Rose Bowl Odds, Picks | College Football Playoff Betting Preview for Alabama vs Michigan

While Florida State has every reason to be disgruntled with the College Football Playoff selection committee, no fan of the sport will complain about Michigan vs. Alabama matchup in the Rose Bowl.

Both Nick Saban and Jim Harbaugh last met in the 2020 Citrus Bowl, a 35-16 stomping by the Crimson Tide. Alabama leads the all-time series, 3-2, further adding to Harbaugh's struggles in bowl games.

Michigan has lost six straight bowl games under Harbaugh, including the last two semifinal games against Georgia and TCU. The program now enters the Rose Bowl for the 21st time, losing the previous three dating back to 2004.

The Wolverines faced the 35th-toughest strength of schedule, facing only three top-25 teams in Iowa, Ohio State and Penn State.

There were consistent issues in the passing game down the stretch, as Michigan enters the national semifinals looking to buck recent history for its coach.

Amid allegations of sign stealing, the Wolverines powered through the final three regular-season games without their coach.

Alabama is no stranger to having a month of preparation before a semifinal game, winning six of these matchups in a row with the only loss coming to Ohio State in the initial College Football Playoff in 2015.

The 2023 campaign may be Saban's best coaching job yet, bringing in new coordinators on both sides of the ball while dealing with a quarterback competition that lasted through late September.

The Crimson Tide suffered a loss at home to fellow playoff program Texas, rattling off 11 consecutive victories after the setback.

Alabama then ended one of the longest winning streaks in college football, beating former Saban assistant Kirby Smart and Georgia for the SEC Championship.

Now, Saban has a chance to pass Bear Bryant in national titles won at Alabama, vying for his seventh in 17 seasons in Tuscaloosa.

Saban made up his mind that Jalen Milroe would be the starting quarterback for the remainder of the season after the offensive struggles displayed during the South Florida game.

Since being named the full-time starter, Milroe has produced 18 big-time throws to just six turnover-worthy plays through the air. Similar to former quarterback Jalen Hurts, Milroe is lethal on the ground in any situation with 479 yards from scrambles and 214 from designed calls.

Milroe can beat a defense in a handful of ways, from finding wheel routes under pressure to deep passing and inside zone rush attempts.

Whether quick slants or deep routes are the call, Milroe has produced a quarterback rating above 100 in numerous different release time metrics.

The unexpected aspect of Milroe's passing is the success he finds downfield. The sophomore has logged 24 big-time throws and zero turnover-worthy plays on 64 passing attempts beyond 20 yards.

Slot receiver Isaiah Bond has become Milroe's favorite target, averaging more than two yards per route run. While Bond takes the shorter routes, Jermaine Burton and Kobe Prentice have generated at least 2.8 yards per route run and 10 receiving touchdowns.

For all of Alabama's struggles to find a quarterback entering the season, Milroe has emerged as one of the best deep-ball passers in college football.

Much like Michigan, the defense has been a rock for the Crimson Tide.

The secondary grades as the best coverage unit in the nation, per PFF. Cornerback Terrion Arnold leads the team with 12 pass breakups, which is also one of the highest individual numbers in college football.

EDGE Chris Braswell paces the unit in pressures, just surpassing outside linebacker Dallas Turner with 54 on the season.

Coordinator Kevin Steele has a defense that dominates outside zone run concepts out of the 3-3-5 personnel. The down-to-down Success Rate numbers are some of the best in FBS, complemented by a top-10 tackle grade.

If there's an area of weakness, Bama allows an average of 3.9 points on opponent drives that extend beyond the 40-yard line. The red-zone issues could be a factor against a Michigan offense that's top-20 in red-zone touchdown scoring.

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The Michigan passing attack all but vaporized over the final month of the season, as quarterback JJ McCarthy failed to crack 150 passing yards over the final four games.

The struggles started when McCarthy didn't attempt a pass in the second half against Penn State and then continued when he generated four turnover-worthy plays against Maryland.

This version of the Wolverines has not shown the same explosiveness off McCarthy's arm compared to last season when the quarterback posted 343 yards and multiple touchdowns against TCU in the Fiesta Bowl.

Instead, Michigan has relied on Blake Corum and the ground game to dominate opposing defenses.

Michigan must deal with the loss of senior offensive lineman Zak Zinter — a crucial piece to the run-blocking efficiency for Corum. Zinter was the "soul of the program," logging nearly every snap at right guard since the 2021 season.

The loss particularly hurts the inside zone read option run by McCarthy and Corum, which generated an average Success Rate of 47% this season.

Zinter was frequently used to generate first downs, as Corum generated 12 first downs and an average of 6.1 yards per carry over the right guard position.

While the Michigan offense failed to create a consistent amount of explosives, the defense saved the team down the stretch. Coordinator Jesse Minter dominated Big Ten offenses with 2-4-5 personnel and a heavy amount of Cover 3.

Michigan ranks top-10 in nearly every defensive category. The Wolverines were Havoc-minded, producing 13 fumbles while ranking top-five in broken tackles allowed.

Toggle the dropdowns below to hide or show how Alabama and Michigan match up statistically:

Alabama Offense vs. Michigan Defense

	Offense	Defense	Edge
Rush Success	41	8
Line Yards	47	8
Pass Success	40	8
Havoc	126	10
Finishing Drives	19	2
Quality Drives	46	2

Michigan Offense vs. Alabama Defense

	Offense	Defense	Edge
Rush Success	45	19
Line Yards	58	58
Pass Success	2	13
Havoc	1	33
Finishing Drives	10	74
Quality Drives	4	21

Pace of Play / Other

PFF Tackling	9	2
PFF Coverage	1	1
Special Teams SP+	2	4
Middle 8	33	24
Seconds per Play	29.1 (105)	31.7 (133)
Rush Rate	63.1% (17)	61.7% (14)

The market continues to get flooded with Alabama money, yet there has been minimal movement in the early number. While the Crimson Tide take the majority of bets at shops with low limits, the Michigan moneyline is the preferred side at the larger shops.

There's an overwhelming sentiment that the numbers produced by the Wolverines are a bit fraudulent considering the strength of offenses faced, as only Ohio State ranks in the top 40.

While Alabama has certainly been through trial by fire, there may be a better path for Michigan to advance to Houston.

Wolverines offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore opted to run Corum at a higher rate than normal in the wake of the sign-stealing scandal. This version of the offensive line is not getting the same push as previous semifinal squads and will look to attack Alabama with inside zone, man and power run concepts.

The great news for the Wolverines is that the Alabama front seven dominates outside zone, a concept rarely used by Michigan. If Michigan can overcome the loss of Zinter on the offensive line, Alabama ranks 103rd in Defensive Stuff Rate.

McCarthy must return to form after suffering an injured ankle that lingered into the Big Ten Championship game against Iowa. McCarthy did not post an explosive run through the last month of the season and has attempted just 16 scrambles this season — a drop-off from the 24 he attempted a season ago.

For Michigan to be successful with inside zone, Crimson Tide edge defenders must believe McCarthy is a viable threat to run at the level he did in 2022.

The Wolverines defense must execute on several bullet points to stave off the attack led by Milroe.

While Milroe has excelled with the deep ball, he has been awful when it comes to mid-range throws. The quarterback has posted just a single big-time throw and seven turnover-worthy plays in 62 attempts from 10-19 yards.

Georgia played quarters coverage and allowed those areas to be open, forcing Milroe's only turnover-worthy play to come on an attempt between 10 and 19 yards downfield.

Milroe continues to pass on downfield throws, electing to run or hit a running back on the wheel route.

The path for the Michigan defense is clear: keep Milroe in the pocket and take away the deep pass. This was the path for both Georgia and Texas, each giving the middle of the field away to keep Milroe grounded in the pocket.

For the Michigan offense, McCarthy must return as a dual-threat signal-caller after his ankle injury. The Alabama defense can be beaten with inside zone, as its defensive efficiency drops closer and closer to the goal line.

The loss of Zinter at right guard must be overcome for Michigan to find success on inside zone attempts.

Finally, Michigan must change up the offensive playbook and find explosives early. Moore utilized a similar plan in what turned out to be a high-scoring Fiesta Bowl against TCU a year ago.

Action Network projects the game as a pick'em on a neutral field with a total of 50.

If the Wolverines come out with a fully healthy McCarthy and running back Donovan Edwards, Michigan's tempo and rate of explosives will easily push the scoring over the total.

One player who can make a difference is Michigan slot Roman Wilson, who has hauled in 11 touchdowns this season. Of all the pass routes faced by Alabama's elite secondary, the Crimson Tide have been most vulnerable against the slant.

There are two sample semifinal games to pull from.

Michigan attempted to line up and run over Georgia in 2021. When that failed, the same Michigan team elected to go spread and utilize explosives against TCU a season ago.

Considering the success Payton Thorne had with his mobility in the Iron Bowl, McCarthy is the central figure for any scoring against Alabama.

There's every expectation that Michigan will open up the playbook to prevent a repeat of the 2021 Peach Bowl semifinal against Georgia.

The Wolverines must have everything break right, including the turnover margin against Milroe.

Pick: Over 44.5 · Michigan ML -120 · Roman Wilson Anytime TD +170

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