Joel Klatt defends his decision to pick Missouri over Alabama

Joel Klatt isn’t mincing words. The FOX Sports analyst thinks No. 8 Alabama is in serious jeopardy of suffering another stunning road loss in this Saturday’s Top 15 game at No. 14 Missouri.

During Thursday’s episode of The Joel Klatt Show podcast, the host doubled-down on his season-long criticism of the Crimson Tide (4-1, 2-0 SEC) by picking the undefeated Tigers (5-0, 1-0 SEC) to pull off the upset and even took the points in what he expects will be a hard-fought battle in Columbia (Mo.). Alabama is currently listed as a 3-point road favorite over host Missouri with an over-under point total of 51.5 points, according to BetMGM.

“I’ve been warning about this with Alabama. Alabama is somewhat one-dimensional throwing the football. And they’re going to come up against a team – and it might come up this weekend against Missouri – where all off a sudden Ty Simpson is under duress. All of the sudden, that passing game cannot be as efficient and as effective as in other weeks,” Klatt said Thursday on The Joel Klatt Show podcast. “And then where do you go? Because even though they ran it better against Vanderbilt, it still wasn’t great. … So, I like Missouri in this game. You’re telling me I can take 3 ½ points, and on a blind resume, Missouri should be the favored team. The matchup favors the Tigers. So I’m going to take Missouri, I’m getting the 3 ½, and I’m going to take them straight-up to beat Alabama 28-24.”

Klatt’s love for the 14th-ranked Tigers didn’t stop there. The FOX Sports analyst suggested a win Saturday over the eighth-ranked Crimson Tide should put Missouri into the thick of the College Football Playoff race.

“And on Saturday night, we might be thinking about Eli Drinkwitz and the Missouri Tigers as a bona fide College Football Playoff team,” Klatt continued. “That conference is wild, it’s very deep, I don’t think it’s great at the top, and I think this line is bumping Alabama towards great, and I don’t think they are. I think they’re one-dimensional and this matchup favors the Missouri Tigers.”

The Tigers enter Saturday’s Top 15 showdown with the SEC’s top-ranked total offense, averaging 547.6 yards of offense and the league’s No. 2 scoring offense, averaging 45.2 points per game this season. The Crimson Tide, meanwhile, rank seventh and sixth in both categories. And, to Klatt’s point, while Alabama sports the SEC’s second-best passing offense, averaging 325.4 yards through the air, it’s ranked 14th in rushing offense, averaging just 126.8 yards on the ground.

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