After 13 weeks of slugging it out on the gridiron, the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Florida Gators will face off in the SEC Championship Game. Alabama survived the brutal SEC West and established themselves as the No. 1 team in the nation, while Florida rose from the mess that was the SEC East to reach Atlanta.
The Crimson Tide have maintained their national supremacy by going 12-0 in the regular season. Jalen Hurts has been brilliant in his freshman season, possibly earning an invitation to New York City for the Heisman Trophy presentation. Along with the dynamic play of the offense, the Tide's defense finished the season as the best in the country.
Florida has taken a much different path to this game and does not have national championship implications like Alabama. The Gators concluded the regular season with an 8-3 record where all three losses came on the road. The team has seen its share of struggles on offense but has been kept alive by its dynamic defense. The unit ranks as second best in the SEC only behind Alabama.
The matchup also marks the ninth time the two teams have met in the game's history. The series is currently tied at four wins a piece, but the Tide hold a two-game winning streak.
Alabama will hope to expose the Florida defense with its dynamic rushing attack. Hurts and running back Damien Harris have been a nightmare for opponents this season. Establishing the run early will open up the playbook for Hurts to take to the air. Wide receivers Calvin Ridley and ArDarius Stewart need to make big plays over Jalen Tabor and the Gators' secondary to propel the offense.
For the defense the pass rush is the most important key to capturing the win. Defensive linemen Jonathan Allen and Tim Williams will look to force Gators' quarterback Austin Appleby into bad decisions.
Appleby will need to be efficient for the Florida offense but Jordan Scarlett also has to bring life to the run game, as you can't beat the Tide with a one-dimensional offense. Doing this will not be easy against a defense as physical as the Tide's but is a must if the Gators are going to grab the win.
The Pick: Alabama 31, Florida 14
The Alabama defense will be too much for Florida, who hasn't exactly had a dynamic offense this season. The Crimson Tide will claim their seventh SEC Championship game in the program's history and fourth in the last five years with a win over the Gators.