College Football Odds Legend
When it comes to college football betting, moneylines are popular with underdog bettors, and futures (odds to win the BCS national championship) and betting the halves have added more variety and profit potential for bettors. Throw fantasy-style props wagers and live NCAA betting (where you can wager on the next play and on odds that change all game long) into the mix and the importance of understanding how college football odds operate is at an all-time high. Check out the lines and bookmark the page for more updates and football lines enhancements in the coming weeks and months.
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Point spread
There’s a saying in football betting that “you win it on Saturday and give it back on Sunday.” It suggests that beating the Saturday college football point spread is easy, while beating the NFL spread on Sundays is far more challenging. Regardless, the NCAA point spread, also known as the line or spread, is many bettors’ favorite way to wager on football each fall.
If bettors believe that Alabama is two touchdowns better than Auburn, they may bet the Crimson Tide as 14-point favorites. For the point spread, the negative value (-14) indicates the favorite and the positive value (+14) indicates the underdog. The favorite will need to win by 15 points or more to cover the spread and the underdog team can lose by up to 13 points and still cover the spread.
There will be a “moneyline value” associated with the point spread, for example, -14 (-115). This is known as the vig or juice, and is the commission you’ll pay to the sportsbook to handle the bet. You’ll need to risk $115 to win $100 if you bet the favorite. If you bet the underdog at +14 (+105), this means you can risk $100 to win $105 in profit if your dog team covers the spread.
Moneyline
Common in baseball and hockey betting in days gone by, moneylines have become much more popular in college football in recent years as handicappers have become smarter and believe in their ability to pick upsets. There is no spread to worry about, so your college football team simply needs to win the game. As with a spread, a negative value means a favorite (-150) and a positive value indicates an underdog (+130).
For example, if you bet on the favorite at -180, you’d risk $180 to win $100. If you bet on the +160 underdog, you’d risk $100 and win $160 if the underdog wins straight up. Remember the team must win the game SU in order to earn a moneyline victory for your bankroll.
Total or OVER/UNDER
Also known as college football OVER/UNDER betting, these are wagers on the total points scored by both teams combined. If the total is 60.5, you need 60 points or less to win an UNDER bet (example: 40-17 final = 57 points which is UNDER 60.5) and 61 points or more to win OVER (example: a 40-27 final = 67 points which is OVER 60.5).
NCAA football totals are not available on every game and they are sometimes posted later in the week than NFL totals. Keep tabs on the college football odds menu to see which books post these lines first.
Futures
Who will win the College Football Playoff next year? You can bet on your favorite college football program at any point during the year and these types of predictions on the outcome of a future event are known as NCAA football futures.
If a team is dominant and ranked in the top five, it may have short CFP odds. A slumping team stuck with a tough schedule, paired with injuries galore, may have long-shot odds. If the No. 1-ranked team is +280 to win the title, it means a $100 stake returns a $280 profit if that team wins it all. However, that slumping 0-5 team may be +2500 and would pay a huge $2,500 profit as a long shot on a $100 wager. There are other futures available, including odds to win the SEC, Heisman Trophy odds and more.