With college football season on the horizon, ESPN Chalk's college football experts -- Phil Steele, "Stanford Steve" Coughlin and Chris Fallica -- combine to give you betting previews of the top 25 teams, according to the ESPN College Football Rankings. They break down each team's strengths and weaknesses, along with season win total bets and national title odds.
Odds from Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook as of Sept. 1.
Alabama Crimson Tide
National title odds: 7-1
Season win total: 9.5
Phil Steele
Strengths: Defense. Alabama has my top-rated defense in the country, and that is enough to make the Tide a legitimate national title contender.
Weaknesses: According to my numbers, Alabama faces the toughest schedule in the country. It has to travel to Auburn, Georgia, Texas A&M, Mississippi State and Wisconsin. Further, the Tide lost star receiver Amari Cooper -- who was their top weapon last year -- and do not have a clear-cut starter at quarterback.
Over/under: I have Alabama picked to make the College Football Playoff. I do think the Tide will lose a game along the way, but they can lose two games and you still win the season win total bet. In the past seven years, Alabama has lost three games in a season just once. I do not envision a team with the No. 1 defense losing three games, so I really like the over here.
National title odds: Alabama does not have as clear cut a path to making the playoff as do the two top teams (Ohio State and TCU). However, defense wins championships, and if the Tide get to the playoff, I wouldn't want to face Saban when he has extra time to prep. Thus, they are worth a shot at 7-1.
"Stanford Steve" Coughlin
This is the team I'm most interested to watch this season. Everyone wants to bring up questions they might have on the offensive side of the ball: Who's going to be the starting quarterback? Who's going to replace Cooper? Will Derrick Henry be able to carry the bulk of carries at running back?
I always seem to find that the people with those questions will try and take shots at Alabama because they don't like the team or even Saban. But what matters on the field is that Saban might have the best defensive front seven he has ever had in Tuscaloosa. Guys such as defensive tackle A'Shawn Robinson, end Jonathan Allen and my favorite, linebacker Reggie Ragland, are going to give fits to opposing coordinators all week as they watch these studs on film (and, more importantly, game day). There aren't many players in the country who can play the run as well as Ragland while also playing in space. He's probably on my list of five favorite college football players.
When I think about how this season will play out in Tuscaloosa, I always give the benefit of the doubt to Saban. I love how he handles his program and all that comes with it. However, as good as I feel about the Tide, say, in a road game at Georgia, I'm not sure they have the personnel on offense to score enough and win out in the SEC.
O/U: I just think the Tide will stumble three times and fail to make it to 10 wins. Take the under.
Chris Fallica
Alabama has questions at quarterback, wide receiver and a defense which has given up a lot of points; that's not what you normally hear about a Crimson Tide team entering the season. Alabama is still the most talented team in the SEC, but the gap is closing. In the national title-winning seasons of 2009, 2011 and 2012, Alabama was 11-2 straight up against teams which finished the season ranked; in the past two years, the Tide are just 5-4 against similar teams. In the past 26 games, Alabama has allowed 34 points five times (four times of at least 40 points); in the first 82 games of the Saban era, it allowed 34 points in a game just three times.
I think the SEC West is balanced enough to the point that it's worth a shot standing against a team that hasn't won fewer than 10 games since 2007. But if Alabama finds itself in the CFP once again, I will not be surprised.
O/U: I think under is the play, as I see six losable games on the slate. Maybe they will surprise me, but there are concerns at quarterback, and don't be surprised if Blake Barnett plays sooner than later. The void left by Cooper is huge, and the defense has given up a ton of points lately. For me, 9-3 is much more likely than 11-1 or 12-0.
Title odds: It's pretty incredible that no team has repeated as SEC champ since the inception of the BCS in 1998. Alabama has history working against it, along with the most difficult schedule in the country. However, the Tide are still very talented and a deserving favorite to win the SEC; their 7-1 odds to win the national title seem like a short price, though.