Alabama at Arkansas Odds, Betting Picks and Predictions for Week 5

Alabama at Arkansas Odds, Betting Picks and Predictions for Week 5

This article is part of our College Football Picks series.

Alabama at Arkansas Odds, Betting Picks and Predictions for Week 4

It is officially October as conference play in the SEC really starts heating up. Arkansas comes into the week following a heartbreaking 23-21 loss to Texas A&M. What we learned from that game is the Arkansas defense is very susceptible to the run and KJ Jefferson is still capable of doing anything and everything. Alabama comes in following a 55-3 win over Vanderbilt and while that is great for the Tide, there are still so many unanswered questions after they barely escaped Austin, Texas. The Alabama offensive line was exposed that week against Texas, allowing seven QB hurries along with two sacks, and if not for an 81-yard touchdown run from Jase McClellan would have only produced 80 yards rushing on 23 carries. Along with the offensive line concerns, Bill O'Brien has been about as creative as a high school geometry teacher; he hasn't figured out how to accentuate the talent of guys like Jahmyr Gibbs, and hasn't done anything to help a wide receiver group that hasn't displayed the ability to consistently generate separation with generic route combinations and scheme. Hopefully for the Tide, the offensive line has grown more cohesiveness as a unit since their last test.

Alabama at Arkansas Odds for Week 3

Spread: Alabama -17.5 (FanDuel Sportsbook)

Total: 60.5 (FanDuel Sportsbook)

Moneyline: Alabama -880; Arkansas +610 (FanDuel Sportsbook)

Since opening at Alabama -14.5 on Sunday, the spread has worked its way all the way up to -17.5. Big money must be rolling in on Bama as the line has gone up drastically while they are only garnering 46 percent of bets. While this typically indicates sharp action is on Alabama as well, I'm not sure how I feel about it as Alabama was not nearly as dominant on the road in 2021 and signs of the same popped up in Week 2 against Texas.

Alabama at Arkansas Betting Picks This Week

Arkansas is coming off a devastating loss and will be coming into Saturday desperate to keep their SEC West hopes alive. What better way to do that than by knocking off the division favorite? Alabama has struggled on the road over the past year. In 2021 they barely made it out of The Swamp winning 31-29 over the Gators, they lost to Texas A&M and it took four overtimes to beat a 6-6 Auburn team. Fast forward to 2022 and the Crimson Tide barely snuck out of a road showdown with a Texas team that just lost to Texas Tech. Maybe Alabama has been consuming the "rat poison" from the media that is saying they're not the powerhouse of old and come into the game with a chip on their shoulder; or maybe the same road trends continue. If anyone is capable of covering a spread like this it is Alabama but 17.5 is a lot of points to give to a good team in Arkansas, I am going with the trends here.

Alabama at Arkansas Best Bet: Arkansas +17.5 at FanDuel Sportsbook

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Alabama at Arkansas Prediction

Jefferson and the Arkansas offense is extremely dangerous, the key to what makes them dangerous is their ground game. Not only can Jefferson make a huge impact with his legs, the Razorbacks also have the SEC's leading rusher in Raheim Sanders. However, Alabama's front seven is the strength of their defense and if they can remain disciplined in their rush lanes they should be able to limit Arkansas' potent rushing attack. Being that the Tide have a lot of experience up front I don't think remaining disciplined to rush lanes is a tough ask for this group; although we did see veteran edge-rusher, leader, and potential first overall pick Will Anderson take several bad penalties against Texas. On the other side of the ball, Arkansas is most susceptible to the run and the Crimson Tide have struggled to establish a solid ground game, relying heavily on Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young (not a bad plan in theory) even against lesser opponents. Unless we see some major change to the Alabama offense or a breakout performance from one of their wideouts I don't see Alabama blowing out Arkansas, the best bet here is Arkansas +17.5.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jake Blanchard
Jake attended college at the University of Alabama, where a childhood love for college football truly blossomed. During his time in college, Jake started his own blog, where he wrote about all sports, but it mainly focused on college football, NFL and MLB while also giving gambling advice. Jake now covers college football for RotoWire.
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