College football is about to begin, and the Alabama Crimson Tide will be facing the Duke Blue Devils at the Chick-Fill-A kickoff game, on August 31, 2019. Visit our Online Sportsbook for the latest odds for this game and check out our NFL betting section for the latest pro football odds and matchups.
A bowl-like atmosphere is expected to fill the Mercedes-Benz stadium, which is likely to be packed with more than 67,000 fans. These teams have played each other four times, with the Crimson Tide holding a clear 3-1 advantage over the Blue Devils. And, the winner of this match will earn the Old Leather Helmet Trophy, a very iconic college football trophy.
A unique matchup between two teams that are coached by two accomplished veteran coaches: Nick Saban for Alabama and David Cutcliffe for Duke. David is an Alabama native, and he was a successful high school quarterback. He could have played for the Crimson Tide, but a knee injury ended his college football career.
Alabama Crimson Tide
When it comes to on-field talent, The Crimson Tide has a clear advantage. Alabama lost 44-16 to the Clemson Tigers at the National Championship game back in January 2019. Besides this sudden slip, the team still has enough talent within its roster to make any college football coach out there envious. The talented Tua Tagovailoa will once again command the defense of this team.
Although Tagovailoa made some mistakes last season, it was no accident that he was a Heisman Trophy finalist.
And, following the departures of Damien Harris and Josh Jacobs, Najee Harris will likely be taking on the starting running back duties for the team. When it comes to the offense, Alabama is experiencing some player turnover, but coach Nick Saban have enough talent around to come up with a strong season.
Duke Blue Devils
Duke is not a team that’s used to send players to the NFL, but now they are coping with the loss of Daniel Jones to the Giants.
The replacement for this key player is Quentin Harris. A longtime back-up that did an excellent job last year, when he was forced to replace Jones when he got injured. Harris doesn’t have the pocket presence of Jones, but he’s skillful with his feet. The team can use him well on the goal line and in short-yardage plays.
Now, this will be a very young team for the upcoming season, and a string of injuries have left the squad with an even younger roster to face the Crimson Tide.
Game Stats
Head to Head
- All games in this series since 1996
- ALABAMA is 1-1 against the spread versus DUKE since 1996.
- ALABAMA is 2-0 straight up against DUKE since 1996.
- 2-2 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL since 1996.
All games played at ALABAMA since 1996
- ALABAMA is 0-1 against the spread versus DUKE since 1996.
- ALABAMA is 1-0 straight up against DUKE since 1996.
- Games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL since 1996.
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