Rose Bowl, Alabama vs. Notre Dame: First-look preview, odds, TV channel, streaming, prediction
By John Buhler
The No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide will play the No. 4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the 2021 Rose Bowl as a part of the College Football Playoff.
The College Football Playoff field is set, as the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide (11-0) will take on the No. 4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (10-1) in Rose Bowl.
Alabama football fans are licking their chops with their favorite college team’s national semifinal matchup, while Notre Dame football fans are just happy to be there, making the four-team field for the second time in three seasons. The Crimson Tide are expected to cakewalk past the Fighting Irish in this one-of-a-kind Rose Bowl, but we may see a closer game than we are expecting.
2021 Rose Bowl: Alabama vs. Notre Dame date, time, odds, TV, streaming info
Date: Friday, Jan. 1
Time: 4:00 p.m. ET, 3:00 p.m. CT
Location: Arlington, Texas
Venue: AT&T Stadium
Odds: Alabama -20.5
TV Info: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN
Kickoff from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas will be at 4:00 p.m. ET, 3:00 p.m. CT on Friday, Jan. 1. ESPN will have the national telecast of the College Football Playoff game. The available live stream can be found on WatchESPN. Alabama opened as 20.5-point favorites over Notre Dame, per SuperBook Sports.
This is a game where Notre Dame is playing with house money, as nobody that does not root for the Irish even think they have a snowball’s chance in this game. Keep in mind that Alabama was expected to wipe the floor with the Florida Gators in the SEC Championship game and the Crimson Tide only managed to beat Dan Mullen‘s team by six points in a high-stakes shootout.
Alabama will need to show it can play better defensively if the Crimson Tide want to hold off a pesky Notre Dame team that was just humiliated by the Clemson Tigers in the ACC Championship game. Fortunately, Alabama has a holy triumvirate of Heisman Trophy contenders on offense in quarterback Mac Jones, running back Najee Harris and wide receiver DeVonta Smith.
Will Notre Dame keep this one interesting at least for a little while? Maybe in the first quarterback, but the Alabama offensive attack behind brilliant offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian will take a multi-score lead in the second quarter and will never look back. It will be back-to-back blowout losses for Notre Dame, as Alabama wins and covers the 20.5-point spread.
Prediction: Alabama 41, Notre Dame 17
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