College Football Odds & Betting

Oddsmakers are already gearing up for the 2020 college football season and they're extremely bullish on Ohio State's chances to nab next year's Heisman trophy. 

Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields (+300) just beat out his Clemson counterpart, Trevor Lawrence (+400) as the favorite to win college football's highest individual honor.

Justin Fields is your early 2020 Heisman front-runner 💰 pic.twitter.com/TI5fiWnxpA

— br_betting (@br_betting) January 7, 2020

Rounding out the top-five is Oklahoma quarterback Spencer Rattler, Houston quarterback D'Eriq King and LSU quarterback Myles Brennan.

Lawrence and Fields are becoming mainstays on the early-odds scene. Both were listed by Westgate SuperBook (h/t 247Sports) last March as the second- and third-best picks, respectively, to win the Heisman in 2019. 

That didn't turn out to be the case as LSU's Joe Burrow ran away with the award, picking up 841 first-place votes. Fields finished third with six first-place votes and 271 second-place votes.

The inclusion of Brennan on the early odds list should give an extra jolt of energy to an LSU fanbase hoping to bring home the national title on Monday. The sophomore from Mississippi didn't have much of a chance to shine this season behind Burrow, yet he still passed for 353 yards with one touchdown and one interception while completing 24-of-40 pass attempts. 

King presents one of the most intriguing storylines of any Heisman hopeful as a senior redshirt returning to Houston. The quarterback took advantage of the NCAA's rule which allowed him to play four games in 2019 before deciding to redshirt — a strategy many have likened to college's version of tanking which the school has embraced. King passed for 663 yards, rushed for another 312 yards and scored 12 total touchdowns in those four games, but the team went 1-3 and head coach Dana Holgorsen decided to regroup for 2020. 

The dual-threat quarterback was a dark horse candidate for Heisman last season who won't catch anyone off guard next year. 

Rounding out the list from DraftKings Sportsbook is Alabama QB Mac Jones, Auburn QB Bo Nix, Texas QB Sam Ehlinger and LSU running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire. 

Rattler and Jones will replace Jalen Hurts and Tua Tagovailoa at their respective schools.  

Two sets of Tigers remain, but only one will claim the 2020 College Football Playoff National Championship.

The No. 1 LSU Tigers made short work of the No. 4 Oklahoma Sooners in the Peach Bowl, the first of two CFP semifinal matchups Saturday night. The Tigers toppled the Sooners 63-28 to remain undefeated and secure their spot in what will essentially be a home game on Jan. 13 in New Orleans.

The No. 3 Clemson Tigers had to orchestrate a four-play, 94-yard touchdown drive with under three minutes remaining in order to move past the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes in the Fiesta Bowl.

Quarterback Trevor Lawrence finding running back Travis Etienne for 34 yards and the score to put Clemson up 29-23 after a successful two-point conversion. Ohio State's fate was sealed when Nolan Turner intercepted Justin Fields in the end zone with 37 seconds left in regulation.

Now, two 14-0 squads will clash at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome to decide a champion.

Below is more information on the title game.

     

Game Information

Date: Jan. 13, 2020

Time: 8 p.m. ET

Location: Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans

Watch: ESPN or online with WatchESPN

Courtesy of NCAA.com

     

Odds

No. 3 Clemson Tigers vs. No. 1 LSU Tigers (-3.5)

Odds via Caesars Sportsbook

     

No. 1 LSU Tigers Look Unbeatable

The No. 4 Oklahoma Sooners were utterly overwhelmed by Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Joe Burrow and the LSU offense in the Peach Bowl:

Joe Burrow has...

- 7 passing touchdowns, an LSU single-game record and tied for the SEC single-game record.

- Tied for the most pass TD ever in any bowl.

- 403 passing yards.

All in one half.

LSU leads Oklahoma 49-14 at halftime. #CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/1FSfZFtXFT

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 28, 2019

Joe Burrow finished the first half completing 21-27 passes with 403 pass yards and 7 Pass TD.

Burrow ties the record for most Pass TD in a half in FBS history. pic.twitter.com/1ztfawxOYH

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 28, 2019

LSU set multiple records in its victory.

Joe Burrow became the 1st player in FBS history to be responsible for 8 TD in bowl game.

Justin Jefferson’s 4 Rec TD are tied for the most in a FBS bowl game.@LSUFootball's 63 points are tied for the most in a bowl game in SEC history. pic.twitter.com/fQYCAPofrP

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 29, 2019

It should not have come as a surprise to anybody paying attention to Burrow and the Tigers throughout the regular season.

Burrow entered the College Football Playoff having thrown for 4,715 yards, 48 touchdowns and six interceptions on a 77.9 completion percentage. The senior is on pace to set the NCAA all-time record for the highest completion percentage in a single season while already owning the new single-season SEC records for passing yards and touchdowns.

As a result, LSU owns the top-ranked total offense (554.4 yards per game) and third-ranked scoring offense (47.8 points per game).

It's important to note, too, that Oklahoma entered the semifinal ranked second in total offense and sixth in scoring offense. Yet, LSU's 32nd-ranked defense handled Oklahoma with what seemed to be relative ease. Jalen Hurts, the Heisman runner-up to Burrow, finished with 217 yards and one interception plus 43 yards rushing and two rushing touchdowns.

The Tigers offense has not had an off game this year. Opponents go into a game against LSU presumably expecting a shootout. But if the defense can complement as effectively as it did in the Peach Bowl, it's hard to imagine any outcome other than the Tigers being the last team standing on Jan. 13.

     

No. 3 Clemson Tigers Remind Everyone They're Defending Champs

Clemson has won 29 straight games, but it still needs one more to become a back-to-back champion.

The longest active FBS win streak stays with Clemson 🔥 #CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/teAOERCtRu

— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) December 29, 2019

Burrow will remain the predominant storyline, and rightfully so, but Lawrence reminded everybody against Ohio State why he was all the rage as a true freshman leading a championship squad last season:

A championship drive from the defending champs.

Clemson takes the lead back! #CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/3woohduQtt

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 29, 2019

Trevor Lawrence. Ridiculous. #CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/61fCzGd3Os

— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) December 29, 2019

Another crucial development will be just how much of an edge Clemson will have at running back with a fully healthy Etienne, as LSU's Clyde Edwards-Helaire tallied just 14 yards on two carries against Oklahoma. The LSU junior running back has been nursing a hamstring injury suffered in practice earlier this week.

LSU still managed to rush for 160 yards, led by 89 yards from freshman back Chris Curry, but Etienne was a game-changer for Clemson with a record-setting 36 yards and one touchdown as a rusher paired with 98 yards and two touchdowns on three catches:

Travis Etienne is the first player with 2 rec TD and a rush TD in a CFP Semifinal or Final.#CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/vxRQGW3M6Y

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 29, 2019

On a more macro level, the knock on Clemson this season had been its weak schedule. Clemson's biggest challenge was No. 24 Virginia in the ACC Championship Game—a game won 62-17—until running into Ohio State.

The Buckeyes led by as many as 16 points Saturday night, and Clemson's comeback was the second-largest in CFP semifinal or title game history, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

In other words, it can no longer be said that Clemson skated to the title game.

And it is definitely in for a fight against LSU.

Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa remains the betting favorite for the Heisman Trophy, with LSU quarterback Joe Burrow now level with Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts. 

Tagovailoa (-120) is ahead of Burrow and Hurts (+275) at the Caesars Sportsbook. Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields is in fourth at +900, with a wide gap between him and Wisconsin running back Jonathan Taylor at +1500.

Tua, Joe Burrow and Jalen Hurts are the new frontrunners for the Heisman 👀 @br_betting pic.twitter.com/H74CpWndtY

— Bleacher Report CFB (@BR_CFB) October 16, 2019

Tagovailoa's odds fell slightly from Week 7 when he was -150. Hurts (+225) had a lead on Burrow (+350), which has since closed. 

The Crimson Tide beat Texas A&M 47-28 in College Station, Texas. Tagovailoa threw for 293 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. At this point, the Heisman race is probably his to lose, especially with Trevor Lawrence failing to meet expectations.

Lawerence went 17-of-25 for 170 yards, three touchdowns and an interception in a 45-14 win over Florida State. The Tigers star is averaging 216.8 yards per game, which is nearly equal to his production as a freshman (218.7 yards).

Burrow and Hurts are doing their best to make the battle interesting.

Burrow leads the FBS in passer rating (218.1) and is second in passing yards (2,157) while throwing 25 touchdowns to just three interceptions. LSU's offense is almost unrecognizable from where it was in recent seasons.

Hurts is right on Burrow's heels in terms of efficiency, sitting second in QB rating (215.9). The Tigers star has a clear edge in terms of sheer volume, though, as Hurts has amassed 1,758 yards, 17 touchdowns and three picks.

Looking forward, the schedule favors Tagovailoa and Burrow as long as they can maintain their current pace. LSU and Alabama play one another Nov. 9 and they each have No. 11 Auburn to come as well.

Oklahoma, on the other hand, plays one more ranked team, No. 18 Baylor.

The 2019 college football season is three weeks old, and according to Caesars Sportsbook, not much has changed since No. 1 Clemson routed No. 2 Alabama 44-16 in last season's College Football Playoff National Championship. 

Wednesday, Caesars revealed updated title odds with Clemson and Alabama each at +245 (bet $100 to win $245) to win the 2020 national title:

Who you got? 💰

(via Caesars Sportsbook) pic.twitter.com/vQ87wDTVY1

— br_betting (@br_betting) September 18, 2019

Ahead of Week 4, both squads have cruised to 3-0 records. According to ESPN's Football Power Index, though, Alabama holds a slight edge moving forward. That may have to do with the excellent play of 'Bama junior quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, including a record-setting performance last week with 444 yards and five touchdowns. 

The rest of the field remains undefeated, too. The No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs (+550) and No. 5 Oklahoma Sooners (+700) pose the most interesting threats. Georgia nearly defeated Alabama in the 2018 national championship, while OU is now led by former Tide quarterback and graduate transfer Jalen Hurts. 

While Alabama and Clemson aren't scheduled to meet during the regular season, No. 7 Notre Dame (+2000) will be at Georgia on Saturday night. However, Alabama does meet No. 4 LSU (+1200) on Nov. 9.

No. 6 Ohio State (+800) won't play No. 11 Michigan (+1800) until the final week of the regular season on Nov. 30, and by then, a much clearer picture of where each program stands nationally will be painted. 

Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is now a 2-1 favorite to win the 2019 Heisman Trophy in the latest odds:

Tua is back to being the Heisman favorite 🏆

(via Caesars Sportsbook) pic.twitter.com/dfE3lCNrqL

— br_betting (@br_betting) September 16, 2019

The junior torched South Carolina in Saturday's conference win, finishing with 444 yards and five touchdowns. He now has 12 touchdowns on the season in just three games with no interceptions, also totaling 1,007 passing yards and a 76.9 completion percentage. 

His 95.5 Total QBR ranks second in college football through the first three weeks.

Meanwhile, former teammate Jalen Hurts leads the country in this category at 96.8 after a fantastic start to his season with Oklahoma. The Alabama transfer has three passing touchdowns in each game with zero picks, also adding four rushing scores on the year.

He has made a nearly flawless transition to Lincoln Riley's offense and has the Sooners 3-0 with the No. 2 scoring offense in college football.

Joe Burrow is also a fast-riser on Heisman odds thanks to his big numbers (second in the country with 1,122 passing yards) and a big win over Texas that helped LSU earn a top-five spot in the rankings. If the Tigers remain in the national title picture, Burrow will stay in the hunt for this individual award.

The top non-quarterback on the list remains Jonathan Taylor at 12-1 odds.

The Wisconsin running back has only played two games this season but already has 237 rushing yards and five scores. After totaling 4,171 yards on the ground over the past two years, it's a good bet that more big games are coming for the talented runner.

If the Week 1 lines for the 2019 college football season are any indication, we will likely be heading for a lot of blowouts to begin the campaign. 

Here's a look at the lines for notable games via Caesars: 

Florida (-7.5) vs. Miami

Georgia Tech vs. Clemson (-34)

Florida Atlantic vs. Ohio State (-27)

Duke vs. Alabama (-32)

Boise State vs. Florida State (-4)

Georgia (-20) vs. Vanderbilt 

Oregon vs. Auburn (-3)

Louisiana Tech vs. Texas (-20.5)

Fresno State vs. USC (-13.5)

Houston vs. Oklahoma (-26)

Notre Dame (-20) vs. Louisville

Full lines available at Caesars

The likes of Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Oklahoma appear to be headed for glorified scrimmages to start their seasons. 

Among the notables, the games to watch appears to be Florida-Miami, Boise State-Florida State and Oregon-Auburn. The milage on the intrigue for each of those contests may vary.

Florida is more than a touchdown favorite over Miami to start Dan Mullen's second season at the helm. The Gators ended 2018 with a 10-3 record and ranked sixth in the AP poll. They'll return a strong contingent of their production on both sides of the ball and will probably enter as a top 10-15 team in the preseason polls.

Miami enters coming off a 7-6 campaign that ended in Mark Richt's resignation. The Hurricanes are expected to be fighting an uphill battle in the ACC under new coach Manny Diaz, though the rivalry aspect leaves a potential upset open.

Florida State likewise enters 2019 coming off a down campaign, finishing 5-7 in Willie Taggart's first year at the helm. The Seminoles could see this line move to Boise State being favored by kickoff. The Broncos have to settle their quarterback battle in camp but have a ton of talent on the offensive line, skill positions and on the defensive side of the ball. 

The no-doubt-about-it Game of the Week is Oregon-Auburn, which could be the only matchup between ranked teams on the Week 1 slate. The Ducks will return 10 starters on offense, including quarterback Justin Herbert, in what might be the most explosive unit in college football. Auburn has no such security at quarterback but does have a Gus Malzahn scheming the offense in what could be a shootout. 

The easiest way for a quarterback to rise to the top of next year's Heisman Trophy odds is by putting on a dominant performance in the College Football Playoff Championship Game. 

Per Bovada (h/t B/R Betting), Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence is a +285 favorite (bet $100 to win $285) to win the 2019 Heisman Trophy, followed by Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa at +350 and Georgia's Jake Fromm +850:

Who’s your early Heisman pick? 🏆 pic.twitter.com/bJQptoQrPv

— br_betting (@br_betting) January 10, 2019

Lawrence had one of the best seasons ever by a true freshman quarterback. He led the Tigers to a 15-0 record by throwing for 3,280 yards and 30 touchdowns. The Georgia native went 47-of-71 for 674 yards and six touchdowns in playoff wins over undefeated Notre Dame and Alabama squads. 

Tagovailoa was able to springboard to superstardom in two quarters and overtime last January. He led Alabama's 26-23 comeback victory over Georgia in the College Football Playoff Championship with 166 passing yards and three touchdowns after taking over for Jalen Hurts. 

The Crimson Tide sophomore carried that momentum into 2018. He was the runner-up in Heisman voting with 3,966 passing yards and 43 touchdowns. 

Clemson and Georgia have multiple Heisman favorites among the top seven candidates. Bulldogs running back D'Andre Swift and Tigers running back Travis Etienne are tied with +950 odds. 

If it's possible to have a sleeper in the top seven Heisman favorites, Texas' Sam Ehlinger at +1000 is hard to resist.

The Longhorns found their footing with a 10-4 record in Tom Herman's second season. Ehlinger took a huge leap forward in his sophomore year, throwing for 3,292 yards, running for 482 yards and accounting for 41 total touchdowns. 

If Oklahoma loses reigning Heisman winner Kyler Murray, either to Major League Baseball or the NFL, the Big 12 could shift to Texas for the first time since 2009. 

Even though the confetti has barely settled on Clemson's title win, it's ever too early to think about what will happen when college football returns in August. The Heisman race will have plenty of twists and turns, but there's a strong group of contenders at the top to take home the sport's greatest individual honor.

The 2018-19 college football season has yet to crown a champion, but the two remaining College Football Playoff finalists are already expected to be among next season's top contenders.

According to Caesars Palace, the Alabama Crimson Tide will be the favorites heading into the offseason, with the Clemson Tigers not far behind:

2020 CFB title odds, via @CaesarsPalace

Alabama: +180
Clemson: +500
Field: -120 pic.twitter.com/7l9KQGsFW8

— br_betting (@br_betting) January 5, 2019

The early odds aren't surprising.

Alabama is the only program to make the College Football Playoff in each of the system's first five years. During that span, the Crimson Tide have won two titles, narrowly lost another and will play for one Monday.

With Heisman Trophy runner-up Tua Tagovailoa leading the way, Alabama cruised to a 14-0 record, won the SEC and defeated the Oklahoma Sooners in the Orange Bowl last week. 

Clemson was in the field in each of the last four seasons after it missed the inaugural tournament. The Tigers won the 2016 championship and suffered a 45-40 loss to the Crimson Tide in the title game the year prior.

The bad news for other teams is 247Sports ranks Nick Saban's 2019 Tide recruiting class as the best in the nation. 

Like Alabama, Clemson (14-0) has run the table. The Tigers met little resistance on their way to the ACC title and dominated the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 30-3 in the Cotton Bowl last week.

The Tigers have the No. 6 2019 recruiting class, per 247Sports.

Entering Monday's showdown in Santa Clara, California, Saban's Tide own a 2-1 edge over Dabo Swinney and the Tigers in their three CFP meetings, including a 24-6 victory in last year's semifinals. The odds for the 2020 title could change, depending on the outcome of the fourth installment of this rivalry, though.

Regardless, these programs appear to be a step above the rest.