The 2023 season enters the business end as number one ranked Michigan Wolverines take on the number four ranked Alabama Crimson Tide in the first semi-final at the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day.
The Wolverines went undefeated during the regular season with some monstrous performances to solidify their spot as favorites for the national championship, while Alabama went 11-1 over the regular season to set up this dream match.
We'll take a look at the match-up and provide you with our best free NCAAF betting picks to see if we can earn you some extra cash while you enjoy some excellent action on the field.
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Michigan Wolverines vs Alabama Crimson information
- Monday, January 1st 2024
- Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
- 17:00 ET kick-off
Season so far
Michigan have been the best team in the country during the 2023 season, and racked up a perfect 12-0 record to prove it.
The Wolverines opened the season with a brilliant 30-3 win over the East Carolina Pirates, before dominating the UNLV Rebels with a 35-7 win in week 2 in front of almost 110,000 fans. That was followed up with wins over the Bowling Green Falcons and Rutgers Scarlet Knights to move to 4-0 at home.
Their first game on the road came against the Nebraska Cornhuskers with a huge 45-7 win, before then earning another win away from home by defeating the Minnesota Golden Gophers 52-10. A 52-7 home win came next against the Indiana Hoosiers, before a stunning blowout earned them a 49-0 win on the road against Michigan State Spartans.
A 41-13 win over Purdue took them to 9-0 before a tough 24-15 win over Penn State took them to double digits for wins. There were then some tough games against Maryland Terrapins and Ohio State Buckeyes to close out the season 12-0, before a dominant 26-0 shutout over Iowa Hawkeyes in the Big 10 Championship game last time out.
Alabama on the other hand have had a fantastic season themselves, racking up an 11-1 regular season record with a current 11-game winning streak.
Crimson Tide claimed a huge 56-7 win in week 1 over the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders, but fell to defeat in week 2 against the Texas Longhorns 34-24 in a closely contested game. They then found themselves on the road in three of the next four games but claimed 17-3 win over South Florida Bulls, 40-17 win over Mississippi State Bulldogs and 26-20 win over the Texas A&MA Aggies, with a home win over Ole Miss Rebels in the midst of that too.
Home wins over Arkansas Razorbacks, Tennessee Volunteers and LSU Tigers followed in dominant fashion, before closing out the season with away wins over Kentucky Wildcats and Auburn Tigers, while they had a season-high 66-10 win over Chattanooga Nocs also.
The SEC Championship game against Georgia Bulldogs was close but they came out on top with a 27-24 score, as they saw off a late surge to claim the win.
NCAAF Picks: Michigan to win @ -118
Jim Harbaugh and Nick Saban go head-to-head for what’s anticipated to be the best game of the four-team College Football Playoff.
The Tide have not played a defense quite like Michigan’s yet and Jalen Milroe should struggle if his deep passes aren’t connecting or drawing flags. The Michigan defense is top 15 in third-down defense (30.8%), interceptions (16), passing yards allowed per game (152.6), rushing yards allowed per game (86.6), and red-zone defense (71.4%).
Milroe has very different efficiency when throwing 15 yards or less compared to 15 or more, so I expect Michigan to respect the deep ball ability and QB spy Milroe to limit his damage on the ground. Michigan has been the more consistent of the two Rose Bowl participants all season.
The Wolverines asserted their will against all of their opponents, and that is what makes them so dangerous and among the favorites to win the national championship.
Michigan should use a heavy dose of Corum and benefit from a few clutch throws out of McCarthy to pull off a Rose Bowl victory. Alabama should keep the contest close, but it may not see enough of the ball in the second half to conquer Michigan, so back the number one seeds to get it done.
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NCAAF Picks: Over 45.5 total match points @ -110
So far this season Alabama games have seen points galore, with their phenomenal offensive lineup shining through.
Across 13 games this season the Tide have averaged 35 points scored per game, while they have gone over this 45.5 points total three times just on their own. Defensively they've been decent too, averaging 18.3 points conceded per game but that is likely to get tested big time against Michigan.
The Wolverines have averaged 36.7 points scored per game across their 13 games this season, but defensively they have been far better than their opponents in the Rose Bowl with just 9.46 points conceded per game on average. They've also smashed this points total three times on their own this season.
As for game totals this total has landed in six of their 13 games this season, while it has landed in 11 of 13 Alabama games this season. That makes it very likely that we'll see it land again, and at -110 there is great value in backing it early.
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