Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic: Alabama vs. Cincinnati point spread, start time and prediction

The No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide (12-1) will take on with the No. 4 Cincinnati Bearcats (13-0) in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic as part of the College Football Playoff.

The 2022 College Football Playoff will be underway when the top-seeded Alabama Crimson Tide take on the undefeated Cincinnati Bearcats in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.

While the Bearcats made history by getting into the College Football Playoff out of the Group of Five, it is business as usual for the Crimson Tide. The winner of this game will take on the winner of the Capital One Orange Bowl between the No. 2 Michigan Wolverines and the No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs in the national championship. It could be a rematch between the Dawgs and the Tide.

Here is the opening College Football Playoff point spreads for the Cotton Bowl, the game’s start time and an early prediction for what could happen down in Arlington on New Year’s Eve.

College Football Playoff point spreads for Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic between Alabama and Cincinnati

According to WynnBET, the Crimson Tide are a sizable 14-point favorite over the Bearcats on a neutral site. The associated moneylines for this game are Alabama -580 and Cincinnati +420. This game’s over/under comes in at a combined 58 points.

The oddsmakers suggest that while the Bearcats will do their best to keep it close, the Crimson Tide will come out on top by multiple scores in a decently high-scoring game to win the Cotton Bowl and get back to the national championship.

While this game could be infinitely more lopsided than the one taking place down in South Florida, the stakes are just as high. All the pressure is on the Crimson Tide to get it done to avoid complete embarrassment. As far as the Bearcats are concerned, they are playing with house money. Though many college football fans would love to see them win, that only feels like wishful thinking here.

The Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic will kick off at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas at 3:30 p.m. ET, 2:30 p.m. CT on Friday, Dec. 31. ESPN will have the national telecast of this College Football Playoff game.

Early prediction: Alabama 38, Cincinnati 21.

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