List of Odds to Win The 2014 College Football National Championship Can Be Found Below!

The Sears Trophy has only just been handed out to the Alabama Crimson Tide, and now, we are already on to next year. The college football futures lines are already posted, and we are going to be making all of our NCAA football predictions and early betting lines for the odds to win the 2014 National Championship.

Where else could we possibly start than the Alabama Crimson Tide (Odds To Win The College Football Championship: 3.25 to 1 at WagerWeb Sportsbook)? The Crimson Tide have now won back to back National Championships, and they have won both games in dominating form. QB AJ McCarron is coming back for his senior season, and he is going to be trying to get an amazing third straight title. RB TJ Yeldon is just a frosh, and he has proven that he can carry the load regardless of what else comes back to this team. Head Coach Nick Saban is always going to be a defensive mastermind, and even though there are several that are leaving the program from this most recent title team, this isn’t a team that rebuilds. It reloads. There’s no reason to think that the Tide won’t be one of the contenders to win the BCS Championship once again next season.

First Head Coach Chip Kelly was coming back to Eugene… Then he wasn’t… Still, the Oregon Ducks (BCS Championship Odds: 6 to 1 at WagerWeb Sportsbook) are the second favorites to win it all. QB Marcus Mariota was just a freshman this year, and he was one of the most dynamic quarterbacks in the country. RB/WR De’Anthony Thomas was supposed to be a Heisman Trophy candidate last year, and though that never came to fruition, he is still clearly going to be a man to watch out for this year. The question that we have about Oregon is whether the NCAA is going to smack the university with some sanctions. Obviously, if the team is nailed for NCAA violations, there won’t be a chance to win it all. The odds on the Ducks aren’t going anywhere when push comes to shove over the course of the next several month, and it really might not be the risk to play on the U of O right now without knowing what, and if anything, will happen to the university.

If QB Zach Mettenberger can get his act together and get this offense going, there is no reason to think that the LSU Tigers (BCS Championship Betting Lines: 16 to 1 at WagerWeb Sportsbook) won’t ultimately be title contenders once again. Sure, they have to go to Tuscaloosa to take on the Crimson Tide in SEC West play, but it’s not like we haven’t seen this team take the fullest advantage of the situation even with a defeat in the SEC. One-loss teams in the SEC are good enough to win a National Championship, and that might be what we see out of the Bayou Bengals. This offense is only going to get better in Mettenberger’s second year, and that’s pivotal for a team that finished the year with three defeats. Head Coach Les Miles is staying after flirting with the idea of going to the Arkansas Razorbacks, and that should keep this club on the map for quite some time, and this year is no exception.

Of course, the other side of the SEC is the one that we are worried about as well. The Florida Gators (Odds To Win BCS Championship: 25 to 1 at WagerWeb Sportsbook) are the real deal and will be one of the best teams in the country this year if they can get some quarterback play. QB Jeff Driskel was a train wreck, but he still led the team to an 11-1 record in the regular season, including winning on the road against the Florida State Seminoles. This defense was out of this world this year, though the Louisville Cardinals did expose the unit in the Sugar Bowl. There’s still no doubt that this was the season that Head Coach Will Muschamp was working towards, and the men in orange and blue could be back in the saddle as title contenders. A game on the road with LSU is going to be tough, as will a road test at the South Carolina Gamecocks, but we also have to remember that the Gators dodge some of the other best teams in the SEC West, and they get Florida State in Gainesville.

A team that we think could be intriguing this year is the Michigan Wolverines (College Football Championship Odds: 35 to 1 at WagerWeb Sportsbook). QB Devin Gardner took over at the end of the campaign, and he is now going to have control of the quarterback position full-time with Denard Robinson leaving Ann Arbor. RB Fitzgerald Toussaint should be back off of his season-ending injury in 2012 and should be a force to be reckoned with in the Big Ten, while WR Jeremy Gallon came on strong at the end of his junior season and could be a great wide out in his final campaign. Now add all of that with a schedule that features the Ohio State Buckeyes, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and Nebraska Cornhuskers at home. The schedule is weakened, and the Big Ten is a conference that is down at the moment, and Big Blue might be able to take advantage of that this year.

2013-14 College Football Championship Odds @ WagerWeb Sportsbook (as of 2/3/13):
(Get An UNBELIEVABLE 200% Sportsbook Bonus at WagerWeb.com When Using This Link)
Alabama Crimson Tide 3.25 to 1
Oregon Ducks 6 to 1
Ohio State Buckeyes 7 to 1
Texas A&M Aggies 10 to 1
Georgia Bulldogs 12 to 1
LSU Tigers 16 to 1
South Carolina Gamecocks 18 to 1
Louisville Cardinals 20 to 1
Clemson Tigers 25 to 1
Florida Gators 25 to 1
Florida State Seminoles 25 to 1
Stanford Cardinal 25 to 1
Notre Dame Fighting Irish 28 to 1
Miami Hurricanes 30 to 1
Oklahoma State Cowboys 30 to 1
Texas Longhorns 30 to 1
Michigan Wolverines 35 to 1
Oklahoma Sooners 40 to 1
Nebraska Cornhuskers 50 to 1
UCLA Bruins 50 to 1
USC Trojans 50 to 1
Wisconsin Badgers 60 to 1
Boise State Broncos 75 to 1
Michigan State Spartans 100 to 1
North Carolina Tar Heels 100 to 1
Oregon State Beavers 100 to 1
Rutgers Scarlet Knights 100 to 1
TCU Horned Frogs 100 to 1
Washington Huskies 100 to 1
BYU Cougars 150 to 1
Cincinnati Bearcats 150 to 1
Mississippi State Bulldogs 150 to 1
Tennessee Volunteers 150 to 1
Virginia Tech Hokies 150 to 1
Arizona Wildcats 200 to 1
Arkansas Razorbacks 200 to 1
Auburn Tigers 200 to 1
Iowa Hawkeyes 200 to 1
Kansas State Wildcats 200 to 1
Pittsburgh Panthers 200 to 1
Cal Golden Bears 300 to 1
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 300 to 1
Missouri Tigers 300 to 1
South Florida Bulls 300 to 1
West Virginia Mountaineers 300 to 1
Boston College Eagles 500 to 1

2013 GoDaddy.com Bowl picks are going to be entertaining to make this year, as we have two teams that are going to be going at it against each other in what could be an unpredictable game in the Arkansas State Red Wolves and the Kent State Golden Flashes. Join us for our GoDaddy.com Bowl keys to the game and our Kent State vs. Arkansas State predictions.

2013 GoDaddy.com Bowl: Arkansas State Red Wolves vs. Kent State Golden Flashes
2013 GoDaddy.com Bowl Location: Ladd Peebles Stadium, Mobile, AL
2013 GoDaddy.com Bowl Date/Time: Sunday, January 6th, 9:00 p.m. (ET)
2013 GoDaddy.com Bowl On TV: ESPN

Click Here For The Rest Of The 2012-13 Bowl Game Schedule And Other Bowl Game Previews

Key #1: The Red Wolves have to figure out how to run their offense without Gus Malzahn
Gus Malzahn has always been able to run a fluid offense no matter where he has gone, but his system often takes some time to install in the most efficient form. This year, the Red Wolves struggled for a few weeks, but over the course of their last seven games, they scored at least 36 points in all of those games. Of course, some of that is a matter of the fact that these games were all Sun Belt outings, and this conference really isn’t the greatest in the country. But that being said, Malzahn is now gone, and the team is going to have to run its offense without him. QB Ryan Aplin has had a heck of a lot thrown his way over the course of his career. But can he really figure out how to pass this last test without his head coach calling the shots? That might be the most important question in the GoDaddy.com Bowl.

GoDaddy.com Bowl Odds at BetGuardian Sportsbook
Arkansas State Red Wolves -3.5
Kent State Golden Flashes +3.5
Over/Under 63
Click Here to Bet Your GoDaddy.com Bowl Picks!

Key #2: Dri Archer and Trayion Durham need to be monsters
It was a real miracle that the Golden Flashes were even able to stick around in the MAC Championship Game against the Northern Illinois Huskies. QB Spencer Keith only threw for 190 yards with a TD and two picks, but more importantly, RB Dri Archer and RB Trayion Durham only combined for 32 carries and 87 yards. Needless to say, that just isn’t going to cut it for a team that relies on running the ball to move up and down the field. These two combined for 29 TDs and 2,600 total rushing yards this year, not to mention the fact that they combined for over 3,000 total yards from scrimmage on the campaign. The Arkansas State defense can be had, but so too, could the NIU defense. Instead, the Huskies put together 524 total yards in the MAC Championship Game, which kept the ball away from the Flashes. Not only did that provide fewer opportunities for the two main rushers to do damage for Kent State, but when the rushing game failed to even average 2.0 yards per carry, the defense was put into some horrible spots. Kent State has to get back to its old ways to have a chance to win this game.

Key #3: Kent State’s secondary has to challenge Ryan Aplin
The one thing that the Malzahn offense did this year was keep control of the football. QB Ryan Aplin only threw four picks all season long. He wasn’t always tested by the Sun Belt defenses, but this is going to be a game where he gets his fill for sure. The Kent State defense was second in the nation in interceptions this year with 23 picks, led by DB Luke Wollet, who had four picks. The only team that had more INTs this year was the Oregon Ducks, and they have some NFL defenders, unlike Kent State. The Golden Flashes really did a remarkable job this year of thievery, as they led the MAC in total turnovers forced (38), total picks (23), and turnover margin (+21). The problem is that Arkansas State only turned the ball over a total of 14 times on the season and were a +8 for the year. The second for KSU has to figure out how to force some turnovers in this one, or it is going to be brutally tough to pull off the upset.

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The X’s and O’s of the BBVA Compass Bowl predictions aren’t shared by many expert handicappers, but here at Bankroll Sports, we are giving up all of our insight and telling you all of the keys to the game for the Ole Miss Rebels vs. Pittsburgh Panthers. The BBVA Compass Bowl picks are some of the hardest to make this year of all of the bowl games, so don’t miss out on all of our Ole Miss vs. Pittsburgh predictions!

2013 BBVA Compass Bowl: Ole Miss Rebels vs. Pittsburgh Panthers
2013 BBVA Compass Bowl Location: Legion Field, Birmingham, AL
2013 BBVA Compass Bowl Date/Time: Saturday, January 5th, 1:00 p.m. (ET)
2013 BBVA Compass Bowl On TV: ESPN

Click Here For The Rest Of The 2012-13 Bowl Game Schedule And Other Bowl Game Previews

Key #1: The Panthers have to want to be here in Birmingham
The words “Anywhere but Birmingham” have come up quite a bit over the course of the last month and change for the Panthers, as they really wanted to go anywhere but here for their bowl trip in the winter. The truth of the matter is that the upperclassmen are right; they shouldn’t have to be coming to the same bowl game for the third straight year. But alas, the options are the Compass Bowl or no bowl for the Panthers, and they weren’t good enough to warrant going anywhere else on the Big East bowl ladder. The truth of the matter is that this club limped through the motions in the Compass Bowl last year, getting blown to bits by the SMU Mustangs 28-6. Of course, the way that SMU dismantled the Fresno State Bulldogs in this year’s Hawaii Bowl as big time underdogs does help out the credibility of that loss to the ‘Stangs, but it doesn’t sting any less. Will we see the Panthers team that came out with their hair on fire a month and change ago versus the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, or the one that was romped by the Youngstown State Penguins at the outset of the year? That’s the big question in this one and will be the deciding factor in this game.

BBVA Compass Bowl Odds at BetRevolution Sportsbook
Ole Miss Rebels -3.5
Pittsburgh Panthers +3.5
Over/Under 54
Click Here to Bet Your BBVA Compass Bowl Picks!

Key #2: Bo Wallace has to play like the man that he was in the final three games of the year
There had to be some clamoring through nine games to sit QB Bo Wallace down as the starting quarterback of the Rebels. The team was 5-4 at the time and still one win away from bowl eligibility, and it knew that it was probably going to be an underdog in each of the last three games of the year. As it turns out, Ole Miss was favored over the Vanderbilt Commodores in a game that was lost, but it was still a defining moment for Wallace. Prior to that game, he had averaged just 204.0 passing yards per game and had just 11 passing touchdowns. In his last three, which came against Vanderbilt, the LSU Tigers, and the Mississippi State Bulldogs, mind you, he averaged 335.7 passing yards per game and had eight TDs. The transformation has been remarkable for this young man, and the end result has been more points and more efficiency offensively in spite of the fact that the defenses that he has been facing have been outstanding. If Wallace plays like the man from November and less like the man from September and October, the Rebs could put a slew of points on the board.

Key #3: The Panthers have to find a way to run the football
It’s odd to think that a smash mouth team like Pittsburgh would have a tough time moving the ball on the ground, but that’s exactly what happened this year. The team ranked just 92nd in the nation, averaging 137.4 rushing yards per game. The big problem has been opening up holes for the often injured RB Ray Graham. Graham averaged 5.7, 6.2, and 5.8 yards per carry over the course of the first three years of his career, but he averaged just 4.7 yards per carry this year. Many figured that Graham was going to threaten being a 1,500+ yard back and could have led the nation in rushing this year, so 222 carries, 1,042 yards, and 11 TDs seems to be a bit underwhelming. To make matters worse for Graham in this game, his starting right guard, OL Arthur Doakes has been sent home for violating team rules, and he is going to be running the ball against a defense that ranks 31st in the nation at just 134.3 rushing yards per game. This could be key for the Panthers, as if they can’t run it, we just don’t trust that QB Tino Sunseri can throw this team to victory.

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The 2013 Cotton Bowl picks are going to be difficult to make, as the Texas A&M Aggies and Oklahoma Sooners are set to do battle with one another in a Big XII vs. SEC battle. Check out our Cotton Bowl predictions and the keys to the game for Texas A&M vs. Oklahoma.

Click Here For The Rest Of The 2012-13 Bowl Game Schedule And Other Bowl Game Previews

2013 Cotton Bowl: Texas A&M Aggies vs. Oklahoma Sooners
2013 Cotton Bowl Location: Cotton Bowl Stadium, Dallas, TX
2013 Cotton Bowl Date/Time: Friday, January 4th, 8:00 p.m. (ET)
2013 Cotton Bowl Television Coverage: FOX

Key #1: Johnny Football has to play like a senior
This is a tremendously and painfully obvious statement to make in this game. QB Johnny Manziel was remarkable this year, and he had to be the Heisman Trophy winner as a result. You don’t just throw for 3,419 yards, rush for 1,181 yards, and account for 43 total touchdowns in the SEC West without winning the Heisman, especially when your team goes 10-2 and is the only team to beat the Alabama Crimson Tide this year. Remember too, that it isn’t just about what Manziel does with his arm or his legs that makes a difference. He also has to be a heady player that makes the right decisions with the ball. Head Coach Kevin Sumlin puts a lot of stock into his quarterback making plays at the line, making the right audible, making the right throw, and knowing when to keep it and when to hand it off on the option. Remember that RB Ben Malena, RB Christine Michael, and RB Trey Williams combined this year for 1,504 rushing yards and 23 TDs to add to what Manziel was able to do. But if Manziel doesn’t bring his best game to the table in this, his 13th game of his career, the Sooners are going to probably get the better of him.

Cotton Bowl Odds at Diamond Sportsbook
Texas A&M Aggies -3.5
Oklahoma Sooners +3.5
Over/Under 72
Click Here to Bet Your Cotton Bowl Picks!

Key #2: Oklahoma can’t let this game get up to a frantic pace
Oklahoma did win all of its shootouts this year, and the two games it lost were kept to a snail’s pace against the Kansas State Wildcats and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, but it can’t let this one get into a shootout. QB Landry Jones made too many mistakes with the football this year (10 picks) for him to have to ultimately put the ball in the air 60 or 70 times against the Aggies. Yes, Texas A&M’s defense didn’t have a single player log more than two picks for the entire season, but we just don’t trust that Jones can avoid making the big turnover to give A&M the huge advantage when push comes to shove. Remember that the Baylor Bears, West Virginia Mountaineers, and Oklahoma State Cowboys all pushed the Sooners down the stretch in big time Big XII games, and this is essentially just another game just like these, knowing that these two teams shared the Big XII together through last season.

Key #3: The Aggies have to man up in the red zone on defense
Texas A&M had a great red zone team this year, scoring on 85.5% of its trips inside the opposition’s 20 yard line. It became a heck of a lot easier to do just that with Manziel on the field. However, the Aggies are really going to have a problem in this one stopping the Sooners when they’re inside the 20. Oklahoma ranked 11th in the country, scoring on 89.1% of all of its red zone trips this year. A lot of that was thanks to the play of QB Blake Bell, who rushed for 11 TDs this year. Some of that was due to RB Damien Williams as well, and QB Landry Jones was generally lethal when he got inside the 20 and always has been over the course of his whole career. That’s why this is going to be such a tough draw for an A&M defense that hasn’t always been at its best. If this is the team that lined up toe-to-toe with Alabama and came up with the stop on the goal line that changed the course of the entire season across the whole country, the Aggies can win this game. If not though, this could be a long one for the men from College Station.

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Our 2013 bowl predictions continue on Thursday, January 3rd with the Fiesta Bowl, and we are set to make our Fiesta Bowl predictions, tips, and keys to the game for the duel between the Oregon Ducks and the Kansas State Wildcats.

2013 Fiesta Bowl: Oregon Ducks vs. Kansas State Wildcats
2013 Fiesta Bowl Location: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, AZ
2013 Fiesta Bowl Date/Time: Thursday, January 3rd, 8:30 p.m. (ET)
2013 Fiesta Bowl On TV: ESPN, Watch ESPN

Click Here For The Rest Of The 2012-13 Bowl Game Schedule And Other Bowl Game Previews

Key #1: The Wildcats have to put their best foot forward along the defensive line
The Ducks obviously have one of the best rushing teams on the planet, as they are averaging 323.2 yards per game on the ground. That ranks second in the nation, and it is the top mark amongst non-triple option teams. We know that RB Kenjon Barner is remarkable, and he rushed for 1,624 yards and 21 TDs this year. QB Marcus Mariota rushed for 690 yards, WR De’Anthony Thomas rushed for 686 yards, and RB Byron Marshall had 445 yards as well. These three men averaged 43.5 rushes per game over the course of the year. Kansas State though, has figured out how to stop the run this year to the tune of just 119.2 yards per game, and we have seen Oregon get the stopped before on the ground as well recently, against the Stanford Cardinal. The Wildcats held some of the best teams in the Big XII down in the teens and 20s in scoring, and a lot of that was thanks to that awesome 17th ranked rush defense. Perhaps the most impressive display is when the Oklahoma Sooners were kept to just 19 points in Norman when the Wildcats were 15.5-point underdogs. This isn’t quite the same game, but it has the same type of feel to it.

Fiesta Bowl Odds at WagerWeb Sportsbook
Oregon Ducks -8
Kansas State Wildcats +8
Over/Under 73.5
Click Here to Bet Your Fiesta Bowl Picks!

Key #2: Marcus Mariota has to play like a senior in spite of the fact that he is a frosh
The Ducks will only go as far as their freshman quarterback takes them. We’ve already spoken about what Mariota has done on the ground with his legs this year, as he averaged 7.0 yards per rush and often got himself out of some trouble when he was under pressure from oncoming defenders. Mariota also threw the ball for 2,511 yards and 30 TDs against just six picks. He completed 69.9 percent of his passes and averaged 8.0 yards per pass attempt. We have seen the Wildcats get thrown upon this year, and they conceded 255.2 passing yards per game. The question is whether Mariota is going to be able to be the whole package. It’s not about the passing yards, it’s not about the passing touchdowns, and it’s not about his legs. It’s about doing it all and not turning the ball over against a defense that allowed a shade over three touchdowns per game on average this year. The stage is huge. Mariota has to embrace that and play like a senior, and not just the freshman that he is.

Key #3: The Ducks have to avoid all of the distractions going on around them
The Ducks did win the Rose Bowl last year, but they haven’t really historically played all that well in bowl games under Head Coach Chip Kelly. That’s a huge distraction in itself, as is the fact that it has been over a month and a half since the last time that the team played a game. What’s worse for the Ducks is that Kelly is clearly on his way out of the school. The university is going to be under NCAA scrutiny here in the next several months, and bowl sanctions could be on the way. The time is here for Kelly to go to the NFL, and it almost seems like a given that someone is going to pay to bring his genius to the big boy league. Can the Ducks get past all of this and put together a fantastic game plan against a great team? It would be a heck of a lot easier if the BCS National Championship was on the line, but it isn’t. Is the Fiesta Bowl a big enough prize? Those are a heck of a lot of questions for the Ducks to be answering with a heck of a lot going on around them.

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The X’s and O’s of the Orange Bowl predictions aren’t shared by many expert handicappers, but here at Bankroll Sports, we are giving up all of our insight and telling you all of the keys to the game for the Northern Illinois Huskies vs. Florida State Seminoles. The Orange Bowl picks are some of the hardest to make this year of all of the bowl games, so don’t miss out on all of our Northern Illinois vs. Florida State predictions!

2013 Orange Bowl: Northern Illinois Huskies vs. Florida State Seminoles
2013 Orange Bowl Location: Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, FL
2013 Orange Bowl Date/Time: Tuesday, January 1st, 8:30 p.m. (ET)
2013 Orange Bowl On TV: ESPN

Click Here For The Rest Of The 2012-13 Bowl Game Schedule And Other Bowl Game Previews

Key #1: The Seminoles have to want to win this game
It’s tough to question whether a team wants to show up and play in a BCS bowl game, but even here, at the highest level of bowl games, you get teams that just fail to show up from time to time. The truth of the matter is that this is the only way that FSU is even getting remotely challenged. Yes, the team is banged up on defense, but we have seen the Noles sleepwalk through the season. NC State picked them off. Florida did, too. Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech came close. And why did that happen? It’s either because the Seminoles were severely overrated, or they just had a hard time getting motivated for games. Remember that the garnet and gold were the only team in America favored by at least a touchdown in each and every one of their games this year. If Head Coach Jimbo Fisher can’t get his boys up for this one though, it could end up being an embarrassing day for Florida State.

Orange Bowl Odds at BetRevolution Sportsbook
Northern Illinois Huskies +13.5
Florida State Seminoles -13.5
Over/Under 58.5
Click Here to Bet Your Orange Bowl Picks!

Key #2: Jordan Lynch has to figure out how to get something going offensively
This really is the key for the Huskies in this one. For as inconsistent as Florida State’s offense has been this year, the defense has really consistently been pretty darn good. This is going to be the biggest challenge that the Huskies have ever seen defensively, and it is the biggest game of Lynch’s career. His stats speak for themselves; we don’t care what the level of competition is. If you throw for nearly 3,000 yards and rush for nearly 2,000 yards, even if it is in the MAC, you’ve still done something pretty remarkable. The question that we have for Lynch and the Huskies, though? Can you do it against an FBS team? Remember that the two worst offensive performances of the year for NIU came against the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Kansas Jayhawks. The argument could be made that that was all because it was early in the year, but the argument could also be made that the MAC really is just an overrated conference that has to right to stack up with the big boys. We’ll see the answer to that on New Year’s night.

Key #3: EJ Manuel has to go out with a bang
QB EJ Manuel is going to go down as one of the most efficient quarterbacks that Florida State has ever seen, but few are likely to ever remember him for all that much, aside from the fact that every loss the team suffers is considered to be on his back. Statistically speaking, this was the best year that Manuel has ever had, as he threw for 3,101 yards and 22 TDs against 10 picks and rushed for 284 yards and three more scores. More importantly, he stayed healthy all season long, which really helped matters as well. That being said, the senior is playing in his final game, and he doesn’t want to be remembered in Tallahassee as the man that lost to Florida and then lost the only BCS bowl game that the team has been at in quite some time. Manuel has thrown at least one pick in four straight games, and that just doesn’t cut it for a team that has such a remarkable defense. The offense has to at least do something for the Noles, and with RB Chris Thompson out of the fold and a running back by committee approach not always being the most effective, it could be up to Manuel’s arm to make the few big throws to win this game.

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Our 2013 bowl predictions continue on Monday, January 7th with the National Championship Game, and we are set to make our National Championship Game predictions, tips, and keys to the game for the duel between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

2013 National Championship Game: Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
2013 National Championship Game Location: Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, FL
2013 National Championship Game Date/Time: Monday, January 7th, 8:30 p.m. (ET)
2013 National Championship Game On TV: ESPN, Watch ESPN

Click Here For The Rest Of The 2012-13 Bowl Game Schedule And Other Bowl Game Previews

Key #1: The Fighting Irish have to prove that they can get through one of the best offensive lines in America
They say that the reason that even the teams in college football can’t even hold a candle to the worst team ever assembled in the NFL is because of the play in the trenches. The big boys in the NFL are just bigger, stronger, faster, and more agile than the ones in college, and whereas every now and again you get a team that has a few great linemen on both sides of the ball on a collegiate team, you’ve got tremendous depth along both lines in the NFL. If there is an offensive line in college football that was ready to go up against a defensive line in the NFL though, the Alabama line would be the one. The Crimson Tide feature just a slew of offensive linemen that just have a tendency of leaning on opposing defensive lines and ultimately getting them to wear down over the course of a game. It’s not that Alabama runs the ball a zillion times that really makes this team go – after all, the Tide do only run the ball on 63% of their plays. It’s just the fact that these linemen just continually pave hole after hole in opposing defenses. Don’t get us wrong, as RB Eddie Lacy and RB TJ Yeldon are both fantastic athletics. The reason that they are averaging 6.5 yards per carry each is because of this offensive line. It doesn’t matter who you’ve got running the ball when you’ve got Mack trucks there to pave the way. The Notre Dame defense has been great this year in a number of clutch situations in the trenches along the defensive line, but it hasn’t seen an offensive line like this one all year long. That’s where the Golden Domers are going to prove that they belong, or will shrivel in this game.

National Championship Game Odds at WagerWeb Sportsbook
Alabama Crimson Tide -10
Notre Dame Fighting Irish +10
Over/Under 40.5
Click Here to Bet Your National Championship Game Picks!

Key #2: Everett Golson has to prove that this is his time to shine
It’s tough to knock anything that the Irish have done this year, as they are a 12-0 team and the only undefeated team that is eligible to play for the National Championship this season. However, we have never been fans of the split quarterback system, especially knowing that QB Everett Golson was always taken out of the lineup in the two-minute drill. Every play is a big one when you’re playing against the talented Alabama defense, and Golson has to make the most of his opportunities. If Head Coach Brian Kelly truly believes that this is the man for the job, he should stick with him. Golson though, only completed 58.9 percent of his passes this year, averaged just 177.9 passing yards per game, and had just 11 TDs against five picks. He really doesn’t have a target, save for TE Tyler Eifert that is all that remarkable of a receiver, and in the end, it is going to come down to what he can make happen against one of the very best defenses in college football.

Key #3: The Irish have to control the clock
Time of possession is always a key stat in SEC games, and generally speaking, whichever team ultimately possesses the ball for longer tends to win. The Irish only average taking 68.7 snaps per game offensively this year, while the Crimson Tide are even lower at 63.2 offensive snaps per game. Clearly, neither of these teams are in all that much of a hurry to try to get up to the line of scrimmage and play. But ask the Georgia Bulldogs what happens when you get killed in the time of possession battle against Alabama. In the SEC Championship Game, Lacy ran for 181 yards, and Yeldon ran for 153 yards. The end result was 350 total rushing yards for the team on the day on a total of 51 carries. This goes back to that whole offensive line thing that we were talking about earlier. Alabama absolutely will punish you if you let it. The Fighting Irish cannot let the Crimson Tide take 70 snaps in this game, or they are going to be in a whole mess load of trouble. Golson has to keep the sticks moving on third downs, and when the defense has a chance to get off of the field, it has to take those chances. It isn’t absolutely imperative for Alabama to win the time of possession battle, but we feel as though Notre Dame has no chance whatsoever to get the job done if it doesn’t have the majority of the possession for the game.

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2013 Sugar Bowl picks are going to be entertaining to make this year, as we have two teams that are going to be going at it against each other in what could be an unpredictable game in the Florida Gators and the Louisville Cardinals. Join us for our Sugar Bowl keys to the game and our Louisville vs. Florida predictions.

2013 Sugar Bowl: Florida Gators vs. Louisville Cardinals
2013 Sugar Bowl Location: Mercedes Benz Superdome, New Orleans, LA
2013 Sugar Bowl Date/Time: Wednesday, January 1st, 8:30 p.m. (ET)
2013 Sugar Bowl On TV: ESPN

Click Here For The Rest Of The 2012-13 Bowl Game Schedule And Other Bowl Game Previews

Key #1: Florida’s offense needs to get something out of someone aside from Mike Gillislee
We give all of the credit in the world to what RB Mike Gillislee has been able to do this year. He has had a good offensive line in front of him, which really has helped quite a bit, and he put up 1,104 yards and a total of 11 TDs on the year. The most remarkable part about the whole thing is that he did all of this without any semblance of a passing game. Florida’s offense just stunk it up with QB Jeff Driskel out there, as he threw for just 1,465 yards and 11 TDs and rushed for 404 yards. Granted, when Driskel was at his best, Florida was in fine shape. The good news is that he was at his best in the team’s most recent game against the Florida State Seminoles. In that game, he threw for 147 yards and a score and proved to be the MVP of the game. When he was effective, the rest of the ground game was able to really get going, and the team ended up with 244 yards on 47 carries for the game. That’s the type of production that it is going to take to ultimately win the Sugar Bowl this year, but if Driskel has one of these games where he goes 10-of-28 for 90 yards with no scores, Florida is going to be in a heck of a lot of trouble.

Sugar Bowl Odds at BetGuardian Sportsbook
Florida Gators -14
Louisville Cardinals +14
Over/Under 47
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Key #2: Louisville’s defense has to step up against the run
For most of the season, Head Coach Charlie Strong had his boys from the ‘Ville playing great ball on the defensive side of things. Down the stretch though, the team slipped just a bit. The Syracuse Orange ran for 278 yards against this unit, and the Connecticut Huskies picked up 149 yards on the ground as well. The team rebounded against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and held a team that really can move the rock on the ground to just 54 yards, and that’s a large chunk of the reason why Louisville was even able to make it to the BCS this year. Take out that game against Syracuse though, and what’s left is a unit that allowed right around 140 yards per game rushing this year. If the Cardinals can hold the Gators to that type of a number, the blue and orange are going to have an awfully tough time figuring out how to cover the spread in this one, and potentially win the game outright as well. If Driskel is forced to put the ball in the air, the Gators are going to be in some trouble.

Key #3: The Cards cannot get beaten by Florida’s special teams
We have seen the Gators do too much work on special teams over the course of the last few months to know that it could be problematic again in this one. The team has tried fake punts, fake field goals, gimmick plays, has blocked punts, blocked kicks, returned kicks and punts for scores… You name it on special teams, Head Coach Will Muschamp has dialed it up. Most of it has worked, but not all of it has. If not for the blocked punt returned for a touchdown against the Louisiana Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns, it’s anyone’s guess as to whether the Gators would have been playing here or in the Outback Bowl (or worse). Here’s the other facet to Florida’s game that we haven’t discussed yet: The kicking game. K Caleb Sturgis has a huge leg and can boot it from 55 yards if given the chance. He was one of the better kickers in America this year, while P Kyle Christy averaged a whopping 46.1 yards per punt attempt. Special teams are where Florida really has killed a ton of foes this year, and Louisville has to avoid being the next team in a long line of clubs that succumbed to the UF special teams unit to have a chance at the upset.

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Our 2013 bowl predictions continue on Tuesday, January 1st with the Rose Bowl, and we are set to make our Rose Bowl predictions, tips, and keys to the game for the duel between the Wisconsin Badgers and the Stanford Cardinal.

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2013 Rose Bowl: Wisconsin Badgers vs. Stanford Cardinal
2013 Rose Bowl Location: Rose Bowl Stadium, Pasadena, CA
2013 Rose Bowl Date/Time: Tuesday, January 1st, 5:00 p.m. (ET)
2013 Rose Bowl On TV: ESPN, Watch ESPN

Key #1: The Badgers have to prove that they are a lot better than an 8-5 team
It almost seems like an insult that an 8-5 team is playing in the Rose Bowl this year. Granted, we know that the only reason that Wisconsin even had the chance to play in the Granddaddy of them All this year is because of the way that the Big Ten happened to shake out with both the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Ohio State Buckeyes on bowl probation. It’s tough to say that this is your average 8-5 team, though. The team lost its five games this year by a combined 19 points, and all but one of those losses came against teams that went on to win at least nine games. And, one of those losses against the Nebraska Cornhuskers was avenged in the Big Ten Championship Game. The schedule actually ended up being a lot tougher than we thought at the outset of the year, and there is a real chance for Wisky to prove that it is worthy of finishing ranked in the Top 25 if it can pull off this upset. There’s a reason that this team is playing in its third straight Rose Bowl in spite of the fact that it has used six different quarterbacks in that stretch.

Rose Bowl Odds at WagerWeb Sportsbook
Wisconsin Badgers +5.5
Stanford Cardinal -5.5
Over/Under 47.5
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Key #2: The offensive line for the Badgers and the defensive line for the Cardinal have to put on shows against the other
This is a heck of a battle between two units that are just flat out awesome. The offensive line for the Badgers is always one of the best in the nation, and this year has been no exception. In spite of the fact that the team has absolutely no passing game whatsoever, this OL just continues to be one of the best in the nation. RB Montee Ball, RB James White, and RB Melvin Gordon are great, but they wouldn’t get to 3,099 yards combined without a great front five. These three backs averaged 6.14 yards per carry this year, and that doesn’t happen for even the best backs in the game without an outstanding line. The defensive front for Stanford doesn’t get much help from the linebackers in the form of blitzes, but that doesn’t make this group ineffective by any stretch of the imagination. The Cardinal allowed just 88.0 yards per game this year on the ground, and that was the third best mark in the entire nation. Whichever team wins the battle in the trenches is going to be the team that has the upper hand in this game.

Key #3: One of these teams has to produce some form of a passing game
The Badgers have been through a ton of quarterbacks this year. QB Danny O’Brien simply stunk, and he was done after just a few games this year. After that, QB Joel Stave took over and completed 59.3 percent of his passes for 1,104 yards before getting hurt. Now, it’s up to QB Curt Phillips, who has started the last three games for Wisky. The team hasn’t played all that well offensively with Phillips in the lineup, and probably for a good reason. He’s a senior that had only thrown 12 passes in his career prior to this year without throwing a touchdown. On the other side of the field, Stanford has quarterback issues as well. QB Josh Nunes completed just 52.8 percent of his passes and threw seven picks against 10 scores before Head Coach David Shaw pulled the plug on him. Now, it’s up to QB Kevin Hogan, who is the future of the Stanford offense to get the job done. A highly touted recruit, Hogan hasn’t disappointed, but he hasn’t been asked to do much. He mostly throws very simple passes and gets the job done with his legs, which is why his completion percentage is so high at 72.9 percent. That being said, one of these teams badly needs to come up with a great game from their quarterback, and whichever one comes up with it will have the better chance of beating the college football betting odds in this one.

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