Coming into the 2018 Rose Bowl, the Georgia Bulldogs hold a 9-4 record against the spread, while the Oklahoma Sooners are 8-5 ATS on the 2017 regular season. Register to bet and wager with your pick.
Betting Preview for the Georgia Bulldogs vs. Oklahoma Sooners – Rose Bowl Game on Jan 1 2018
Where: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA
When: Monday, January 1 2018, 5:00 PM EST
Line: Georgia Bulldogs (+1.5) vs Oklahoma Sooners (-1.5) – view all NCAA Football lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Georgia Bulldogs +1.5 (12-1)
The Dawgs sure are on a roll at the moment. Georgia has dismantled Kentucky, Georgia Tech and Auburn in consecutive weeks, with the Auburn Tigers ranked #2 in the country at the time before succumbing to Georgia 28-7 in the SEC Championship Game. That’s right, the Bulldogs are SEC champs. Not Alabama, not LSU, not Auburn, but SEC East representative Georgia. It sounds weird to say, but it’s surely a nice change from the usual Nick Saban-led Alabama hegemony.
Georgia can beat you with athletic specimens on both sides of the ball, which makes the Dawgs so dangerous. Linebacker Roquan Smith is among the best in the country, and other athletic freaks (unbelievable blends of size and speed) like NT John Atkins and LB Lorenzo Carter (6’6, 243 lbs) make Georgia’s defense the kind of unit that can hold talented Auburn to a single touchdown in the title game.
On the other side of the ball, QB Jake Fromm is seasoned beyond his tender years, but the majority of the hay is made with the running game. Georgia has had an embarrassment of riches at the RB position for a while now, spearheaded by senior Nick Chubb (1,175 yards, 6.2 ypc average, 13 TDs), fellow senior Sony Michel (948 yards, 7.2 avg, 13 TDs) and freshman and Philly native D’Andre Swift (597 yards, 8.2 yards per clip, three scores). You’re right – those are video game numbers. If Georgia can continue to feed the ball down their next opponent’s throat in the Rose Bowl, it could go a long way for the Bulldogs dictating the game and thus emerging victorious in the semifinal.
Betting on the vs Oklahoma Sooners -1.5 (12-1)
Of course, the Sooners aren’t without their own star power, primarily in the form of QB Baker Mayfiield, who has already taken home hardware (he’s already nabbed the Maxwell Award and the Walter Camp Award as Player of the Year) and might also be in pole position to snag this year’s Heisman Trophy. The senior from Austin, Texas catches some shade for being a little demonstrative and obnoxious, but you look at his stats (an amazing 4,340 pass yards, 41 TDs to just five picks) and you can surely excuse him.
Mayfield makes everyone else’s job on Oklahoma’s offense much easier. Everything runs through the senior field general, but after that it’s rather an offense-by-committee look in Norman, with players like RBs Rodney Anderson, WRs Marquise Brown and CeeDee Lamb and TE Mark Andrews all chipping in tangibly.
On the other side of the ball, DE/LB ‘tweener Ogbonnia Okoronkwo is a pass-rushing demon. The senior has 17 Tackles for Loss and eight sacks on the year, following up a nine-sack campaign in 2016. Even though he’s a little undersized, he’ll surely find a home at the next level. In the kicking game, junior Austin Seibert is one of the best – and he might factor in if this match-up is as close as it ought to be.
Writer’s Prediction
Who knows what might happen, which has always made a bowl match-up that so often featured the USCs, Michigans, Notre Dames, Ohio States and UCLAs of the world and now is counted on to determine who plays for the National Championship. Make sure you tune into this one and make sure you enjoy it, but expect Georgia to emerge victorious by a nose. Pick: Georgia (-1.5)
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