Florida vs Alabama – Latest College Football Lines

Arguably, the biggest game of the college football season happens this Saturday when the #7 Florida Gators travel to Tuscaloosa to take on the number one ranked Alabama Crimson Tide. Regardless of how the teams spin this game, a loss will likely end their chances at the BCS title game.  Let’s look at the latest college football lines for this game, preview the teams and then determine who will be likely be out of the BCS title game.

The latest college football lines from the NCAAF odds makers have the Crimson Tide as -7½-point favorite. A straight up bet on the underdog Gators will pay bettors +270 on the moneyline. The game total is set at 47½ points.

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Latest College Football Lines
October 2, 2010

Florida Gators                    +7½ -110              +270     
Alabama Crimson Tide   -7½ -110               -330

Game Total         47½

Location: Bryant-Denny Stadium – Tuscaloosa AL
Game Time: 8:00pm
TV: CBS

While it’s true, a loss in the SEC to another tough SEC opponent doesn’t traditionally eliminate a team from the National Title but with the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Boise State Broncos playing so well, this year will be different.

The Alabama Crimson Tide has already defeated another ranked SEC opponent. Last week they won a tough fought 24-20 battle against the Arkansas Razorback.

The Gators have won two games over lesser SEC opponents this season but obviously the Crimson Tide are their toughest test this season.

Alabama won their first two games without Heisman winning running back Mark Ingram but back up Trent Richardson stepped in and performed as well as Ingram would have had he been there. Richardson has 356 rushing yards and five touchdowns on the season.

In his return, Ingram had nine rushing attempts for 151 yards and two touchdowns. Against the Razorbacks, his yards for carry dropped but he still ran for 157 yards and two more touchdowns on 24 carries.

The Crimson Tide is 6th in the nation in total yards, averaging 511.8 yards a game.

The defense leads the nation by only allowing opponents 9.8 yards a game and it will be interesting how well the Florida Gators move the ball against the stout Alabama defense.  Speaking of stout defenses, the Gators defense is proving to be one of the best in the nation.

The Florida Gators are excellent against the run; they have held opponents to 94 rushing yards a game. I’ll go out on a limb and say Alabama goes over that number this weekend but you never know considering the success the Gators had against Tennessee.

The Gators employed a 5-2 defense last weekend against the Tennessee Volunteers and we’ll likely see some more of that this weekend.  The package worked well as they held the then leading SEC rusher Tauren Poole to just 23 yards.

The betting trends show the Gators are 12-2 ATS in their past 14 road games vs. teams with winning records and 12-3 ATS in their past 15 road games overall.

The Crimson Tide is 4-0 ATS in their past four games and 4-1 ATS in their past 5 as favorites. 

When the game is over, the Crimson Tide will still be the number one team in the nation but I like Florida Gators to slow down the duo of Ingram and Richardson. They won’t shut them down as they did to Poole but they’ll do enough to keep the game within a touchdown. Make sure you check the latest college football lines but take the Gators are +7½ or more.

NCAAF Betting Pick: Florida Gators +7½