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Alabama no longer the favorite to win CFP national title

There’s a new favorite at Las Vegas sportsbooks to win the College Football Playoff national championship game.

After Alabama suffered its first loss in two years Saturday at Texas A&M — which won 41-38 on a last-second field goal as a 19-point underdog and +720 on the money line — Georgia supplanted the Crimson Tide as the top choice to win the national title.

The Bulldogs (6-0) are even-money favorites at Circa Sports to win their first national title since 1980. Alabama (5-1) is the +394 second choice.

Georgia, which has outscored its opponents 239-33, is the +130 favorite at BetMGM, +115 at Caesars Sportsbook and -110 at the Westgate SuperBook, South Point and Station Casinos.

“Alabama’s been the favorite from day one, and it’s still just one loss. If they run the table, they’re still going to be in the championship,” MGM Resorts director of trading Jeff Stoneback said. “I still think they’re a better team than Georgia, too.”

Georgia already had surpassed Alabama as the favorite to win it all at Circa on Oct. 4 after the Crimson Tide whipped Mississippi 42-21 and the Bulldogs blanked Arkansas, 37-0.

“We have them a couple points better in our ratings. I prefer defense to offense,” Circa sportsbook director Matthew Metcalf said at the time.

The SuperBook had Alabama two points better than Georgia in their power ratings heading into Saturday’s games but now has the Bulldogs three points better than the Crimson Tide.

“Georgia has to be the favorite now,” Red Rock Resort sportsbook director Chuck Esposito said. “If those two teams play in the SEC championship game and Alabama loses, it would be out with two losses. If Georgia runs the table and loses that game, it will still be in.

“For that reason, Georgia has to be the favorite.”

Ohio State is the 8-1 third choice at the SuperBook. Oklahoma is the 16-1 fourth pick at Circa, followed by Cincinnati, Iowa and Michigan at 26-1.

“Cincinnati is still live, and you can make a case for a number of other teams to sneak in there,” Esposito said. “It will be interesting to see who that third and fourth team in the College Football Playoff will be this year.”

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.

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