College Betting Line

ATS College Football Odds Explanation: NCAA Football Betting Lines

Get the latest College Football odds, point spreads, money lines and over/unders for popular sportsbooks and view SportsLine's expert analysis of each upcoming game. College football betting has gotten much more popular over the last several years and those that bet on CFB make up a very rabid fan base. College football, often abbreviated CFB, NCAAF, or NCAAFB. 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.

College football betting has gotten much more popular over the last several years and those that bet on CFB make up a very rabid fan base. College football, often abbreviated CFB, NCAAF, or NCAAFB, features a lot of different bet types and a really high variance in talent level between the teams and the betting odds.

College football spreads can be some of the highest among the six major US betting markets and the totals can also have extreme variations as well.

The first step in betting CFB is knowing how to read the odds, what the different bet types are, and how to understand what the numbers mean.

Top Sportsbooks for College Football Betting

College football is a very popular betting market and all of the sportsbooks bend over backwards to accommodate their customers. Not all sportsbooks will post FCS (Division I-AA) odds, so you’ll have to do some research into those if that is your thing, but you will find all of the FBS (Division I-A) matchups at pretty much any sportsbook in the market.

Some places to consider for college football betting are top-rated sportsbooks like BetMGM, PointsBet, DraftKings, William Hill, and BetRivers.

Not all sportsbooks are available in all states, so you’ll have to check your jurisdiction to find out which places are available for you.

College Football Spreads

Spread betting is the default when it comes to college football. In college football, there can be enormous gaps between teams from coaching, talent, conference strength, and so many other factors. As a result, we often see big spreads in college football, especially in non-conference games, but we also see a lot of games that are lined closely as well.

The spread is a points handicap designed to bring the teams closer to even in hopes of balanced action as much as possible on both sides. The favorite, as denoted by a minus (-) sign, is the better of the two teams or the team that is the favorite because of home field advantage. The underdog, as denoted by a plus (+) sign, is the lesser of the two teams or simply the team on the road.

The size of the spread is indicative of the gap between the two teams. Spreads in college football can range from -1 to -60 or higher. It all depends on which two teams are playing. If you bet on the favorite at say -10, they need to win the game by 11 or more points to “cover the spread”. If you bet on the underdog at +10, they need to lose by 9 or fewer points or win the game outright to cover the spread.

Spreads also have vigorish or “vig” or “juice” attached to them. This is another measure used by risk managers and bookmakers to balance action. The standard is -110, but you can and will see fluctuations in that. It is a house edge that creates a theoretical hold for the sportsbooks.

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For our purposes as bettors, think of it on a $100 scale. At -110, you would have to bet $110 to win $100 or something like $100 to win about $91. At -115, you would have to bet $115 to win $100 or $100 to win about $87. This is called betting “To Win” or “To Risk”.

College Football Money Lines

Money line betting is not as popular in college football circles because the teams can have massive gaps in talent, but those that are able to pick off big underdogs certainly don’t mind. Spread betting evens the gap between the two teams to allow -110 or -115 vig. Money line betting is different.

With a money line, you are just betting on a team to win the game. You pay a bigger price with favorites though, as a -7 favorite might be more like -280 or -300. Similarly, a +7 underdog would be more like +240 or +250. With the favorites, it is lower-risk, lower-reward. With underdogs, it is higher-risk, higher-reward.

Money lines vary in size based on the spread and the likelihood of the favorite winning the game.

College Football Totals

Totals betting is extremely popular in college football. Teams play with wildly different paces and different offensive schemes. Sometimes you’ll have one team that plays extremely fast and one that plays extremely slow. Totals lines in college can vary from the high 30s to as high as the mid-80s, depending on the game.

Totals betting means wagering on whether there will be more points scored in the game than the betting line or fewer points scored. If a 33-30 game has a total of 60, then that game has gone over the total. If a 28-21 game has a total of 60, then that game has gone under the total. You add up the total points and then grade over or under the posted total.

Like spreads, totals have vig attached to them. Also like spreads, the vig is more like -110 or -115 or -120, not like the big money line odds.

College Football Props & Futures Betting

There are an increasing number of prop betting and futures betting markets for college football. These can include things like over/under season win totals, odds to win the National Championship or a conference title, the Heisman Trophy, other individual player/coach awards, or division futures.

The favorite(s) to win the National Championship will generally be somewhere around +350 or +400 and the longest of the long shots, if they are even listed, will have big numbers like +100000 or +500000.

College Football Derivative Betting (Quarter/Half)

Another option for football is to bet on the derivatives, like the quarters or the halves. Some people feel more comfortable betting quarters or halves because games could become blowouts and freshmen could play the second half. Other teams may just be fast starters or make good second half adjustments.

The favorite for the game will be the favorite for the quarters and the 1st half. The 2nd half often depends on what happened in the 1st half.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL POINT SPREADS EXPLAINED:

While the NFL is the most wagered upon sport in North America, college football is the most exciting brand of football you can watch on TV. The passion these kids play with is second to none and the century old rivalries amongst some of college's elite programs makes that one game a season sometime mean so much more than a national title. Since Michigan is generally out of the CFP discussion by November, there game against Ohio State is the be all and end all of their season. Michigan wants to beat Ohio State so badly, that some of the fan base would be considered there season a success if that's the only marquee win on the schedule.

If you don't know some of the history of college football, I suggest looking into it. If you are like everyone else who reads this piece and want to understand how to bet on the basic college football options, you can keep reading. If you are a little more seasoned, you can skip down to the advanced wagering options by clicking here. If you want to know how to lay a few bets down on the futures market, I suggest you click here.

Betting on the Money Line in College Football

As a concept, this is the simplest wager you can make on any game in any sport. The money line betting option allows you to place a bet on the team you think is simply going to win the game. In college, this bet includes overtime. Unlike the NFL, college football games cannot end in a tie due to their overtime format.

Example:

Alabama Crimson Tide: -450 ML
Kentucky: Wildcats +300 ML

The money line betting odds correlate to the listed point spread. In this example, Alabama are the favorites and you must wager $450 dollars to turn a profit of $100. If you are a homer or love betting on the underdog, the Wildcats will return you $300 for every $100 you wager on them if they pull off the upset.

Betting on the Point Spread

Regardless of if I am talking about the NFL, CFL, NCAA, Arena League or upcoming XFL, the point spread is the most popular wagering option for bettors who love to test football betting skills. The point spread is an indication of which team is the favorite and underdog heading into their matchup.

A negative betting line such as -7.5 indicates that the favorite team is expected to not only win the game outright, but win by eight or more points. On the flip side, positive betting lines such as +7.5 indicate a team's underdog status. Not only is the underdog expected to lose, but they are expected to lose by at least eight points.

When looking over betting options for the college football, you will come across lines that look like the following:

Alabama Crimson Tide -7.5 (-110)
Kentucky Wildcats: +7.5 (-110)

Depending on which side you select, your team must 'cover the spread' in order for your wager to be graded a winner.

If you choose to take Kentucky +7.5, you will be a winner if either of these two scenarios play out. The first being Kentucky wins the game outright by any score. The second being Kentucky loses by seven or fewer points, thus 'covering' the +7.5-spread.

If you decided to wager on Alabama as -7.5-point favorites, they must win by eight or more points in order for wager to be graded as a winner.

One thing to keep in mind when betting on the point spread is that the point spread moves up or down depending on how much action a certain side is receiving. If you are able to lock in your bet at -7.5 and the line goes down to -5.5, your ticket would only be a winner if your team won by eight or more points. If they won six or seven, they would have beat the closing spread of -5.5, but your odds are locked in from the time your ticket is printed or you click place bet.

Betting Game Totals

Despite being classified as the same sport, NFL and college football totals are apples and oranges. In college, it's easy to spot the teams that play absolutely zero defense. The scores from their games are typically in the 70's/80's on a consistent basis. In the NFL, there were only a handful of games that games that reached those totals. College football is more receptive to the spread offense, which is why sportsbooks have no choice but to inflate totals to try and cover their own butts.

Let's look at an example of a game total:

Texas Tech Red Raiders/Oklahoma Sooners – 'Over' 78.5 -110, 'Under' 78.5 -110

If you bet the 'over' 78.5, there must be a total of 79 points or more scored in the game in order for you to be a winner. If there are 78 or fewer points scored, then those who bet on the 'under' will cash their tickets.

If totals are whole numbers such as 78 or 80 and the total happens to land exactly on the number, your bet, regardless whether it's an 'over' or 'under' bet, will be graded as a push and your money will be returned to you.

Advanced College Football Wagering Options

Advanced wagering options in college football are nearly identical to those of the NFL. The only thing you will not find in a sportsbook in relation to college football is the 'First Touchdown Scorer or Anytime Touchdown Scorer' market. Below are some of the more popular wagering options.

Team totals

This works almost exactly like the game total, but revolves around one team instead of both. With the 'team total' wagering option, you are essentially betting on whether you think Team X will score more or less than the line given out by the sportsbooks.

Example:

Texas Tech Team Total: 'Over' 35.5 -110, 'Under' 35.5 -110.

In this case you have two options. You can bet them to score 36 or more points or 35 or fewer. The decision is ultimately up to you. This bet also includes overtime, unless otherwise stated in the betting rules provided by your sportsbook of choice.

First Half Spread

The 'first half spread' betting option is a trickier form of betting the full-game point spread. This option takes into account the score at half time in order to determine a winner. The first half spread is usually half of what the full game spread is.

Example:

College Betting Line Picks

Alabama -3.5 1H
Kentucky +3.5 1H

Depending on what side you are on, the score going into half time is what is used to determine a winner. If the score is 31-21 in favor of Alabama, bettors holding an Alabama -3.5 1H ticket are winners since they were able to cover the -3.5- first-half spread.

As I mentioned above, the first half point spread is typically half of what the full game line is.

Player Props

There are only a handful of sportsbooks that offer up player props in college football, but they are nowhere near as extensive as the NFL player props. Typically, there will be props offered on one or two superstars per team and the lines will typically be inflated depending on who is playing.

Examples:

Jalen Hurts: 'Over' 18.5 completions -110, 'Under' 18.5 completions -110
Nick Chubb: 'Over' 74.5 rushing yards -110, 'Under' 74.5 rushing yards -110
Calvin Ridley: 'Over' 4.5 receptions -110, 'Under' 4.5 receptions -110

College Betting Line Today

For each of these three player prop options, each player must go 'over' or 'under' the posted line. If you think Hurts will complete at least 19 passes, you would take the 'over'. If you think Ridley will be held to four or fewer catches, you would bet the 'under'.

A futures bet is a wager placed in the time leading up to the start of the event on a team or player that you believe is going to win their respective competition. Heading into the 2018/19 College Football season, the CFP futures odds look like this:

2019 College Football Champions: Alabama +200, Clemson +700, Georgia +700, Ohio State +700, Michigan +1400, Penn State +1600, Oklahoma +2500, Wisconsin +2500, Florida State +2800, etc.

In order for you to successfully cash your ticket, you must correctly choose the team that will hoist the CFP trophy at the conclusion of next year's College Football Playoffs.

Team Win Totals

This is another popular type of futures bet amongst pro handicappers. The concept is straight forward. Every sportsbook will put out a 'win total' for every team long before the season begins. Handicappers must simply decide whether they believe that team will exceed the posted win total or fall short of it.

Example:

Alabama Crimson Tide Win Total: 'Over' 11.5 wins -110, 'Under' 11.5 wins -110

If Alabama wins at least 12 games, the 'over' would cash. If they win 11 or fewer, the 'under' would cash.

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