SEC Championship Game over/unders: Who we like and who we're betting on
The SEC Championship Game will pit No. 1 Georgia against No. 14 LSU in Atlanta on Sunday afternoon. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. Eastern time and the matchup can be seen on CBS.
Georgia seems likely to get into the College Football Playoff even with a loss. LSU is unlikely to get into the field of 4 teams even with a win.
Still, there’s plenty at stake in this matchup of 2 very talented squads.
Over at Underdog, there are ways to get in on the action by making fantasy picks for this weekend’s player over/under stats.
What is Underdog and why should SEC fans care?
Underdog is a new daily fantasy platform backed by investors such as Mark Cuban, Kevin Durant and Adam Schefter.
This isn’t what you might think about fantasy sports though. Through Underdog’s “Pick’em” contests, you can bundle a few selections of player prop picks similar to what you find at sportsbooks, and yes, you can put real money against these picks.
Underdog Fantasy is available in 41 states, so a lot of those southern “SEC” states where sports betting is not yet legal? Yep, you can do Underdog Fantasy picks for real money, as we’re outlining here. It’s really fun.
Underdog Fantasy is not available in the following states: CT, DE, HI, ID, IA, LA, MI, MT, NV.
Underdog is available in these states, but Pick’em contests as we outline here are not available: AZ, CO, MD, MO, NH, NJ, OH, PA, TN, WA, WV.
College sports Pick’em contests are available in these SEC states: AL, FL, GA, KY, SC, TX.
If you want to get started, Underdog will match your first deposit up to $100 by clicking here or using promo code SOUTH.
My picks for the SEC Championship Game
Let’s start with my absolute favorite bet of the week. I love the “higher” option for Georgia RB Kenny McIntosh at 67.5 rushing yards.
McIntosh has come on strong to end the regular season. In Week 12 against Kentucky, he ran for 143 yards and a touchdown. In Week 13 vs. Georgia Tech, he had 86 yards and a score. He averaged more than 7 yards per carry in those games, too.
LSU and Kentucky have similar run defense, as they finished No. 6 and No. 7 in the SEC, respectively, in rushing yards allowed per game. If McIntosh can torch the Wildcats on the ground, he will have a chance to do the same against the Tigers.
Sticking with Georgia, I like the “lower” option for Brock Bowers’ receiving yards at 60.5 yards. At times this year, it seems QB Stetson Bennett and OC Todd Monken have forgotten they have the nation’s best tight end on their roster.
Here are Bowers’ receiving totals the past 4 games: 27, 41, 10, 20. Yikes. All year, Bowers has only had 61 or more receiving yards in a game 3 times. If the Bulldogs take an early lead, expect Bennett to once again avoid throwing it to his star tight end.
Finally, since you need to make at least 1 pick for each team on Underdog, I like Jayden Daniels’ “higher” option for 193.5 passing yards in this game. Georgia has only faced 1 other team with as talented of a receiving corps as LSU, and that was Tennessee.
Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker threw for 195 yards in that game, and it potentially could have been more if the third quarter wasn’t mired by heavy rain. That’s not taking anything away from the Georgia defense. Even if Hooker had been able to pad his yardage total, I still think the Dawgs would have won comfortably.
This game will be in a dome in Atlanta. It will still be a largely pro-Georgia crowd, but it won’t be the same as Sanford Stadium.
Finally, Daniels enters this game with an injured ankle. He’s going to play, but I’m skeptical he’ll be the elite runner we’ve seen all year. Look for him to exhaust his passing options before taking off scrambling this game. If LSU falls behind early, too, Daniels will need to move the ball down the field with his arm.
How many picks should you make?
The more picks you string together, the higher the “multiplier” or payout. Of course, the more you string together, the less likely you are to win because all of the picks have to hit in order for you to win.
A 3-way parlay of the picks I listed above would pay out $60 on a $10 bet:
If you want to play it a bit safer and go for a 2X payout, I’d recommend eliminating the Brock Bowers portion of the bet and going with Jayden Daniels and Kenny McIntosh.
We’ll see what happens in Atlanta and which team hoists the SEC championship trophy!
Get started on Underdog by clicking here and make your picks for the SEC Championship Game or other CFB, NFL and NBA games. Using this link means Underdog will match your deposit up to $100. If you deposit $25, you’ll get an extra $25 to start playing right away.
