Rivalry Weekend 2019 was disappointing. The Palmetto Bowl, The Game, Bedlam, The Civil War, GEO-GT, WISC-MINN, BAY-KAN, ND-STAN, LSU-A&M, UF-FSU … all blowouts and 0 upsets.
The only close game that meant something last weekend was the Iron Bowl – Bama-Auburn. A discouraged Michigan fan, I didn’t even feel like watching another football game Saturday, but I tuned in once I realized Bama had a chance of going down.
OFF THE IRON! NO GOOD. pic.twitter.com/kkfxgchwLV
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) December 1, 2019
The entire nation is celebrating today as Auburn’s victory guarantees Alabama will miss the College Football Playoff for the first time ever. Finally!
There are 7 teams in legitimate contention for the 4-team Playoff. LSU and Ohio State are locks. Clemson and Georgia are in with wins. If Clemson or Georgia loses, the door swings wide open for Utah or Oklahoma/Baylor to grab the 4th spot.
I was asking for too much last week. I wanted to see some major upsets and extreme shake-up in the top-5. That didn’t happen. This week, I just want to see some close games.
LSU, OSU, Clemson, UGA, Utah, Oklahoma, Baylor. Pick any combination of 4 teams and we are in for an awesome playoff.
We have 8 conference championship games on tap this weekend. All 8 feature at least one ranked team. 6 are ranked vs ranked showdowns. 3 feature 2 top-10 teams. This is going to be great. Here are some numbers for the 3 biggest matchups.
Saturday 12/7 – Noon ET
9.5 The Sooners are currently -9.5 (-110) on Bovada. This line is obviously subject to change, but it shows consistency from Vegas. In Game 1 between OU and Baylor, the Sooners closed at 10.5-point favorites. Not much has changed in 3 weeks. We can expect a similar game in Round 2.
24 The number of unanswered points scored by OU in the second half of the first game. Down 31-10 at halftime, Jalen Hurts and the Sooners stormed back to win 34-31.
2 Since we have data, teams are 0-2 both ATS and SU when meeting a team in the postseason that they trailed by at least 24 points at halftime in their previous meeting. For what it’s worth – the under also hit in both of these games.
Saturday 12/7 – 4pm ET
8 It has been 8 years since the LSU Tigers have appeared in an SEC Championship game. As the #1 seed, the Tigers routed – who else – Georgia 42-10 back in 2011. Tyrann Mathieu won POTG honors.
4 LSU has won ATS in each of their 4 previous matchups with UGA. Dating back to 1986, LSU is 10-5 ATS (66.7%) against UGA. Bovada currently has LSU -7 (-110).
2 Kirby Smart and UGA have appeared in 2 SEC Championship games and have covered the spread in each. In 2017, UGA demolished Auburn 28-7 and were only favored by 2 points. Last season, Alabama dealt Georgia a 35-28 loss but the Bulldogs were +11.5.
Saturday 12/7 – 8pm ET
11 The combined number of B10 title game appearances by OSU and WISC. 2019 will be the Badgers’ conference-leading 6th appearance. It will be the 5th time Ohio State has played in this game. The Buckeyes lead all B10 teams with 3 B10 title game victories.
7 In the past 7 meetings between Ohio State and Wisconsin, the Badgers have only won ATS once. The Buckeyes have won all 7 of these contests SU. The last time Wisconsin beat OSU was October 16, 2010.
I’m excited for this weekend. Plenty of betting opportunities are present. See you on top!
Kreighton loves sports, math, writing, and winning — he combines all of them as a writer for WagerBop. His favorite sports to review are MLB, NFL, NBA, NCAAF, and NCAABB.
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