Alabama A&M vs Auburn prediction, odds, pick for College Football Week 1
It is time to continue our college football odds series with an Alabama A&M-Auburn prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Alabama A&M-Auburn.
This season at Auburn will be a verdict on quarterback Payton Thorne. It might not be a total verdict on coach Hugh Freeze, but it will reflect on Freeze for better or worse. Freeze could have opted for a better, more proven quarterback in the transfer portal and asked Thorne to either seek a transfer or accept a backup role at Auburn. Instead, he doubled down and expressed confidence in Thorne’s ability to be a good quarterback for Auburn in 2024. Thorne struggled a lot in 2023. Freeze could have abandoned him, but there’s something Freeze sees in Thorne which made him confident enough to want his quarterback to return for a second season on The Plains.
The other reason Freeze felt reasonably comfortable with Thorne at quarterback this year is that college football has approved of the use of direct helmet communication between a coach and one player on the offense or defense before each snap. The policy allows for helmet communication to exist until the snap or the 15-second mark on the play clock, whichever comes first. At 15 seconds on the play clock, communication is cut off in the press box, presumably by a game administration employee specifically designated with that task. Hugh Freeze thinks that having those 10 seconds to communicate with Thorne before the snap will enable him to guide his quarterback and give him the tools and insights necessary to make the right reads and right throws consistently, thereby transforming the Auburn offense. It does suggest that if this piece of helmet communication had not been approved by the governing authorities in college football, Freeze might have thought differently about his Auburn quarterback for 2024.
Freeze enters a 2024 SEC in which Texas and Oklahoma now reside, and in which Nick Saban is no longer coaching. Freeze had a successful run at Ole Miss and was able to beat Saban’s Alabama teams multiple times. He needs a good season to build belief among Auburn fans that the Tigers are heading in the right direction in a 16-team SEC.
Here are the Alabama A&M-Auburn College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Alabama A&M-Auburn Odds
Alabama A&M: +46.5 (-112)
Moneyline: none
Auburn: -46.5 (-108)
Moneyline: none
Over: 56.5 (-115)
Under: 56.5 (-105)
How to Watch Alabama A&M vs Auburn
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT
TV: ESPN Plus, SEC Network Plus
Stream: fuboTV (Free Trial)
Why Alabama A&M Could Cover The Spread/Win
The spread is massive, at almost seven touchdowns. The obvious reason to pick Alabama A&M to cover the spread is that Payton Thorne, even with helmet communication with Huge Freeze before the snap, might not be good enough to make the Auburn offense a great offense this season. We could easily have a game which ends 45-0 for Auburn. The Tigers would blow out their FCS opponent, but they wouldn’t score the seven touchdowns — 49 points, including extra points — needed to cover the spread.
Why Auburn Could Cover The Spread/Win
Payton Thorne could take the next step in his evolution, growing in knowledge and consistency not just because of helmet communication, but because of another added year of familiarity with Freeze’s system. Simple exposure to the Hugh Freeze offense, more than helmet technology, could unlock Thorne’s potential this season and take Auburn to the next level.
Final Alabama A&M-Auburn Prediction & Pick
Auburn will win by a lot, but will it cover? It’s hard to make a call here. Pass.
Final Alabama A&M-Auburn Prediction & Pick: Alabama A&M +46.5
The post Alabama A&M vs Auburn prediction, odds, pick for College Football Week 1 appeared first on ClutchPoints.
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