This Nick Saban Stat in Rematch Games Should Terrify Georgia Bettors

Remember the old expression that former President George W. Bush famously butchered?

The correct expression goes, "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."

In the case of Alabama head coach Nick Saban, he's never been fooled twice; at least in the same season.

Via Touchdown Alabama, the most revered coach in college football has never lost a rematch game at the college level in the same season. That includes both his time as the head coach at Alabama, as well as during his tenure with LSU.

Overall, Saban is 7-2 both at the collegiate and pro level in rematch games during the same year.

While Saban's resume speaks for itself with seven national championships, six of which have come at Alabama including three in the current format of the College Football Playoff, oddsmakers don't see history repeating itself. The Bulldogs are currently 3-point favorites at WynnBET Sportsbook after opening at -2.5.

Should Georgia pull off the victory, they would become the first ever No. 3 seed to win the title since the CFP began back in the 2014-15 season.

Monday's game vs. Georgia is the second time in Saban's career that he'll be rematching against a team he played earlier in the season for a national championship game. The previous time came in 2012, when the Crimson Tide won their second national title under Saban in a 21-0 shutout against LSU. The Tide fell to the Tigers 9-6 in the earlier regular season game.

How Have National Championship Rematches Fared in the Past?

There have been several rematches between the two teams with national championship ramifications, but college football didn't have a so-called championship game in place until the Bowl Coalition began in 1992.

During the 1996-97 season, the Florida Gators defeated their in-state rival Florida State twice in the same year: coming back from a 17-point deficit to win 24-21, and then blowing out the Seminoles 52-20 in the Sugar Bowl. The Gators were the No. 3 ranked team in the country that season with Florida State holding the top ranking at No. 1 in the final bowl game.

Then in 2012, the aforementioned BCS Championship Game between LSU and Alabama went to the Tide in a 21-0 blowout, avenging their loss from earlier in the season.

One other championship rematch came in the 1976 Rose Bowl as No.1 Ohio State faced No. 11 UCLA in the Rose Bowl. After the Buckeyes pounded the Bruins 41-20 back in October, UCLA won the rematch in Pasadena, 23-10. Interestingly enough, the loss for Ohio State in the final bowl game would give No. 3 Oklahoma the championship in the final AP Poll of the season.

If Saban is able to earn his eighth career title on Monday evening, not only would it increase his lead over Bear Bryant by two championships, it would also make Saban the first ever NCAA football coach to win a title in an in-season rematch game for the second time in his career.

You can track the latest line movement as well as read up on our picks for who will win and who will cover between No. 1 Alabama and No. 3 Georgia.