The four-team College Football Playoff field is set, and it features a couple of first-time competitors. While No. 1 Alabama and No. 3 Georgia are repeat participants in the event, No. 2 Michigan and No. 4 Cincinnati will be making their playoff debuts.
The Bearcats will take on the Crimson Tide in the Cotton Bowl for one semifinal, while the Wolverines will play the Bulldogs in the Orange bowl in the other semifinal. In the weeks to come, both matchups will be endlessly dissected. While Alabama vs. Cincinnati will be a classic David vs. Goliath scenario, the battle between Michigan and Georgia will be a real collision of heavyweights.
Betting is open for the two showdowns on New Year's Eve, and Caesar's Sportsbook has already come out with its odds. The point spreads for the games give us an early glimpse at how things are projected to play out. Let's take a look at what folks out in Las Vegas think about the first CFP to ever feature a Group of Five team.
College Football Playoff odds
No. 1 Alabama (-13.5) vs. No. 4 Cincinnati
No. 3 Georgia (-7) vs. No. 2 Michigan
The first thing that jumps out is that there is no overreaction to Georgia's loss against Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. The Bulldogs showed their dominance throughout the season; that they are a touchdown favorite against the No. 2 seed Wolverines is a sign of respect for their overall body of work. Michigan has been phenomenal over the last two weeks in wins against Ohio State and Iowa, but you wouldn't know it from looking at the line.
As for the Alabama-Cincinnati game, the fact that the Bearcats are only 13.5-point underdogs against one of the all-time great programs in the sport is a testament to their legitimacy. By comparison, Notre Dame was a 17.5-point underdog against Alabama in this same spot last season. The Fighting Irish ended up losing 31-14.
As it happens, Cincinnati is in this spot in part because of a win over Notre Dame this season. The Bearcats took Georgia to the wire in the Sugar Bowl last season as a 6.5-point underdog and shouldn't be counted out here. A knee injury suffered in the SEC Championship Game is expected to end the season of Alabama receiver John Metchie, and that's a crushing blow for the Crimson Tide. So if you're just assuming Alabama will steamroll Cincinnati, pump the brakes on that and consider that Bearcats' lockdown corner Ahmad Gardner might be the toughest matchup yet for Alabama's remaining star receiver Jameson Williams.
