AT&T Stadium is the address of the Dallas Cowboys, but on September 5, it will be home to a highly anticipated Week 1 matchup between the No. 3 Alabama Crimson Tide and the No. 20 Wisconsin Badgers. Will Wisconsin upset the Crimson Tide and score one for Big Ten pride? Or will Alabama hammer a win right out of the gate?
For more college football, click here for a preview of the match between Arkansas State and No. 8 USC.
[sc:NCAAFArticles ]Wisconsin Badgers vs. Alabama Crimson Tide Preview
Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington
When: Saturday, September 5, 8:00 PM ET
Line: Wisconsin Badgers (+10) at Alabama Crimson Tide (-10) – view all NCAA Football lines
Betting on the Wisconsin Badgers
[sc:NCAA240banner ]Beating Alabama wouldn’t be too shabby of an accomplishment for Paul Chryst in his first official game as Wisconsin’s head coach. And although Melvin Gordon, last season’s national leader in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns, is no longer enrolled in Madison, Chryst and the Badgers have reasons to believe that they can take down Nick Saban’s boys in AT&T Stadium.
With Gordon out of the picture, Chryst will be looking for junior Corey Clement to have a breakout year. Last season, Clement played second fiddle to Gordon and finished with 949 yards and nine touchdowns on 147 carries. Chryst, however, may find it hard to gain many yards on the ground in their first game, considering that Alabama’s fourth-ranked defense against the run in 2014 is set to be even better with nine starters returning. In any case, the Badgers’ passing game will have to show up to keep Alabama’s D from ganging up on their backfield.
Quarterback Joel Stave will be at the forefront of the Badgers’ aerial attack against Alabama. Stave was far from great last season, coming up with just 1,350 passing yards and nine touchdowns, but with a promising target in wide receiver Alex Erickson down field, anything can happen for Wisconsin. Erickson had 772 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns on 55 receptions in 2014.
Wisconsin is 5-5 ATS in its last 10 games overall.
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Betting on the Alabama Crimson Tide
As usual, Alabama is stacked with talented players on both sides of the field. But can Nick Saban guide this batch of Crimson Tide into winning the school’s first national title in the CFP era? It’s too early to tell, but games against a solid non-conference team like Wisconsin is a good measuring stick for Alabama.
Gone are quarterback Blake Sims, running back T.J. Yeldon, and wide receiver Amari Cooper, but thanks to a rich haul of recruits, Alabama easily covered those losses, including the ones on its offensive line. Saban has yet to name a starter at quarterback, but Jake Coker, the favorite to win the job, is likely out of the equation for the Wisconsin game following a minor foot injury.
That leaves Saban with redshirt freshman David Cornwell and true freshman Blake Barnett as his options to start at quarterback early in the coming season. Regardless of who gets to position under center, that quarterback will enjoy a solid group of receivers, including Robert Foster, ArDarius Stewart, Chris Black, and five-star recruit Calvin Ridley.
Derrick Henry and Kenyan Drake, meanwhile, should continue to be Alabama’s top dogs in the backfield. Wisconsin had a top-25 run prevention unit last season, but that shouldn’t keep Henry and Drake from giving the Badgers headaches. Drake finished last season with 382 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns last season, while Drake had 694 rushing yards and eight rushing scores. Henry’s five 100-yard games came from indoor games, so if it’s anything, watch out for him when Alabama makes its season debut in AT&T Stadium.
The over is 3-0 in Alabama’s last three games overall.
Writer’s Prediction
Alabama (-10) wins, 35-21.
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