Week 5 of the college football season brought us a new national title favorite, as Alabama surged to the top of the odds sheet with its 41-34 win over Georgia. The dramatic victory validated the Crimson Tide in the post-Nick Saban era and made Bama the nation’s top team from a betting perspective.
That game was just one part of a consequential week in the SEC as Ole Miss went tumbling down the odds sheet with an upset home loss to Kentucky. Though Texas improved to 5-0 with a victory against Mississippi State, the Longhorns exited Week 5 registering at No. 3 on the odds sheet, despite being ranked No. 1 in the AP poll for Week 5.
With the dust settled, the SEC still has three of the top-four favorites to win the national championship entering Week 6 action, as Georgia didn’t fall too far. But the Big Ten is firmly in the mix near the top of list as well. Ohio State, Oregon and Penn State each notched double-digit victories to remain unbeaten and in the national-title discussion.
The ACC also has two teams represented in the top-10 of the national title odds breakdown. Miami’s performance against Virginia Tech on Friday night was no masterpiece. But the dramatic victory kept the Hurricanes unbeaten. Clemson also kept itself in the hunt by taking care of business against Stanford on Saturday night.
With that, here are the grades from Week 4 for each team with national title odds of +4000 or better.
Bye weeks: Tennessee (+1000)
Alabama
Grade: A
Title odds: +270
Jalen Milroe announced his Heisman Trophy candidacy with a legendary performance as Alabama bested Georgia 41-34 in a top-five battle. A Crimson Tide defense that was dominant in the first half wobbled down the stretch before freshman Zabien Brown came up with a game-clinching interception with 43 seconds remaining and Georgia on the move. Read Bama247’s report card from the win, which notes the passing defense as the lone weakness.
Ohio State
Grade: A-
Title odds: +380
Michigan State made it deep into Ohio State territory four times in the first half but came away with just seven points in a 38-7 loss to the Buckeyes. Ohio State figured things out defensively and was far more dominant in the second half. Offensively, the star was freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith, who added to his highlight reel while scoring as a runner and receiver. Read Bucknuts247’s short takes from the win, which was (finally) heavy on defensive turnovers.
Texas
Grade: B
Title odds: +550
Texas was a 38.5-point favorite but let Mississippi State hang around for a bit before securing a 35-13 victory with three straight touchdown drives of 70+ yards in the second half. Arch Manning completed 26 of 31 passes for 324 yards and two touchdowns. He also added another score on the ground in what was likely his final substantive action before Quinn Ewers’ return in two weeks against Oklahoma. Horns247 says coach Steve Sarkisian was pleased to have so much to fix before that game.
Georgia
Grade: C
Title odds: +650
Georgia rallied from a 30-7 halftime deficit to take the lead with 2:31 remaining at Alabama. But the Bulldogs had no answer for Bama quarterback Jalen Milroe, who finished with 491 total yards of offense and four touchdowns in the Crimson Tide’s 41-34 win. Ugly first halves are becoming a worrisome trait for the Dawgs this season. Read Dawgs247’s report card from the loss — was Carson Beck’s night closer to an A or an F?
Oregon
Grade: A-
Title odds: +1000
Oregon scored on its first five possessions and led 28-10 at halftime before easing off the throttle in a 34-13 win at UCLA. The Bruins couldn’t get anything going against the Ducks, who allowed just 172 total yards and only one trip to the red zone. UCLA finished just 1 of 10 on third downs and had three straight three-and-outs in the second quarter.
Miami
Grade: B-
Title odds: +1700
Miami needed the officiating crew to overturn a controversial call from the game’s final play in order to escape with a 38-34 win over Virginia Tech. The Hurricanes were 17.5-point favorites but were forced to stage a fourth quarter rally. Give them credit for pulling it off, but there was plenty to clean up, notably tackling issues, as Inside The U’s David Lake writes.
Penn State
Grade: A-
Title odds: +1800
After allowing a game-opening touchdown drive, Penn State’s defense kicked it into gear and was vicious in a 21-7 win over Illinois. The Nittany Lions racked up 13 tackles for loss, including seven sacks, and held the Illini to just 219 total yards. Offensively, Penn State relied on the steady running of veteran backs Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton. Special teams may be Penn State’s only weakness at this point as kicker Sander Sahaydak missed two 40-yard field goal attempts.
Ole Miss
Grade: D
Title odds: +2000
It’s surprising Ole Miss’ odds didn’t get even longer than this after a 20-17 home loss against Kentucky. The Wildcats nearly doubled the Rebels in time of possession, and Ole Miss couldn’t come up with plays in clutch situations. Most notably, UK hit Ole Miss over the top for a 63-yard gain on fourth-and-7 while trailing with under four minutes to play. 247Sports’ Inside The Rebels slapped Ole Miss’ offense with an F grade.
Clemson
Grade: B+
Title odds: +3500
Clemson used a late surge to put away Stanford for a 40-14 win. Stanford moved the football successfully in spurts, but the Tigers were opportunistic defensively with three interceptions and four sacks. They also limited Stanford to 0 for 3 on fourth-down conversion attempts. Though Cade Klubnik was just 15 of 31 passing, he did complete five passes for 20 or more yards. There may be some defensive issues worth tracking, though, notes Clemson247: Missed tackles, poor gap integrity, failure to get outside in the boundary.
