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 Aug. 22.
Alabama Crimson Tide
National title odds: 6-1 (opened 6-1)
Season win total: 10
FPI win total projection: 9.0
Phil Steele
Strengths: With defensive end Jonathan Allen, linebacker Reuben Foster and strong safety Eddie Jackson turning down the NFL, Alabama returns five starters from last year's No. 1 defense -- and that number doesn't even include linebacker Tim Williams, who led the team in sacks and was dominant this spring. The Crimson Tide have my top-rated defense again this year, the nation's best set of receivers in the country and my No. 4-rated offensive line. They also have my No. 10 special teams.
Weaknesses: Once again Alabama has little experience at quarterback, but that hasn't been an issue in the past for them. The Crimson Tide usually return a running back with at least 500 rushing yards from the prior year, but they don't have that this year. Instead, the unit has just 281 combined career rushing yards.
Over/under (10): The Tide face my third-toughest schedule in the country and play the other top SEC teams in LSU, Ole Miss and Tennessee on the road. The Vegas number reflects that difficulty, but I see Nick Saban and Co. topping 10 wins once again. Take the over.
National title odds (6-1): The Tide are the favorite to win it all at 6-1, so there isn't much value there. One thing to remember is that last year, had it not been for the amazing lateral play by Arkansas against Ole Miss, Alabama wouldn't have won the SEC and probably wouldn't have made the College Football Playoff. No play.
"Stanford Steve" Coughlin
O/U: Year after year, Nick Saban and his guys are right here standing on the doorstep of another national title, no matter how many guys the Tide lose to the draft.
Just like last year, they look to replace a QB and a plethora of defensive talent. Does it really matter? Is it worth it to doubt Lane Kiffin and his quarterbacks, again? They said he couldn't win with Blake Sims in 2013, but then they made the playoff. Last year, they said Jake Coker wasn't good enough, and they won a national title. So, why can't Cooper Bateman or whoever wins the QB job lead the offense?
Then there's the defense. Should we really worry about linebackers Reuben Foster and Rashaan Evans picking up the slack for NFL draftees like Reggie Ragland and A'Shawn Robinson? The answer is no. I think the Tide could slip up a couple times, and with how loaded the division is, they could win it while also winning nine games.
CFP title odds (6-1): I don't think they're going make the playoff, but you have to feel good about getting 6-1 odds on a team coached by Saban.
Chris Fallica
Over/under (10): Considering only once in the last eight years has Alabama failed to win at least 10 regular-season games, one has to play this on the blind, no? Worried about a first-year starting QB? Don't be. Under Saban, Alabama is 52-4 with three national titles in the four years in which the Tide had a first-year starter.
Assuming the Tide beat USC in Arlington, and win each of their home games, Bama will have to go 2-2 in the true road games -- against Ole Miss, Arkansas, Tennessee and LSU -- to push at 10-2. Could they go 1-3 in those four games? Sure. As long as Saban is head coach at Alabama, however, you'll never look silly for expecting a big year from the Tide. While 9-3 is possible, I'd play the over if you needed to take a side.
Title odds (6-1): I'm not a fan of taking short prices at the start of the season, so I wouldn't advise anyone to load up on Bama as a 6-1 favorite. I also wouldn't talk anyone out of it, if they were sold on Bama being the best team in the country and wanted to lock in that price -- it just isn't in my blood to be all-in on a favorite at this point in the year when so many things can happen.