The stage is set for the third Alabama-Clemson title game, and so are the early wagering odds.
After a slow start, No. 2 Clemson bludgeoned No. 3 Notre Dame with a 20-point second quarter in cruising to a 30-3 Cotton Bowl win in the first College Football Playoff semifinal Saturday night. In the second semifinal, No. 1 Alabama bludgeoned No. 4 Oklahoma with a 21-point first quarter en route to a closer-than-it-initially-looked-like-it’d-be win over the Sooners by the score of 45-34.
Both Alabama and Clemson were double-digit favorites heading into their respective semifinal games. Heading into the first hours of the run-up to the national championship game, the Tigers will be, at least initially, a touchdown(ish) underdog against the reigning champs.
National Championship Game: Clemson vs. Alabama -6, 59.6
— David Payne Purdum (@DavidPurdum) December 30, 2018
via @SuperBookUSA.
NATIONAL TITLE GAME
— RJ Bell (@RJinVegas) December 30, 2018
Alabama -6.5 over Clemson
Bovada.lv has also set an initial line of Clemson at +6½, with the over/under at 61.
The schools have met twice previously in College Football Playoff championship games, with Alabama winning the first (45-40) after the 2015 regular season and Clemson claiming the second (35-31) following the 2016 regular season. They also met in the 2017 semifinals, with the Crimson Tide rolling to a 24-6 win on its way to the fifth national championship under Nick Saban and the sixth of the future Hall of Fame head coach’s career.
By beating Clemson on Jan. 7, Saban would claim his seventh national championship and surpass Alabama legend Bear Bryant for the most titles in FBS history.
Additionally, both Alabama and Clemson will head into the championship game 14-0; the winner of that game will become the first school in FBS history to finish a season 15-0.
So, yeah, nothing but history on all fronts on the line in a week and a half -- regardless of how bored most of the country may be.
