The AAC Championship game will take place this Saturday between the undefeated Cincinnati Bearcats, (12-0) and the 11-1 Houston Cougars. The Bearcats are a big 10.5-point favorite to open, and the over/ under is 53.5 points. Cincinnati is -440 money line, while Houston is +330. Ironically, both of these teams will be leaving the ACC and head to the Big 12 Conference in 2023, or 2024 the latest, but for now they will be focused on the ACC Championship at Nippert Stadium, Ohio. Kickoff is at 4:00 p.m. EST. Houston is #16 in both the AP top 25 Poll, and the Coaches Poll. Cincinnati is #3 in the Top 25 and #4 in the Coaches Poll. If the Bearcats win, they will likely become the first ACC to make it to the NCAA College Football Playoff, but they could possibly get jumped over by Notre Dame or OSU. The final CFP rankings will come out at 12:00 Sunday- the top 4 teams in that ranking will be in the playoffs. Houston opened the season with a loss at TCU, but went on an 11-game winning streak to be at 11-1 currently. They didn't have too tough a schedule though, only beating one ranked team- #19 SMU 44-37 back in late October. Cincinnati really didn't have a tough schedule either though, which is why even if they go undefeated, they may still get passed over. They beat the Irish in Notre Dame 24-13 in early October, a huge victory, but that is the only ranked team they played all season. But still, going undefeated is no easy task, as only Georgia has the other undefeated season, though they did play 4 ranked teams. Houston is a big underdog, but I have a feeling they pull off the big upset this Saturday, keeping the Bearcats out of the playoffs.
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