No. 7 Alabama will put its College Football Playoff hopes on the line as the team travels to Norman for its first meeting against Oklahoma as SEC foes. With an 8-2 overall record and 4-2 mark in conference play, the Crimson Tide are in the thick of the SEC title race and cannot afford a loss. Meanwhile, Brent Venables' Sooners are in search of bowl eligibility and a signature win in their first year as an SEC member.
Though Alabama and Oklahoma are two of the winningest programs in college football history, combining for more than 1,900 wins and 25 national championships, their paths haven't crossed much. This is just the seventh meeting between the two, with Oklahoma holding a 3-2-1 lead all-time. Alabama did win the last meeting, a 45-34 victory in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Orange Bowl in 2018, but the Sooners are 2-0 in regular season games against the Tide and 1-0 in Norman, Oklahoma.
All of that serves as the context for what should be an electric atmosphere with championship stakes under the lights, with Alabama in the spotlight and Oklahoma looking to play spoiler to their title hopes and preserve some prideful program streaks.
Alabama vs. Oklahoma: Need to know
Milroe the scoring machine: Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe has accounted for 32 touchdowns this season (15 passing, 17 rushing), which leads the SEC and ranks third-most in the FBS. Milroe's 17 rushing touchdowns are also the second-most among quarterbacks in all of Division I, and the ability to score on the ground has contributed to Alabama having the best touchdown percentage (77.5%) among all red zone offenses in the SEC.
Oklahoma's offense has improved with Arnold at QB1: Sophomore quarterback Jackson Arnold was benched earlier this season but returned to the lineup four games ago, and since then he has completed 70 of 112 passes (63%) for 705 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions. It's also notable that the improvement in the passing game has produced better results across the board, with the offense averaging 417.0 yards per game over the last three games (compared to 288.1 in the first seven).
Streaks on the line for the Sooners: Oklahoma is seeking a win to become bowl eligible for the 26th consecutive season. The Sooners' 25-season streak of bowl eligibility is the second-longest in the country, trailing only Georgia (27 years). The Sooners are also looking to preserve a lengthy run of successful home finales, as next week's game will be on the road at Baton Rouge. Oklahoma has won its home finale in each of the last nine seasons and in 21 of the last 22 years.
How to watch Alabama vs. Oklahoma live
Date: Saturday, Nov. 16 | Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium -- Norman, Oklahoma
TV: ABC | Live stream: fubo (Try for free)
Alabama vs. Oklahoma prediction, picks
While Oklahoma's offense has fallen well short of expectations on the whole and been very up-and-down through quarterback and coordinator changes during the season, the Sooners' defense has remained remarkably consistent. I think that group will answer the challenge of facing Jalen Milroe and with the help of a rowdy home crowd help limit the Crimson Tide's offensive output. I don't think Oklahoma can score enough to win the game outright, but they can keeps the game's total points under the betting line. Pick: Under 47.5
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