taken off since head coach Brian Kelly installed Ian Book as the starting quarterback.
An Oklahoma vs. Notre Dame title game would be the closest contest on paper, with the Irish as a 3.5-point favorite, but Alabama vs. Clemson may be the most compelling potential matchup.
The Tide are 7.5-point favorites in that scenario, but the two teams faced each other in the CFP National Championship Games in 2016 and 2017, and they split those games.
Both teams are significantly different now, but they have few weaknesses, and there may be no team better equipped to upset the Crimson Tide this season than Clemson.