Alabama Football A-Day 2015
Alabama running back Derrick Henry (2) works against Alabama linebacker Tim Williams (56) during Alabama's 2015 A-Day game, Saturday, April 18, 2015, at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
(Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)
It's late April. Alabama still needs a starting quarterback and Wisconsin is adjusting to a new head coach.
Both are replacing Heisman Trophy finalists. So it's a perfect time to release the betting lines for their Week 1 meeting in Arlington, Texas.
According to 5Dimes.com, Alabama is a 12-1/2 point favorite to win its 14th straight season opener. It hasn't started a season with a loss since UCLA left Tuscaloosa with a 20-17 win in 2001.
The Crimson Tide and Badgers will meet Sept. 5 in AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys. Game time and TV have not been announced.
This will be Paul Chryst's first game at Wisconsin after leaving Pittsburgh for Madison. The Badgers finished 11-3 last season after beating Auburn 34-31 in the Outback Bowl. And just as Alabama replaces Amari Cooper, Wisconsin will play without Heisman Trophy runner-up Melvin Gordon for the first time. His backup last season, Corey Clement, ran 147 times for 949 yards (6.5 average) as a sophomore.
5Dimes has also updated its futures odds. Back in February, Alabama was the No. 3 choice behind Ohio State and TCU. Now, the Tide (+800) is up to the No. 2 betting favorite, moving past TCU (+850) but still well behind Ohio State (+475).
Alabama is also the No. 2 choice on VegasInsiders.com behind Ohio State and ahead of TCU.
Alabama is also the favorite in the SEC, according to 5Dimes. Here is the full league odds, according to 5Dimes.
Alabama +300
Auburn +425
Georgia +475
Ole Miss +525
Tennessee +900
LSU +1050
Arkansas +1200
Missouri +1400
Texas A&M +1600
Mississippi State +1600
South Carolina +2600
Florida +2600
Kentucky +8000
Vanderbilt +15000
_________________________________
Take a "
By The Numbers
" look into Alabama's NFL Draft success: