I bet on Bama last night but I honestly can’t see them covering or winning against Indiana. What are you seeing that ai am not? No running game, their special teams are atrocious (punting game)/ leads to short fields for their opponent. The defense played really well in the second half but this defense seems a bit soft to me. No disrespect as I am wanting to read others opinions before I lay down a very big wager for me. Good luck!!
If I end up backing Alabama, I would mostly be banking on that as the team gets healthier, they are more like the team they were in October, and not what we've seen over the last month. I have great respect for Indiana's team this season, but Alabama will hold a pretty large talent advantage over them. Now, Ohio St and Oregon did too, so I know that doesn't necessarily mean much, but I think it can close the gap on some of the schematic advantages that may exist. I do think Simpson and the offense got some of their mojo back last night. He, Brailsford, Jam, Germie, and Cuevas were not 100% last night, but they are getting healthier and the next 10+ days will only help. It's a really fair point about the run game, and someone who hasn't been paying much attention won't notice, but it has been getting better over the last few weeks, SEC Champ game aside. We don't need to run for 200 yards to be successful, we just have to be good enough to make a defense account for it. The health of the OL and RBs is pretty key here.
Special teams as you mentioned is a huge concern, but they were able to do enough last night to not lose the game. Ever since the chip shot miss against OU, the kicker has made some high pressure kicks in some really tough environments. I'm not ready to trust him to hit a game winner, but I don't think he's necessarily a liability
I felt that Alabama's defense has been one of the most underrated units in the playoff, and I guess it mostly stems from most people wanting to talk about how bad the offense is. And the first quarter last night was ugly, as our plan was outclassed by OU's plan. But we adjusted and that's what won us the game. Teams haven't had much success driving the length of the field against us, so as long as we don't give up a bunch of short fields (which is possible), the defense should at minimum keep the game within reach
I like the Alabama coaching staff's big game ability. They don't panic and are not scared to go for the win, as evidenced by the multiple 4th down calls this season. Indiana's staff may also be great at that, they just haven't had the opportunities to prove it as consistently.
I am not yet advocating that anyone pick Alabama, these are just some things I can see that would give Alabama backers some level of confidence. It is really hard to erase the image of that disaster in Atlanta, and I get that, but the team that took the field that day isn't a fair representation of the team that will suit up in Pasadena on NYD
