A rematch of the 2024 Rose Bowl? Sign us up. Here’s a look at the betting odds for Michigan vs Alabama in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
The 7-5 Michigan Wolverines are set to take on the 9-3 Alabama Crimson Tide in the ReliaQuest Bowl on New Year’s Eve in Tampa, Florida.
Per FanDuel Sportsbook , Michigan is currently a 12.5-point underdog against Alabama. This isn’t the worst news for a Michigan, as they were 20.5-point underdogs against Ohio State and prevailed 13-10.
This is a rematch of the 2024 Rose Bowl, a 27-20 overtime win for the Wolverines that put them in the National Championship. Coincidentally, Alabama’s new head coach, Kaleb DeBoer, was the head coach of Michigan National Championship opponent, Washington and beat the Huskies 34-13.
Alabama narrowly missed the College Football Playoff this season, with pundits such as former Alabama head coach Nick Saban clamoring that the Tide should have been in the playoffs with SMU left out. Alabama gets a rematch with Michigan instead, but will they play inspired football or will being left out of the playoffs have the locker room feeling uninspired?
Both teams are going to look a lot different than a season ago and it remains to be seen which NFL Draft eligible players will be sitting this one out. The transfer portal will also impact the roster of each program, with names such as Michigan receiver Tyler Morris, who had a touchdown against Bama in the Rose Bowl, entering the portal. In short, the ReliaQuest Bowl could be a preview of what both teams will look like, at least somewhat, in 2025.
The all-time series is tied up at 3-3. Prior to Michigan’s Rose Bowl win over Alabama last season the last time the two programs played was on Jan. 1, 2020, in the Citrus Bowl. Alabama won the Citrus Bowl 35-16 despite Michigan having a 16-14 lead at halftime.
What do you think of the betting odds? Let us know in the comments.