Brandon Lang
NOTE:
Would you lay -180 to -200 in baseball with the Yankees if you thought there was no way they were going to lose? Would the risk be worth the reward?
Absolutely you would.
And that is exactly why my top play is 'Bama on the money line, with a pair of plays on 'Bama for the game and 'Bama in the first half.
I feel at the value the money line is, it's too good to pass up.
I did the same thing with the Seattle-Pittsburgh Super Bowl making my top play the Steelers on the money line, with a secondary play on the Steelers -4 1/2 for the game, which is pretty much right around what this number is tonight.
I am doing the same thing today, but the only difference is I am playing Alabama in the first half as well as the game with my top play being Alabama on the money line.
It's very rare in the BCS National Championship game you get a money line less than 200 so with the price being what it is, it's just to good to pass up.
So all my eggs are with Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide to get the job done in the first half, get the job done in the game and just in case their is some backdoor madness, the money line is my top play.
100 DIME - ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE MONEY LINE PLAY
25 DIME - ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE 1ST HALF PLAY
25 DIME - ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE MINUS THE POINTS
I just don't see Alabama losing this game tonight.
And because I don't see them losing, I can't pass up this great money line price in a big game like this.
While watching Florida just destroy Cincinnati, and Tebow have the game of his career, I just kept saying to myself Alabama held this team to 13 points.
What was even more impressive was the offensive game plan in which Nick Saban and his staff came up with in attacking the Florida defense, a defense I feel is better than this Texas defense.
The Crimson Tide had 251 yards rushing versus Florida and 239 yards passing for 490 yards total offense and that was against the 4th best defense in the country backed by SEC speed. Texas comes in #3.
You look at Alabama's run through the SEC and you will see the most points they gave up in a game were 24 the first game of the year to Virginia Tech and they allowed that while giving up only 155 yards total offense.
Most of the Hokies points were set up as a result of special teams.
In every single game this year Alabama's defense showed up and played hard. Played with intensity. Played as if their lives depended on it and that is a credit to Saban and his staff. They have taken nothing for granted all year.
The most yards 'Bama gave up this entire year was 341 to Tennessee, 335 to Florida, 332 to Auburn and 302 to Kentucky. They only allowed three teams to get over a 100 yards rushing and only 4 teams to throw over 200 yards.
They are a model of consistency all year long. I can't say the same about Texas and the only evidence I need is the last 2 games of the year.
On the road at Texas A&M, a team that was completely manhandled and dominated by SEC conference Georgia 44-20, the Longhorns gave up 190 yards rushing, 342 yards pass for a total of 532 yards.
From that game they went into the Big 12 Championship Game, and forgot how to play offense against Nebraska being held to 18 yards rushing and 184 passing for 202 total yards while allowing 9 sacks.
You are supposed to be peaking at the end of the year, not allowing the Texas A&M's of the world to shred you, nor struggle to muster up 13 points and 200 yards offense in the Big 12 Championship Game.
Folks, this isn't a great Texas offensive line. It's average at best as evidenced by the fact Texas has had rushing games of 46 yards at home to Colorado, 99 on the road at Oklahoma State, 67 at home to Central Florida.
In there two games versus defenses that you would
say are comparable to Alabama are Oklahoma and Nebraska and I just find it a bit ironic both of those defenses held Texas to 13 points.
For me I just can't get past the 202 total yards Texas had against Nebraska last game of the year and just how badly they looked all game long offensively rushing, passing and protecting the quarterback.
The defense Texas will see tonight and the speed in which it occupies the field with is faster than Nebraska and I don't care how much time you have to prepare for it, your practice squad can simulate SEC speed in a million years.
If Alabama plays with the same intensity it did against Florida, and I have every reason to believe they will, there isn't a single ounce of doubt in my mind they win this game by double digits.
I saw all I needed to see in 'Bama's dominant win over Florida, and the Texas struggles offensively versus Nebraska and Oklahoma while allowing a young A&M team to put up 39 points on them to put me on the Crimson Tide tonight.
I keep hearing about Texas being the # 1 rush defense in the country but hell, Missouri had the 12th ranked rush defense and Navy ran for close to 400 yards on them.
So trust me folks, you can have all the great defensive statistics you want playing in the Big 12 but let's not confuse Big 12 speed with the SEC because it's like comparing apples to oranges. It really is.
These two conferences have met this bowl season and you have all you need to know to validate the above point.
Georgia completely outclassed Texas A&M 44-20 and Ole Miss outclassed Oklahoma State 21-7 and you could see the speed difference all over the field.
I dare use the word overrated, but in this case I feel Texas is highly overrated and as I said above, I just can't get past the lack of intensity in which Texas played with against Texas A&M.
If that had been Alabama, the young Aggies wouldn't have sniffed 20 points let alone 39.
My last point is this. Greg McElroy found himself in the last drive against Auburn. He found his confidence. He became the leader his teammates have been waiting for him to become all year long and you saw his maturity in the SEC Championship Game.
I expect Heisman Trophy winner Ingram to have success running the football, get McElroy in play action and for Alabama to do what it has done all year long when laying a single digit number and that is cover it.
Last year they covered all 3 single digit numbers and this year they laid 6 1/2 to Virginia Tech and won by 10, they laid -4 at Ole Miss and won 22-3 and laid 7 1/2 to LSU and won by 9 making it 6 in a row.
I'm not taking anything away from Mack Brown, but you can't give Nick Saban time to prepare for you with the personnel he has because he will own you as he proved with his gameplan versus Florida.
With the same amount of time to prepare Mack Brown and his staff failed miserably against Nebraska offensively as they were unprepared and were dominated and were lucky to win the football game.
I am going to war with the better team, with the better coach, with the better defense, with the better special teams, with the Heisman Trophy winner, and flat out the better all around team.
You don't beat the defending National Champions on a neutral field as dominantly as you did and go on to lose the National Championship game to Texas. You just don't.
And I will live or die with the SEC over the Big 12 any day of the week.
Alabama Crimson Tide across the board for me tonight in the first half, for the game and on the money line.
FREE SELECTION - TEXAS-ALABAMA UNDER