Georgia opened as a slight favorite over Alabama in the College Football Playoff title game despite the Bulldogs’ lopsided loss to the Crimson Tide in the Southeastern Conference championship game.
Third-ranked Georgia earned the rematch with a dominating 34-11 win over second-ranked Michigan on Friday night. No. 1 Alabama stamped its ticket for the Jan. 10 title game with a 27-6 win over No. 4 Cincinnati earlier in the day.
Alabama routed Georgia 41-24 on Dec. 4, securing a spot in the CFP while handing the Bulldogs their only loss of the season to date.
Despite the one-sided result last month, Georgia opened as a 2.5-point favorite at BetMGM, DraftKings and FanDuel, among other sportsbooks.
The rematch will take place in Indianapolis.
“A lot of things to fix,” Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said Friday when asked about preparing for Alabama. “We got to fix some of those over the break. … We got to get back and get to work for what is a really good football team.”
Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett said of the SEC title-game loss to the Tide, “We don’t worry about that in our locker room. Each and every day, these guys go out there and work their butts off. We knew we were better than what we showed last game, and we worked every single day.”
Alabama is seeking its second consecutive national title after routing the first non-Power 5 school to reach the CFP.
“I’m really proud of this group to come this far,” Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban said. “They’ve got an opportunity now, and now’s not the time to be relieved, but it’s also time to enjoy what we accomplished tonight.”
–Field Level Media