The No. 6 Cincinnati Bearcats (9-0) meet the No. 9 Georgia Bulldogs (7-2) New Year’s Day in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Kickoff is scheduled for noon ET. Below, we analyze Cincinnati-Georgia college football betting odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
Rankings courtesy of the Amway Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Cincinnati vs. Georgia: Betting odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 5:50 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Cincinnati +260 (bet $100 to win $260) | Georgia -350 (bet $350 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Cincinnati +8 (-110) | Georgia -8 (-110)
- Over/Under: 52.5 (O: -105 | U: -115)
Cincinnati vs. Georgia: Three things to know
- Georgia’s two losses have come against top-10 teams: A 41-24 loss as a 6-point underdog at then-No. 2 Alabama Oct. 17 and 44-28 to then-No. 8 Florida as a 2.5-point favorite Nov. 7 in Jacksonville, Fla. Aside from those losses, the Bulldogs have won each game by at least 11 points, but only covered in four of their seven victories.
- After demolishing its seven first opponents by at least two touchdowns, Cincinnati has won its past two games by only three points apiece. The Bearcats beat the UCF 36-33 Nov. 21 and Tulsa 27-24 in the AAC Championship Game Dec. 19.
- The Bulldogs have the second-toughest schedule. The Bearcats have the 66th-toughest schedule, which is essentially why, even though they’re undefeated, why they never had much of a chance to make the College Football Playoff.
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Cincinnati vs. Georgia: Odds, betting lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Georgia 38, Cincinnati 17
Money line (ML)
PASS. Georgia is the right side, but -350 is a little too pricey for me. I’d prefer to bet lay the points with the Bulldogs at a much cheaper price.
Against the spread (ATS)
This Georgia offense has hit a new stride since junior QB JT Daniels, a transfer from USC, made his Bulldog debut against Mississippi State Nov. 21. The Bulldogs have scored 31, 45 and 49 points in Daniels’ three starts with the latter two totals being the two highest-scoring games by Georgia this season.
However, Daniels has also benefitted from Georgia getting the most out of its ground game, which has rushed for over 300 yards and four touchdowns in each of the Bulldogs’ last two victories.
On the other side of the ball, Cincinnati’s offensive line is a middling unit: 85th in line yards per carry, 109th in power success rate and 98th in opportunity rate. It will have to block a Georgia rush defense that is one of the best units in the nation. Georgia has only allowed two opponents to gain more than 100 yards on the ground and none of the Bulldogs’ opponents have averaged more than 3.5 yards per rush in a game against them.
If Georgia can take away Cincinnati’s rushing attack, and establish its own ground game against a Bearcats defense which hasn’t played anyone nearly as good as the Bulldogs, then I am fine with betting GEORGIA -8 (-110).
Over/Under (O/U)
Let’s follow the money and take OVER 52.5 (-105). According to Pregame.com, over 85% of the action is on the Over, which has pushed the number up from a 50.5-point opener.
I think Georgia putting up points is a given and six of the Bulldogs’ previous seven games coming into the Peach Bowl have gone Over the total. Also, Cincinnati’s offense is playing its best football at the end of the season and the Over has cashed in four of the last five Bearcats’ games.
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