Skip Bayless thinks Michigan has best chance of beating Alabama

FS1’s Skip Bayless had made a career out of giving hot takes.

Bayless once called Tim Tebow the next Brett Favre, he once said Carmelo Anthony is a better all-around scorer than Lebron James.

In short, take what he says with a grain of salt.

Although Bayless loves to stir the pot, he’s no dummy either and sometimes provides facts and statistics to support his case.

That’s where the No. 5 Michigan Wolverines come in.

Bayless thinks Michigan can give the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide a run for their money.

“I think Michigan has all the components to beat Alabama,” Bayless said. “Alabama with Tua (Tagovailoa) at quarterback is flying as high as any team I can remember in all my years of watching college football. They are dominating in ways I’ve never seen before. It’s over after five minutes. Every game he throws three touchdowns and it’s just over. (But) Michigan right now is number one in pass defense in college football.”

Bayless went on to break down why he thinks Michigan would give Alabama a fight

• “Don Brown is the best defensive coordinator in college football and he just proves it year after year.”
• “Not only are they first in pass defense, they are first in overall yards allowed, so it’s a really good defense that can do lots of things. It can cover, it can really rush the passer.”
• “They have a collection of rushers, they can really get after the quarterback.”
• “They have a quarterback (Shea Patterson). I’m not saying he’s Tua, but he’s pretty good. And he’s savvy, and he’s clever, and he can make plays with his arm and his legs.”
• “Can they ball control you? Can they win the clock? ‘Cause time of possession their 7th in the country right now.”
• “They gotta close the deal, Penn State and then you have to go to Ohio State.”
• “I would give them the best shot out of anyone so far at playing Alabama.”

Bayless makes some interesting points, and if Michigan wins the rest of their games during the regular season and wins the Big Ten Championship, the chances of facing Alabama would become quite high.

Alabama has the best quarterback in the nation, the clear cut Heisman front-runner. But there’s something to be said about how great Don Brown’s Michigan defense has played this season.

While we can say Michigan hasn’t played a team nearly as good as Alabama (Notre Dame would disagree), it’s also easy to say Alabama hasn’t faced a defense even close to Michigan’s caliber.

We’ll find out whether Bayless’ case for Michigan is sensible or crazy soon enough.

Either way, still bold of Bayless, even if he throws out hot takes as often as Eli Manning gets sacked.