We bring you some of the many prop bets to pick from for the Rose Bowl.
The College Football Playoff is almost here, and the Michigan Wolverines and Alabama Crimson Tide will kick things off first on New Year’s Day at 5 p.m. EST. The Wolverines have not played in this game under the leadership of Jim Harbaugh, and this one has a lot more juice than just any ordinary Rose Bowl .
With a shot at the National Championship on the line, Michigan and Alabama will lay everything on the table to book their flight to Houston. And if you’re a sports bettor, you may also be willing to take some risks in this game.
Today, we’ll go over some of the many prop bets so you can have some skin in the game. All odds are courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook .
TD Scorers
- Michigan RB Blake Corum: -200 (First TD score: +360)
- Alabama QB Jalen Milroe: -110 (First TD score: +600)
- Michigan WR Roman Wilson: +170 (First TD score: +950)
- Alabama RB Jase McClellan: +130 (First TD score: +850)
- Michigan TE Colston Loveland: +260 (First TD score: +1400)
If any players are going to score in this game, I’d be willing to bet any of these five guys. Corum has been a touchdown machine, scoring in all 13 games for Michigan this season, so that one seems likely to hit. Milroe is elusive on the ground, so it wouldn’t shock me to see him have a rushing touchdown. McClellan only has six touchdowns this year, but three have come in the last five games. I particularly love Loveland’s value at +260 — he has not scored since the MSU game in late October, but I expect him to be a big playmaker in this one.
Additionally, you can also place a bet for Corum to score two touchdowns at +260, and for Milroe to score two touchdowns at +500.
Scoring Plays
- Team to score first: Michigan -125, Alabama -105
- First scoring play: Michigan TD +175, Alabama TD +220, Either team FG: +370, Either team safety: +7000
- First score method: TD -200, FG +145, Safety +2800
These bets are always a crapshoot. You never know how a particular game is going to go. If you’re going to go with a touchdown prop, I would probably just go right back to the +360 odds for Corum to score the first touchdown of the game. It’s cool to see DraftKings be confident in the Wolverines scoring first, but I would probably stay away from these.
Quarter/Half Spreads
- End of 1Q: Michigan -0.5 (+124), Alabama +0.5 (-148)
- End of First Half: Michigan -0.5 (-105), Alabama +0.5 (-115)
- Highest Scoring Half: First half -105, Second half -115, Draw +1500
The oddsmakers expect this to be a super tight game throughout the first half, and I could certainly see it going that way as well. I can see Michigan wanting to play conservative and work the ground game in the first half in an attempt to set the tone. It could be a real slow start to the Rose Bowl, so if I had to put any money down on any of these bets, I’d probably lean towards the second half being the highest scoring half at -115.
Michigan, Alabama Specific Bets
- Total Michigan TDs: Over 2.5 -120, Under 2.5 -120
- Michigan First Score AND Moneyline: Yes +150, No -265
- Total Michigan Points: Over 22.5 -125, Under 22.5 -105
- Total Alabama TDs: Over 2.5 +105, Under 2.5 -145
- Alabama First Score AND Moneyline: Yes +190, No -350
- Total Alabama Points: Over 22.5 -105, Under 22.5 -125
First off, I’d stay away from any bet that requires you to get two things correct in order to win, so I automatically am glancing past the first score/moneyline bet.
However, I kind of like Alabama’s touchdown total of over 2.5 at +105. I hate to point out not-so-fun stats here, but Michigan has given up a ton of points in bowl games under Jim Harbaugh. Outside of the first bowl game — and Michigan’s most recent bowl victory in the 2016 Citrus Bowl — Michigan has given up 32, 26, 41, 35, 34 and 51 points in the postseason under Harbaugh, good for 36.5 points per bowl game. Woof.
If the Wolverines hold Bama to under 22.5, that would be an incredible job by Jesse Minter and the defensive coaching staff. Because of recent history, I’m going over 22.5 for Bama’s point total.
Miscellaneous Fun Bets
- Race to 10 Points: Michigan -140, Alabama -110
- Overtime: Yes +1100, No -8000
- Largest Lead: Over 14.5 -105, Under 14.5 -155
- Longest TD: Michigan -130, Alabama -110, Neither +1700
These are a few silly bets you can get in on, and there are even more on the app. If I were to pick between one of these, I’d probably place a few bucks on Alabama -110 having the longest touchdown. It feels like most of Michigan’s touchdowns over the last month of the season have come from within the 10-yard line — specifically from Corum — so if I had to bet, it would be Bama having the longer scoring play.
Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for details.