Alabama

SEC football best bets and hot takes, bullish on Georgia, Alabama

Published

1 year ago

June 8, 2024

SEC football best bets and hot takes, bullish on Georgia, Alabama

ATHENS — Somewhere in the summer the College Football Playoffs will be won via offseason workouts, planning and roster acquisition and attrition.

In the meantime, the oddsmakers in Las Vegas are preparing to set up some bets on the over/under number of games teams will win.

Much can change between now and noon on Aug. 31, when Georgia and Clemson kick off the SEC season in Atlanta.

For now, here’s a way-too-early quick take on these way-too-early odds on SEC win totals:

Georgia 10.5 (Over)

Alabama might bite the Bulldogs in Tuscaloosa, an Texas might trip Kirby in Austin, but it seems unlikely both teams beat Carson Beck or that the Heisman co-favorite gets upset by another team on the schedule.

Texas 10.5 (Under)

Steve Sarkisian has a high-powered offense and a slick presentation, but the week-to-week physicality in the SEC will keep the Longhorns under.

Alabama 9.5 (Over)

Kalen DeBoer comes off as a positive feel-good coach with a creative offensive mind, and with Jalen Milroe on the upswing that’s enough to be optimistic.

Ole Miss 9.5 (Over)

Lane Kiffin has put together a transfer class like no other and has a friendly schedule that features just one losable road game (at LSU).

LSU 9.5 (Under)

Brian Kelly is a hall of fame coach with tremendous resources, but the Bayou Bengals have lost just enough firepower, including Jayden Daniels, to hit the 10-win mark even with a favorable schedule.

Missouri 9.5 (Under)

Eli Drinkwitz and the Tigers are still celebrating their bowl win over Ohio State, but this program has yet to prove it can handle success, even with one of the easier schedules in the league.

Every SEC teams football schedule in 2024

Tennessee 9 (Under)

Josh Heupel runs a high-powered offense and Nico Lamaleava has the look of a legit dual-threat, but Alabama and Georgia look like losses and it seems likely the Vols will drop another one.

Texas A&M 8.5 (Under)

Mike Elko has proven an effective head coach, but there are too many moving parts to believe the Aggies will win more than eight games.

Oklahoma 7.5 (Over)

Call it a hunch, but the bet here is Brent Venables will have a strong third season as head coach and get the Sooners booming enough to win eight games in the regular season.

Auburn 7.5 (Over)

There’s not a tougher team to peg than Auburn, and that’s a compliment to Hugh Freeze who was a play or two away from beating Alabama and Georgia. The Tigers figure to improve.

Kentucky 6.5 (Over)

The bet here is on Brock Vandagriff and Jamon Dumas-Johnson, two of Georgia’s better leaders that took their games to Lexington under the direction of underrated coach Mark Stoops.

South Carolina 5.5 (Under)

Everyone likes Shane Beamer, but the feel-good has worn-off and the Gamecocks seem to be lacking in firepower.

Arkansas 4.5 (Over)

Sam Pittman has added Bobby Petrino, and unlike Jimbo Fisher, he’ll have the wisdom to allow Petrino to work his magic. What the Hogs lack in talent, they’ll make up for in chemistry and coaching.

Mississippi State 4.5 (Under)

New head coach (checks notes) JEFF LEBBY seems like an uninspiring hire with very little to work with. The Maroon Bulldogs face an uphill climb.

Florida 4.5 (Over)

The Gators are going to be better than people think, to the extent that a fast start to the season should be enough to propel the team into bowl eligibility even with a loaded back half.

Vanderbilt 2.5 (Over)

Wins over Alcorn State, Georgia State and Ball State will be enough to win the bet for anyone who feels the need to bet money on Vanderbilt football.

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Alabama

Commerce announces Alabama business development offices in Japan and South Korea

Published

17 hours ago

October 28, 2025

Press Room

Commerce announces Alabama business development offices in Japan and South Korea

The Alabama Department of Commerce announced it has engaged two internationally respected advisory firms to represent the state’s economic development interests in Japan and the Republic of Korea, further strengthening efforts to attract foreign direct investment, expand export opportunities and build enduring business partnerships in key global

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Alabama

Jalen Hurts’ milestone pass reaches NFL, Alabama firsts

Published

2 days ago

October 28, 2025

Press Room

Jalen Hurts’ milestone pass reaches NFL, Alabama firsts

When Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jahan Dotson with 5:59 left in Sunday’s 38-20 victory over the New York Giants, the former Alabama signal-caller reached a milestone in his NFL career.

And the 100th regular-season touchdown pass for Hurts also established an NFL first and an Alabama first in the league.

The touchdown pass was Hurts’ fourth of the game, and at the same time on Sunday, former Alabama teammate Tua Tagovailoa was passing for four touchdowns in the Miami Dolphins’ 34-10 victory over the Atlanta Falcons.

ALABAMA NFL WEEK 8 ROUNDUP

Six Crimson Tide alumni have produced 27 NFL games with at least four touchdown passes, but Sunday was the first day in league history that two accomplished the feat on the same date.

Hurts has three games with at least four touchdown passes and Tagovailoa has five – four with four and one with six.

Ken Stabler had seven regular-season games with at least four touchdown passes, Joe Namath had six and Bart Starr and Richard Todd had two apiece in regular-season play. Starr and Stabler had one such game each in the playoffs.

FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE

Hurts also became the first player in NFL history with at least 15 touchdown passes, five TD runs and no more than one interception eight games into a season.

No player in NFL history has had that set of numbers eight games into a season before Hurts. The closest had been another Philadelphia quarterback. In 2010, Michael Vick had 13 touchdown passes, five touchdown runs and one interception after eight games.

“Playing like the quarterback that we know he can be, and that’s the best in the league,” Dotson said of Hurts after Sunday’s game. “He’s doing a great job commanding the offense and making sure that everyone’s in the right spots, putting the ball out on time. So it’s nothing new to us. We see it every single day, and it’s cool to see it come true on Sundays.”

Hurts has completed 151-of-215 passes for 1,677 yards with 15 touchdowns and one interception and run for 208 yards and five touchdowns on 58 carries.

One odd note about Hurts’ three four-touchdown games: All have occurred in the eighth week of the season. Hurts also had four TD passes in a 35-13 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct. 30, 2022, and a 38-31 victory over the Washington Commanders on Oct. 29, 2023.

Hurts became the sixth player with 100 regular-season touchdown passes for the Eagles. Donovan McNabb holds the franchise record with 216 while playing for Philadelphia from 1999 through 2009. The other players with 100 TD passes for the Eagles are Ron Jaworski, Randall Cunningham, Carson Wentz and Norm Snead.

At 6-2, the Eagles don’t play again until Nov. 10. After its Week 9 bye, Philadelphia plays the Green Bay Packers at 7:15 p.m. CST Nov. 10 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay. ABC and ESPN will televise the Monday night contest.

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts carries the football during an NFL game against the New York Giants on Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.(AP Photo/Daniel Kucin Jr.)

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Alabama

How did former Alabama basketball star Mark Sears do in NBA debut with Milwaukee Bucks?

Published

2 days ago

October 27, 2025

Press Room

How did former Alabama basketball star Mark Sears do in NBA debut with Milwaukee Bucks?

Former Alabama basketball star Mark Sears made his NBA regular season debut with the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday night.

In the Oct. 26 matchup, the All-American point guard was called off the bench as the Bucks navigated a matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers without guards Kevin Porter Jr. and Cole Anthony due to ankle injury and illness, respectively.

After showing off in the clutch during the preseason, Sears wasn’t able to come up with any of the hero plays he was known for through five years in college and ultimately suffered his first loss as a pro. The Bucks fell 118-113 to the Cavs.

How did Alabama basketball alum Mark Sears perform in NBA debut?

Sears went scoreless in seven minutes of action for the Bucks. He had just one field goal attempt.

The two-way rookie had a turnover and a foul, finishing with a plus-minus of -5. Sears didn’t have the worst plus-minus of the night, though. Starting guard Gary Trent Jr. took the cake with -23.

Sears’ most well-rounded performance thus far with Milwaukee came against Oklahoma City and former Crimson Tide teammate Chris Youngblood. In eight minutes, Sears scored three points, added a board, an assist and a steal.

Sears and Youngblood are two of four players from Alabama’s most recent Elite Eight roster that advanced to the next level. Center Clifford Omoruyi signed a deal with Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. in September after failing to make the training camp roster with the Toronto Raptors, who initially signed the undrafted prospect to an Exhibit 10. In October, forward Grant Nelson signed another Exhibit 10 contract with the Brooklyn Nets worth $1,272,870, which was first reported by The Tuscaloosa News.

The Bucks − and potentially Sears − get back to action on Tuesday, Oct. 28, against the New York Knicks.