ESPN’s Rece Davis on CFP title game: ‘Everybody is afraid to pick against Alabama, but the vibe feels like Georgia’

ESPN College GameDay host Rece Davis has his finger on the pulse of the vibes in Atlanta, and it appears to be trending in the direction of the Bulldogs no matter what the Vegas line says about the upcoming College Football Playoff national title game.

During an appearance on the Rich Eisen Show on Monday, Davis said the vibe in Atlanta felt like people were expecting the Bulldogs to come out on top at the national title game in Atlanta, even if people are afraid to pick against Nick Saban.

“I think everybody is afraid to pick against Alabama because a lot of us did in the Sugar Bowl [against Clemson] and they’ve proven you wrong so often,” Davis said of the media contingency in Atlanta. “But the vibe feels like Georgia to me. Now, maybe that’s the excitement of 37 years since the last national championship and the home state or whatever, but it’s almost as if there’s an anticipation that Georgia is going to win.

“Everybody’s afraid to say it because of Alabama’s great success in these situations over the years.”

Saban’s Crimson Tide has won four of the last eight national titles, and finished as a runner up for last season’s crown. So it’s easy to see that recency bias could lead people to like the Crimson Tide over the SEC-champion Bulldogs.

Alabama is favored to win the game by 3.5 points.

If the Bulldogs are going to claim their first title since 1980, Davis points to two key areas where Alabama may be a little vulnerable.

“I think it depends largely on the quarterback play,” Davis told Eisen. “And also on how well Alabama adjusts to losing [linebacker] Anfernee Jennings. He’s another one of their linebackers and another linebacker injury, and he was their best player on the field against Clemson, in my judgement.”

You can watch the entire clip from Eisen’s interview with Davis here:

“Everybody is afraid to pick against #Alabama but the vibe feels like #Georgia.” @ESPN_ReceDavis previews tonight’s #CFBNationalChampionship from Atlanta:#RollTide #GoDawgs pic.twitter.com/jNQPRpiPAN

— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) January 8, 2018