College Football Playoff: 5 Bold predictions for National Championship Game

1. Jalen Hurts will throw at least one interception to Georgia’s secondary

Last year, Jalen Hurts took Alabama to the College Football Playoff championship game against Clemson as a freshman. The young passer had his growing pains, throwing nine interceptions along the way. But Hurts also completed nearly 63 percent of his passes and threw for almost 2800 yards. He also drove Alabama to a go-ahead score in last year’s title game.

Coming into 2017, it seemed like Hurts was poised to take the next leap at quarterback. It wasn’t an otherworldly season for the sophomore, though, as Hurts saw his completion rate and yards per game both drop from his freshman numbers. But one place where Hurts did excel was in terms of protecting the football.

In Alabama’s first 13 games of the season, Hurts has thrown just one interception. That came in a 41-9 win against Arkansas back in mid-October. Hurts might average just 163 passing yards per game, but he also doesn’t give up the football.

At least, he hasn’t given up the football much yet this season. Georgia’s stout defense is going to change that narrative, though. Look for Dominick Sanders or one of the other talented Bulldogs defensive backs to read Hurts downfield and undercut the intended receiver. It might not end up in the endzone for a pick-six, but it’ll come down to whether Hurts can get the tackle on his own interception.