Two historic football programs will be kicking off their 2025 college football season at Doak Campbell Stadium on Saturday afternoon when the Alabama Crimson Tide take on the Florida State Seminoles.
There’s a lot of new talent on both rosters that will be looking to make a name for themselves on the national stage.
Here are my favorite Alabama vs. Florida State player props and college football picks for Saturday, August 30.
Alabama vs Florida State props for Week 1
Ry. Williams o69.5 rec yds (-114)
Ro. Williams u27.5 rush yds (-114)- Simpson o247.5 pass yds (-114)
Prop bet #1: Ryan Williams Over 69.5 receiving yards
While there are several new players all around, one big time returning player is Alabama Crimson Tide wideout Ryan Williams.
Last year, he led the Tide with 865 receiving yards and eight touchdowns as a true freshman.
While his production dipped late in the season, my Alabama vs. Florida State predictions expect him to get back to where he was early on right away this year. He started the first five games with at least 68 receiving yards in each game.
The Florida State Seminoles secondary is completely new at the cornerback position with all three listed starters having no snaps together last season. While one of them did come from Alabama, I do not expect them to be able to shut down one of the best wideouts in the country.
Williams is not a huge volume guy, but he is a threat to take any pass to the house from any distance. He could just as easily get one catch for 70 yards.
Either way, I like him to be able to take advantage of a brand-new defense on the FSU side playing together for the first time.
Prop bet #2: Roydell Williams Under 27.5 rushing yards
Roydell Williams spent four seasons with the Crimson Tide before transferring to Florida State last season. This will be his sixth season in college football, and he is listed as a co-starter on the Seminoles depth chart.
However, Williams played in only four games last season and averaged just 2.0 yards per carry and 13.3 yards per game. Even in his senior season at Bama, he only averaged 40.0 yards per game.
Meanwhile, the Crimson Tide will have one of the best defenses in college football in terms of talent and depth. Last year, they allowed only 320.1 total yards per game and 17.4 points per game.
The Seminoles will likely be playing from behind for most of this game, so if Williams does not get going early, he could be completely shut down in the second half. I will ride with the Crimson Tide defense and the likely game script here.
Prop bet #3: Ty Simpson Over 247.5 passing yards
This will be the debut start for redshirt junior quarterback Ty Simpson for Alabama. He is a very different style quarterback than what the Tide have seen over the last few years, as Simpson is a true pocket passer. Expect to see a lot more passing from the Tide this season.
With targets like Williams, I imagine Simpson will be able to air it out plenty against this new secondary for the Seminoles. He also has Germie Bernard, who had 50 catches for 794 yards last season, and transfer Isaiah Horton, who had 56 catches for 616 yards last season for Miami.
Remember the last time coach Kalen DeBoer had a pass heavy offense in his final season at Washington, quarterback Michael Penix Jr. averaged 326.9 passing yards per game. His style of offense could really show in season two at Bama with a quarterback like Simpson surrounded by all those weapons at wide receiver.
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