Caleb Wilfinger
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Following a wild college football regular season, we’ve arrived at the most wonderful time of the year. The College Football Playoff is here and this season’s installment features potentially the best field we’ve ever gotten in terms of a point spread and entertainment value perspective. Those games aren’t the only action for college football fans on New Year’s Day, but that’s what we’ll be focusing on for this mega parlay.
You can read all our college football predictions on Monday’s games, but without any further ado, here’s my 2-leg NCAAF parlay with a potential payout of +1010 odds. Let’s take a look at each of the legs.
Alabama to win by 1-13 points (+200)
Washington to win by 1-13 points (+270)
NCAAF parlay odds: +1010
Odds available at FanDuel Sportsbook at the time of publishing
Alabama to win by 1-13 points over Michigan (+200)
The biggest bit of value in this bet comes from the fact that this is a lower total (45.5) than most playoff games from this era. That gives us a nice window for Alabama to win this game by a slim, or even double digit margin and still cash our bet. This game could go either way, but Alabama presents a challenge that most of Michigan’s previous opponents could not.
Michigan’s defense is outstanding, but it is hard to grasp how good the Wolverines truly are given the relatively light strength of schedule they played compared to the other playoff teams. Additionally, none of Michigan’s toughest opponents have quarterbacks with the dual-threat capabilities Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe possesses. The Crimson Tide have also improved dramatically on both sides of the ball as the year has gone along, in large part due to the leap that Milroe has made and their defensive line getting healthier. Furthermore, Michigan’s offensive line has struggled down the stretch, which could result in JJ McCarthy committing a crucial turnover, much like in last year’s playoff game against TCU when he threw 2 picks that were returned for touchdowns. Let’s back the Crimson Tide to get the job done in another disappointing playoff loss for Michigan.
Read our full Alabama vs Michigan predictions
Washington to win by 1-13 points over Texas (+270)
We’re going right back to the well with another winning margin bet for the second leg of our parlay, and I see tremendous value on this leg. I said this in my best bets piece, but it’s very difficult for me not to give the benefit of the doubt to Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer — who has a ridiculous 103-11 record as a coach — and this Huskies staff, including offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb. DeBoer and his staff have to know that Texas is elite up front, so the Huskies will likely rely on Michael Penix Jr. and this elite receiving corps to play to their strengths and air the ball out downfield against a banged-up Longhorns secondary. There’s also a bit of recent precedent for DeBoer getting the best of Steve Sarkisian, as the Huskies knocked off the Longhorns in last season’s Alamo Bowl. This is a game where I expect both teams to punch and counterpunch, so I’ll take Washington to win a close, exciting contest.
