How to Read College Football Moneylines

A moneyline bet involves you picking a team to win the game outright. This method remains the classic standard for entry-level sports wagers, remaining popular for its simplicity in analysis and understanding.

For example, consider a theoretical College Football National Championship rematch (not that you have to do much thinking to surmise Alabama will roll into another championship game).

• Alabama Crimson Tide Moneyline | -200 at DraftKings
• Georgia Bulldogs Moneyline | +170 at DraftKings

In this scenario, Alabama is the favorite (meaning oddsmakers expect the pick to win), while Georgia is the underdog. Sportsbooks universally denote the favorites with a minus sign (-) and underdogs with the plus sign (+).

What do the numbers behind the signs mean? Profiting $100 off Alabama necessitates a $200 bet A correct bettor wagering $100 on Alabama earns a payout of $150. The original money is returned in full, in addition to a profit of $50.

Betting on the underdog always pays better, because the bettor trades a higher chance of losing with a higher return if the less-likely bet pays. In this case, a $100 wager on Georgia earns  $270 — the $100 returns alongside $170 welcomed with open arms and wallets. 

How to Read College Football Point Spreads

Point spreads offer the ability to bet on a margin of victory, rather than which team will obtain it. Converting our Alabama/Georgia example to a point spread format might see Alabama at -6.5.

Football sportsbooks typically set the odds between two numbers to seize the advantage of making the bettor commit to the over or under without a tie possibility.

A -6.5 point spread translates to Alabama being favored to win the game. Those who bet on Alabama need the team to win by at least 7 points to win the wager (when a favorite wins by more than the point spread, this is commonly called “covering the spread”). Conversely, bettors wagering on Georgia enjoy victory if the Bulldogs win the game or lose by under 7 points. 

These odds attract by typically featuring less juice/vig, which is essentially the cut the sportsbook gets for making a bet and collects on lost wagers. They will often be the same or close to even, barring significant movement. 

Convention wisdom behooves new bettors to consider that, unlike basketball games where scoring is constant, or games in baseball parks conducive to increased run production, football varies in scoring volume and can be very dependent on the game script.

How to Read College Football Over/Unders or Totals

Athletic directors schedule laughably favorable matchups at times to beef up statistics that ultimately project a dominance the voting committee notices and rewards with a bowl game and/or playoff contention.

Football success tops the prioritization list of most schools with a proud program. Almost 60% of the NCAA’s total athletic department revenue comes directly from football and men’s basketball. All other sports directly account for only about 15% of total revenue.

The remaining athletic department revenue comes from other sources such as the sale of media rights. Most of that value stems from broadcasting football and men’s basketball.

In other words, scoring points also scores a lot of money. The same holds true for bettors thanks to over/under and totals betting. 

The total, or over/under, is a bet on the combined total score of a college football game. For example, oddsmakers set the Alabama/Georgia game at 45 points.

This means that if the final score exceeds 45 points, the over bet wins. If the final score underperforms the 45-point benchmark, the under wins.

How College Football Prop Bets Work

The debate over college athletes making money on their likeness wages on, but you might be able to wager on a player you like. Participates hinges on whether your state allows prop bets on college games. We advise checking before performing any analysis. 

Sportsbooks capitalize on many opportunities to turn catches into cash through prop bets. Common ones other than receptions include receiving yards, rushing yards, passing yards and touchdowns. College football shrouds in spectacular offensive displays. 

NCAA rules recognize college athletes generally don’t wield the level of body control and mastery of professionals. For example, only one foot is needed to be within the boundary for a catch to count.

Defenses are also not nearly as sophisticated, due to a combination of regulations, college players’ comparable lack of schematic acumen and the best defensive coaches generally residing in the NFL, whereas many college programs entice offensive coaches with powerful perks and positions.

Each team deploys unique plays, strategies and personnel usages that impact final statistics. Tactics adjust based on the opponent as well.

It’s also worth noting that, even in today’s safety-conscious surroundings, professional football remains a comparably violent sport that leaves participants vulnerable to injuries on any play. The increased chance for injury heightens prop betting risk as well.

Understanding the statistics players produce proves much simpler than analyzing the systems giving the opportunities. Yards are self-explanatory. A reception occurs when a player successfully catches the ball within the legal boundaries. A touchdown occurs when any part of the ball breaks the plane of the goal line while the player is upright on a play without a nullifying penalty.

Throwers of the ball earn a passing touchdown statistic, but not for handing off the ball. An interception happens when the defense catches an offensive player’s pass within the legal boundaries and there isn’t an offsetting penalty.

Sack is the term for a defensive player tackling a quarterback behind the line of scrimmage before the ball is released. An offensive player getting tackled in his team’s own end zone when attempting to take the ball out results in a safety.

How College Football Futures Bets Work

“Futures” represents the operative word for futures bets. Futures bettors need their crystal ball to figure out who will ball well enough to make the season-long bet pay off.

These bets carry tremendous risk due to injuries and other unforeseen circumstances derailing an individual or team’s season (football’s reliance on 11 starters working in tandem on each unit formulates more variance in players who are ball-dependent i.e., receiver numbers suddenly suffering from a star quarterback getting injured).

Moreover, anyone playing for the numerous powerhouse NCAA Division I teams who overtakes the player wagered on sinks the bet (the same holds true for team bets).

Future bets make up for stability in fun speculation throughout an entire season while providing strong return values, due to the unlikely nature of paying off. 

Examples of college football futures bets include wagering on a team to win the national championship, or on a smaller scale, the conferences/which team finishes with the top ranking.

The ultimate individual player futures option is betting on who will win the coveted Heismann Trophy. Bets extend to statistical leaders — such as wagering on who leads Division 1 in passing touchdowns — as well. 

OddsJam College Football Betting Guidelines and Resources

NCAAF Expert Picks

We equip our readers for enduring success with free predictions and analyses for each week of college football action! We assist long-term bettors as well that often outshines public sentiment, such as correctly predicting Pittsburgh would win the Atlantic Coast Conference. Our seasoned staff enjoys years of sustained success navigating the tricky world of sports gambling. 

NCAAF Public Betting Data

Public money is the amount of money the majority of people are placing on one side of a bet.

Reverting to the Alabama/Georgia example, if 80% of all bets placed are on Alabama -6.5, the public money is on Alabama. 

The average bettor is not the best one and is often wrong, or else Las Vegas would resemble a ghost town instead of a glitzy extravaganza.

The bet percentage differs from the overall money percentage. In the above example, maybe 20% of the overall money being wagered might be on Alabama. In other words, there are bigger bets placed on Georgia The most common betting range online is between $10 and $25. The other most-common wager is simply less than $10. 

Sharps (a term for professional bettors) look for line advantages. Results often stray from where public money is going, making following the herd a bad idea, especially if public money on one side accounts for more than 80%. “Fading the public” refers to betting against the crowd in these scenarios.

Our article covers sharps in more depth. 

OddsJam NCAAF Projections

Implied Probability is a percentage that is derived by converting the given betting odds that represent the likelihood of that outcome occurring.

For a complete look at implied profitability, view our detailed explanation here. This percentage factors in the bookmaker’s profit margin as well (consider the juice/vig). The three formats that odds are packaged in are American, Decimal and Fractional.

OddsJam has an odds converter calculator that calculates all three major odds formats, including the implied probability of those odds, all within an instant. OddsJam’s Perfect Line odds are available to our Industry Plan subscribers for a monthly fee that is covered quickly by the 3% daily profits we generate while placing sports bets.

NCAAF Betting Data:

• We provide the most comprehensive and updated odds from the most sportsbooks out there. If you want to place a specific bet, you can use OddsJam’s game pages to find the sportsbook offering you the best odds.
• OddsJams offers odd breakdowns for all different types of bets you want to make from moneylines and point spreads to player props and alternative markets — make sure you’re using OddsJam to find the sportsbook offering you the best odds on your bet.
• We’ve thoroughly reviewed nearly every major sportsbook to provide you a complete snapshot of which one offers you the best starting and continuous value as a customer for your specific sports interests and betting needs! 
• Not in the action, but wondering if you can join? Our sports betting legalization tracker updates viewers on the status of the ever-changing and growing world of legal sports gambling.

Betting Calculators: 

• Our free play calculator, also known as a free bet conversion calculator, determines the rate at which you can turn a free bet into cash. 
• Our no vig fair odds calculator is used to back out “fair” odds from a market (meaning no juice). This tool can be used to compare markets and odds, as well as find the implied win percentages for a given team.
• Our odds converter calculator calculates all three major odds formats, including the implied probability of those odds, all within an instant. 
• Our parlay calculator determines the final odds, or total payout, of your bet simply by entering each leg of your parlay. Keep in mind that all legs of a parlay must succeed for the bet to pay off. If just one fails, the entire wager loses. 
• Our vig calculator will show you how much the sportsbook is charging to accept wagers in that market. Odds should be entered in American format. Simply enter the odds for both sides of a wager to determine the juice or “vig” of a given sportsbook. 

NCAAF Betting Tools:

How do I read college football odds?

Sportsbooks universally denote the favorites with a minus sign (-) and underdogs with the plus sign (+).

Dollar amounts always refer to how much money needs to be wagered to profit $100 from a favorite, or how much money one wins from betting $100 on an underdog.

Prop bets vary depending on what is being wagered, ranging from bets on statistical category totals for an individual player (i.e., an over/under on Bryce Young’s passing yards) or a team statistic. These can be for a quarter, half or entire game. Futures bets project the season.

Where can I bet on college football games?

College football fuses personal investment via regional allegiance and/or alma mater ties with the excitement of high-scoring games courtesy of “pure” amateur athletes.

The unique appeal attracts most of the major sportsbooks. Two of the most popular for college football bets are FanDuel and DraftKings, which offer daily fantasy sports games, in addition to traditional sportsbook betting. To find the right one for your needs and area, check out our sportsbook reviews and see below:

• Caesars
• BetMGM
• BetRivers/SugarHouse
• Unibet
• DraftKings
• FanDuel
• PointsBet

Who are the best teams in college football?

Traditional establishes itself deep in the roots of college football programs. You can count on the likes of Alabama and Clemson re-climbing the top of the mountain.

Powerhouses gain the support of affluent boosters that feel confident in a return on their investment. Unlike the NFL, producing wins generates money that can be used for vastly superior facilities and coaches.

Promising prospects commit to a handful of schools that offer better opportunities for championship success or NFL development i.e., Ohio State and Alabama’s NFL pipeline status.