Those betting on NCAA football have a slew of top-25 matchups on their schedule this weekend, and in primetime on Saturday night, the defending national champions from Alabama will host Penn State in Tuscaloosa.
Penn State Alabama Betting – Saturday, September 11th, 7:00 PM ET
The No.19 Nittany Lions routed Youngstown State 44-14 at home in their season opener, and freshman Rob Bolden did a great job in his debut, going 20-of-29 for 239 yards and a pair of touchdowns, although he did manage to toss a pick as well. Some Penn State fans were a bit worried after Darryl Clark graduated, and the Nittany Lions have a couple of other quarterbacks waiting to get their shot, but Bolden was solid enough that he’ll probably start this game as well. Defensively, the Nittany Lions allowed 264 yards, including just 34 on the ground.
The No.1 Crimson Tide had little problem dispatching of San Jose State in a 48-3 romp, posting a ridiculous 591 yards of offense. Heisman winner Mark Ingram was held out of this game due to injury, but the Crimson Tide still ran for 257 yards. Those who are betting on NFL odds should watch out for receiver Julio Jones, who caught six passes for 93 yards and a score for the Crimson Tide. Alabama lost a lot of players on defense, but there shouldn’t be much of a drop-off from last year’s group. The Crimson Tide gave up just 185 yards, and they picked off a pass as well.
The Crimson Tide are a 10.5-point favorite at home when you bet football online, and strangely, this is the first time in recent memory that these two powers have faced off. Penn State coach Joe Paterno and his Alabama counterpart Nick Saban are distinctly old-school, and online betting players should expect a hard-hitting affair that likely won’t go over the posted total. We’re going to take the Crimson Tide at Bryant-Denny Stadium, where they have won 15 in a row. The Nittany Lions have won five straight road games, dating back to last year of course, and Bolden was great against Youngstown State. But the Crimson Tide are an entirely different beast than Youngstown State, and he’s going to have to get off to a good start in Tuscaloosa. The Nittany Lions would do well to go with Evan Royster out of the backfield, and they took it easy on their star running back in Week 1, largely with this game in mind. But still, the Crimson Tide are too balanced and too deep on both sides of the ball, and they’ll be in trouble if they try to single-cover Jones.
Sports Betting Pick: Alabama -10.5
