Sammy’s Sportsbook Whispers: Shockingly, UGA Is Getting Points Against Bama

I’ve been covering White Sox baseball all week while preparing for my brother’s wedding on Saturday. It’s been chaos, as you can imagine. Therefore, this is going to be a hybrid story with “Sportsbook Whispers” and my best bets all rolled into one story. We’ll be back to our normal routine next week. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. The weekend’s biggest college football game is No. 2 Georgia against No. 6 Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. Circa Sports in Las Vegas opened Georgia -1.5 last Sunday, but the Bama is now a 2-point favorite. Two of the sharpest guys I know bet the Bulldogs. “Georgia should be favored,” former Las Vegas bookmaker Ed Salmons told me. “Alabama just put up 56 on Mississippi State, and now they’re everyone’s new favorite team. And they’re at home. This Georgia team is an experienced group. They’ve been through the wars. Alabama is a pretty young team with a freshman quarterback. “I’m shocked they’re giving me points with Georgia.” Professional bettor Slice was the highest on Alabama heading into the season. While most Vegas buddies I know ranked the Crimson Tide outside the top 10 in their power ratings, Slice slotted them eighth in late August. “I just thought they had the right to be better based on how bad they were last year,” Slice said. “They’re Alabama. They have good coaches and players. I expected the water to meet its level. That said, Alabama should not be favored in this game. I could get to PK, but in no way do I have them favored.” “Georgia is on a different level than them.” My Instagram comments were buzzing this week when the “Bear Bets” squad posted a clip of me giving my updated power ratings. I have the Miami Hurricanes as the fifth-best team in the country behind Ohio State, Georgia, Notre Dame and Texas. That’s high praise to be a top-five team. Canes fans still lost their minds. I truly don’t think we’re going to learn how good Miami really is until the Hurricanes face Notre Dame on Nov. 7. The schedule has been a cakewalk so far, and I’m not really that impressed with a blowout of a terrible Clemson team. “I played Clemson +17 in that game and lost,” Slice admitted. “I still think Miami is overrated. Clemson can’t throw and threw for almost 300 yards. And they’re going to be in trouble when they play a real defense. It feels like all they do with the quarterback is throw these short little passes and let [Malachi] Toney and the other receivers run all over the place. “That’s not going to work against Notre Dame.” How bad is Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood? “Oh my God,” Salmons cracked. “We were watching Michigan-Minnesota last week and joking that Michigan should punt on first down and let the defense try to score. Their offense is horrendous right now. I loved Underwood sailing the ball out of bounds on the final fourth down. It was awesome.” “The program feels soft,” Slice added. “They’re completely outmatched against these defenses. The offensive line is getting worked, and the quarterback doesn’t throw with any accuracy down the field. “It really speaks to how much the program fell when Jim Harbaugh left.” As for the NFL, sportsbooks are so impressed with Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson. Caleb Williams is questionable for Sunday’s game at Green Bay, so odds are good Johnson must coach up backup Tyson Bagent again. “It’s been really impressive and telling how much Johnson and the weapons around him have elevated the Bears,” Caesars Sportsbook head of football Joey Feazel told me. “Especially considering they’ve found success with two different backup quarterbacks. It almost raises the question of how much Caleb Williams’ presence is contributing to the Bears’ power rating.” “I think Chicago is one of the best coached teams in the entire league,” Caesars Sportsbook senior director John Murray added. High praise, eh? As for best bets this week, we discussed most of these plays on the latest episode of “Bear Bets” and I’m adding Miami Ohio -3.5 because there are rumblings about UMass QB1 Pop Watson being out with an injury. (2026 Record: 12-11-2, -0.1 units) Iowa +3Miami Ohio -3.5Georgia +1.5Oregon -10.5New Orleans Saints +2.5 Good luck, all.