FILE - In this Friday, Jan. 1, 2021 file photo, Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence passes against Ohio State during the first half of the Sugar Bowl NCAA college football game in New Orleans. The last NFL event not impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic was the 2020 combine in Indianapolis. A year later, with the 2021 combine canceled, the league has released a list of players who would have merited invitations. From such high-profile quarterbacks as Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence and Ohio State’s Justin Fields to guys who sat out last season such as Oregon tackle Penei Sewell, there are 323 players from 100 schools. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)
While the NFL may be boss when it comes to betting on football, college football betting ranks second on that list (sorry CFL fans). The majority of college football games are played on Saturday, as not to interfere with NFL’s Sunday slate, which means college football betting lines are one of the biggest weekly draws for football fans looking to make their wagers.
NCAA football betting lines, odds and point spreads are usually posted on Sundays after a full Saturday of games. If you’re an underdog bettor, then you’ll enjoy moneylines as they are quite popular when it comes to college football betting, along with futures, betting the halves, props, and live betting.
From high-scoring affairs throughout the regular season to heavyweight defensive grudge matches of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and College Football Playoff (CFP), there is a little bit of something for everyone when it comes to college football betting.
Moneyline bets are also known as straight-up bets. With moneyline betting, you’re placing a wager on the team that you believe will ultimately win the game. Let’s say Clemson is battling Notre Dame, you will see odds at Sports Interaction that look something like this:
Clemson -120
Notre Dame +170
In this particular example, Clemson is considered the betting favorite as indicated by the minus sign (-). Notre Dame is the underdog here with the plus sign (+). You’ll see these symbols displayed in American odds consistently across all sports betting sites.
With these odds, a $100 wager on the Tigers winning pays out $183.33. You get your original $100 back plus your $83.33 in winnings. In contrast, a $100 wager on the Fighting Irish to win pays out $270 if successful. You get your $100 back plus your winnings of $170.00.
Wagering on how many points a team will win or lose by is known as point spread betting. When betting on the spread between Alabama and Georgia, odds at Sports Interaction might look like this:
Alabama -30.5
Georgia +30.5
The Crimson Tide are the favorites (shocker), but they’d have to win by 31 points or more in order for you to win your wager. The Bulldogs would have to win outright or lose by less than 30 points in order to cover the spread. Picking a team to cover the spread, instead of picking a team to win straight up, makes college football betting that much more fun.
Another college football betting option is totals, or the OVER/UNDER. Oddsmakers set a number of points expected to be scored in a game, and it’s up to you to determine whether both sides will combine to score more or less than that total set at the sportsbook.
If Oregon is playing Arizona with the total set at 48.5 and you think the combined score will be 49 points or more, then you would bet on the OVER. If you believe the combined score between the Ducks and the Wildcats will be 48 points or less, then you’d take the UNDER.
You typically won’t see college football odds without a half-point (.5). If the total was set at 48 instead of 48.5, and both teams combined to score exactly 48 points, it would be considered a “push”, and you’d get a refund. You get your money back because the score didn’t go OVER or UNDER the set total.
You can have a lot of fun with player props in college football betting. While these wagers don’t necessarily correlate with the outcome of the game, they’re equally as exciting. Rather than betting on college football moneylines, totals or spreads all the time, next time try betting on whether a specific running back will rush for over 100 yards or if a particular quarterback will throw a pick. You can also wager on whether a kicker will miss a field goal, plus more with lots of fun player props betting markets available.
With college football futures betting, you wager on events that have yet to happen, but will pay off in time. These types of wagers are usually made before the NCAAF season starts, but the odds will be updated as the season progresses.
You can also place futures wagers at any point prior to the start of a title game too. The majority of futures wagers in college football betting are on the:
– National Championship
– Conference Championship
– Heisman Trophy
With a parlay wager, you combine multiple bets on one ticket to increase your potential winnings. For example, on one bet slip you can bundle a Wisconsin vs Michigan moneyline and a Wake Forest vs Pittsburgh point spread. Maybe you’re feeling extra confident, and you also want to add a totals wager between Texas and Oklahoma.
That’s all fine and dandy, but keep in mind that all your bets have to hit in order for you to win your wager. One loss on your slip and that’s it. Toss your winnings out the window.
Did you know that, in the month of December and first week of January, there are 40 scheduled college football bowl games? Bowl season is like Oprah’s 12 Days of Christmas. You get a bowl, and you get a bowl. There’s the Outback Bowl, the Liberty Bowl, the Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Peach Bowl, and Fiesta Bowl to name a handful.
Every year, two of the New Year’s six bowls are chosen as semifinal games, in order to determine who will play in the championship game. You’ll find odds for every bowl game with the same wagering options as the regular season.
It’s Saturday afternoon and you just realized you forgot to place your college football bets. No worries, most football betting sites offer in-play betting. That way, you can wager on each and every play after the matchup has already kicked off. With live odds, you can bet on whether a drive will result in a touchdown or if the next pass attempt will be picked off, and so much more.
Regardless of the sport, all leagues end with a championship, and it’s no different in college football betting. The College Football Playoff National Championship offers plenty of betting options, which we’ve touched on above.
Whether it’s the Big Ten or the Big 12, college football betting strategies boil down to studying game previews, standings, stats, and sometimes even a little bit of luck. A last-second Hail Mary could score you a serious payout.
Now that you’re caught up to speed with how college football betting works, find an online sportsbook that suits your wagering needs, and make some college football bets today.
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