Alabama vs Michigan ReliaQuest Bowl Best Bet – 12/31/2024

On New Year’s Eve, Alabama and Michigan will do battle in the Reliaquest Bowl. Alabama nearly made the College Football Playoff this season, but fell just short, while Michigan spent most of this year in rebuilding mode. Going into this contest, Alabama is favored by 10.5 points, while the total for this matchup has been set at 43.5 points.

Here, you will find our preview of Alabama vs Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl. We have used our college football betting model and our in-depth knowledge of the college football betting landscape to identify our top pick for this game. Continue reading to find that pick, along with our keys to this game from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.

Alabama With Chip On Its Shoulder This Bowl Season

Going into this year’s college football bowl schedule the Alabama Crimson Tide will feel like they should be in a bigger and better game, as they were the last team kept out of this year’s College Football Playoff. After watching at-large teams like Indiana, SMU, and Tennessee play as badly as they did in the first round, Alabama will look to prove that they should have been in the playoff field with a win over Michigan.

Alabama is expecting Jalen Milroe to play in this game despite some rumors that he would opt out of the game. With Milroe at quarterback, Alabama should be able to move the ball on the ground with their quarterback. However, Milroe will need to avoid turning the ball over in order to bring this team their 10th win of the season.

Can Michigan Build On Rivalry Game Win?

The last time we saw the Michigan Wolverines, Michigan upset the Ohio State Buckeyes, bringing a wave of depression to Columbus, OH. That win moved Michigan to 7-5 for the season, with the Wolverines looking to get to eight wins on the season with a win in the ReliaQuest Bowl. For that to happen, Michigan is going to need more than just a strong defensive performance to get a victory.

Quarterback has been a question mark of a position for the Wolverines all season long and their win over Ohio State was no exception. Michigan managed just 13 points against the Buckeyes. That number likely will not be enough to beat Alabama, even if the Crimson Tide have struggled to breach playoff-caliber defenses on offense themselves.

Alabama vs Michigan Best Bet

We are going to take the Alabama Crimson Tide to win and cover the spread as a double-digit favorite in this Alabama vs Michigan matchup. The Wolverines are just no match for the Tide, thanks to the fact that Michigan’s offense is so accustomed to performing poorly against quality defensive foes. Look for Alabama to hold Michigan under 20 points in this game and for the Tide to use their anger at being left out of the playoff as fuel to win big here.