Arkansas at Alabama

The oddsmakers anticipate another dog fight that will go down to the wire, much like last year's exciting 24-20 Tide win. But, there are some major differences here that have me doubting that outcome. Alabama had a very good defense last year, but this year they are even better, allowing a mere 6.0 points per game. Lacy and Richardson are running all over opponents on offense, taking the pressure off of young QB A.J McCarron. That might not be the case for Arkansas QB Tyler Wilson. He will be starting on the road for the first time in front of a sea of red 100,000 strong. He will also see arguably the best defense in the country, plenty capable of shutting down the run, forcing the Razorbacks into mistakes. This line may look big, but Arkansas is not as good as they were last year, and their 3-0 mark is all at home against three soft opponents in Missouri State, New Mexico and Troy. Bama had two softies too, but won those games by a combined score of 89-7. In their one true test, they went to Penn State and won by 16 points. This team is for real. Nick Saban is 48-27 ATS in his coaching career coming off a home win including 21-9 ATS if the win was a blowout by 28+ points. Alabama makes a statement here.