Alabama vs Texas Betting Preview: Longhorns Welcome National Title Favorite Alabama to Austin

Heisman Trophy Candidates Abound in Alabama-Texas Matchup

If you are looking for a Week 2 game with some star power, the search is over. Five of the eight players with the best odds to win the Heisman Trophy is set to suit up when preseason national title favorite heads to Austin to meet Big 12 contender Texas. Keep on reading for Alabama vs Texas betting preview.

Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young is currently second only to Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud in the Heisman odds. Running backs Bijan Robinson of Texas and Jahmyr Gibbs of Alabama and Alabama linebacker Will Anderson Jr. are among other players topping the list of the top candidate for the most prestigious individual award in college football.

This is probably a bigger game for Texas as some prominent transfers have made the Longhorns a team being touted for big things in 2022 despite finishing last season with a losing record. Alabama proved in 2021 that an early-season loss won’t keep the Crimson Tide out of the national championship picture.

Crimson Tide (+175) continues to have the top Alabama odds to win the national championship. Texas comes in 10th at +6000.

Alabama vs Texas Game Information

• Game: Alabama Crimson Tide 1-0, Texas Longhorns 1-0
• Location: DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium, Austin, Texas
• Day/Time: Saturday, noon ET
• Television: FOX

Alabama Crimson Tide

Defending Mountain West champion Utah State never stood a chance against the current national championship front-runner Alabama last week and now the Crimson Tide hit the road for an intriguing matchup with Texas.

Young had five touchdown passes and no interceptions and averaged 20 yards on his five rushing attempts so he is already in midseason form despite losing both of the Crimson Tide’s 1,000-yard receivers to the NFL. Gibbs only had nine carries in his Alabama debut after spending his freshman season at Georgia Tech as a result of the lopsided nature of the season opener. Look for Gibbs to be more involved on Saturday. There are some injuries to contend with at the receiver position, but that hasn’t stopped the Crimson Tide from being heavily favored in the Alabama vs Texas betting preview.

Traeshon Holden, Kobe Prentice, and Georgia transfer Jermaine Burton had five catches each as 11 different Alabama players had at least one catch.

Anderson, the national leader in sacks and tackles for loss, had a pretty quiet season opener with five tackles, one tackle for loss, and no sacks. He has shown the ability to play his best on the biggest stage so don’t be surprised to see him make more of an impact against the Longhorns.

Texas Longhorns

The much anticipated former No. 1 national recruit Quinn Ewers. Ewers never threw a pass in a game when he was at Ohio State. He finished 16 of 24 for 225 yards with two touchdown passes and an interception as the Longhorns overwhelmed Louisiana-Monroe. Things will be significantly more challenging against the vaunted Alabama defense.

As was the case for Alabama’s Gibbs, with the 2022 debut quickly turning into a blowout, Robinson had just 10 carries. He did find the end zone. Robinson added three catches while Ja’Tavion Sanders led the way with six catches for 85 yards. Expect more from Xavier Worthy than 24 yards on two receptions on Saturday. Losing Wyoming transfer Isaiah Neyor to a season-ending knee injury is a tough blow as he was expected to team up with Worthy to give the Longhorns two dynamic pass-catching threats.

DeMarvion Overshown led the defense with eight tackles and two tackles for loss. Texas allowed just 259 yards in the season opener and this is a game that will tell quite a bit about the quality of the Longhorns’ defensive unit. The Alabama vs Texas betting preview is not trending in favor of the Longhorns.

Alabama vs Texas Injury Update

WR Tyler Harrell (foot) and TE Cameron Latu (knee) are questionable for Alabama, WR Aaron Anderson (knee) is out indefinitely. WR Jojo Earle (foot) is not expected back until mid-October.

For Texas, WR Agiye Hall (suspension) is out indefinitely, DL Alfred Collins (leg) is expected to miss 4-6 weeks. OL Junior Angilau (knee) and WR Isaiah Neyor (knee) are out for the season.

Alabama vs Texas Head to Head

This is Alabama’s first meeting with a Big 12 team since outscoring Oklahoma 45-34 as a 14.5-point favorite on December 29, 2018. The Crimson Tide has won four of the last five games against Big 12 teams but has failed to cover in the last three matchups.

Texas is 2-4 over the last six games against SEC competition and has dropped the last two. The most recent meeting with an SEC team was a 40-21 loss to Arkansas in 2021 with the visiting Longhorns favored by six points.

Alabama vs Texas Betting Preview

Alabama hasn’t lost a regular-season game to a non-conference opponent since falling to Louisiana-Monroe in 2007 in Nick Saban’s first season in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide has won 53 in a row against non-SEC teams in the regular season since that time.

Texas is 2-8 in its last 10 games against ranked opponents so this will be a huge test to see if the Longhorns are as good as advertised.

The NCAAF point spreads list Alabama as a 20-point favorite. That probably says more about what Alabama has accomplished since Saban arrived than where the Texas program is right now.

Alabama is 8-1 in its last nine road games while Texas has covered in just two of its last eight games.

Texas is just 4-14 in its last 18 games as an underdog at home. This will be the first time the Longhorns are double-digit underdogs at home since falling to Baylor 28-7 in 2014 as a 14-point underdog.

Alabama has won its last eight games and 24 of the last 25 contests when favored on the road. During that stretch, Alabama has been favored by at least 20 points on the road 16 times. The Crimson Tide are 16-0 in those games, but 10-6 against the college football betting lines.