The MTSU Blue Raiders take on the Alabama Crimson Tide. Check out our college football odds series for our MTSU Alabama prediction and pick. Find how to watch MTSU Alabama.

The Alabama Crimson Tide have a lot of questions to answer this season. They have clearly been kicked off the mountaintop in the SEC, replaced as the reigning king of college football's toughest conference by another team, Kirby Smart's Georgia Bulldogs. Georgia is gunning for a third consecutive national championship this season. Alabama, which won the 2020 national championship, used to be the number one program in college football. To be sure, it is still the best if viewed over the past 12 years. However, Georgia has been better in each of the last two years, so Alabama needs to find a way to fight back.

However, the Tide have a real problem this year: They seem to lack a particularly good and polished quarterback. The Tide welcomed Tyler Buchner from Notre Dame and hoped that new offensive coordinator Tommy Rees — who had worked with Buchner at Notre Dame — would be able to turn him around. However, Buchner wasn't even able to win the starting job and become the QB1 on the depth chart for this season opener versus Middle Tennessee. Jalen Milroe beat out Buchner for the starting job. Alabama knew what it had at quarterback the last two seasons. Bryce Young was special, and he proved it by going No. 1 in the 2023 NFL draft. Alabama at quarterback this year, however, is a real mystery. The journey toward an SEC title and the College Football Playoff begins this weekend against MTSU.

Here are the MTSU-Alabama College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

College Football Odds: MTSU-Alabama Odds

MTSU Blue Raiders: +39.5 (-110)

Alabama Crimson Tide: -39.5 (-110)

Over: 51.5 (-110)

Under: 51.5 (-110)

How To Watch MTSU vs. Alabama

TV: SEC Network

Stream: ESPN Plus

Time: 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT

*Watch MTSU vs Alabama LIVE on fuboTV (click for free trial)*

Why MTSU Could Cover the Spread

The case to make in support of an MTSU bet against the spread is very simple: Alabama does not have Bryce Young this year, or anyone particularly close to his level of talent. There's a reason Young was the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft: He was special. Jalen Milroe and Tyler Buchner have looked ordinary to this point in their careers. This is not to say they will never be good, merely that they haven't yet proven themselves at a high level. Maybe Milroe or Buchner will become a really good and reliable Alabama quarterback this season. That could happen. However, it is unlikely that everything will fall into place for them in Week 1 of the new season. Given that the spread is so large, it's not hard to see Alabama stumbling just enough to not win by a big enough margin here. As long as MTSU scores at least one touchdown, Alabama will need to score at least 47 points to cover. That is asking a lot out of this Alabama offensive unit.

Why Alabama Could Cover the Spread

The Tide probably won't allow a Middle Tennessee touchdown. This is men against boys, and it will become a very big mismatch up front, where Alabama can simply lean on MTSU's front lines and overpower the Blue Raiders. It won't matter who the quarterback is when the Tide are shoving opponents to the side as though they are just dolls or stuffed toys. Alabama will dominate this game in all four quarters and win by at least 42 points if not more.

Final MTSU-Alabama Prediction & Pick

The Alabama defense should be great. The Alabama offense should be inconsistent and ragged. That means one thing: Take the under.

Final MTSU-Alabama Prediction & Pick: Under 51.5