One day after No. 1 Alabama and No. 3 Georgia ran away with dominant victories in the College Football Playoff semifinals, the Bulldogs have opened as 2.5-point favorites on SI Sportsbook, with an over/under of 52.5.
In the first semifinal on New Year's Eve, Alabama cruised to a 27–6 victory over No. 4 Cincinnati, the first Group of 5 program to make the College Football Playoff.
Led by a stalwart defensive effort that limited the Bearcats to just 76 total yards in the first half, the Crimson Tide will head to its sixth national championship game in the eight seasons of the College Football Playoff era.
Georgia, meanwhile, crushed No. 2 Michigan 34–11 behind 310 passing yards and three touchdowns from Stetson Bennett.
After sealing a rematch of the SEC championship game with Alabama, Bulldogs fans serenaded the Orange Bowl with “S-E-C” chants.
Alabama got the better of then-No. 1 Georgia in the conference championship game on Dec. 4 with a 41–24 win. Bryce Young threw for 421 yards and three touchdowns en route to becoming the first Alabama quarterback to win the Heisman.
The two SEC rivals will meet in their second national championship game of the Playoff era. In an overtime thriller in 2018, Alabama prevailed 26–23 as Crimson Tide quarterback Tua Tagovailoa earned Offensive MVP honors.
Alabama won last year's final 52–24 over Ohio State and will look to become the first repeat champion since Nick Saban led the Crimson Tide to consecutive BCS national championships to cap the '11 and '12 seasons.
