Historic (And Weird) College Football Betting Facts from Alabama-Citadel

Sitting on a Citadel +53 ticket? Bet you felt nervous in the second half.

Alabama closed -53 against the Bulldogs on Saturday, but after the first half, it was tied at 10. The Tide were -42 in the first half, and had been unbeaten against the first-half spread entering the game.

Here are four different ways this was a historical game from a betting perspective.

1. Alabama Was a Historic First-Half Favorite

Since 2005, there have only been 12 teams to be at least a 40-point favorite in the first half.

The favorites were only 4-8 against the spread entering Saturday, but had all scored at least 35 points. No underdog in this spot had ever trailed by fewer than 25 points.

2. Alabama Was the Biggest Second-Half Favorite EVER

According to our Bet Labs database, no team had ever been a second-half favorite of more than 24.5 points — LSU against Furman in 2013, when the Tigers led 20-16 at halftime.

A team has been a second-half favorite of more than 20 points only 38 times since 2005.

3. Nick Saban Continues to Lose ATS as Big Favorite

Alabama failed to cover +53 for the full game, which has been somewhat of a theme for Saban, who fell to 4-12 ATS as a favorite of at least 42 points.

Secretly, he's probably happy. The Tide still won big but he gets to scream at his players. Pray for Auburn next week.

4. This Was Almost Alabama's Biggest Spread Ever

Since 1980, Alabama has been a favorite of at least 40 points 16 times. This was only the fourth time the Tide were favored by 50 or more.