Understanding NCAA Football Betting Odds

In America, NCAA football attracts almost as many bettors as the NFL. This makes sense when you consider that for many people, football is far more than just a sport—it’s practically a religion.

With a report by the NCAA finding that almost 58% of surveyed respondents bet on sports, it is clear that sports wagering is growing in popularity by leaps and bounds. However, placing wagers on upcoming games may be daunting for newbies. 

To simplify things, we’ve outlined the basics of NCAA football betting odds below. 

Types of Betting Odds

Three types of betting odds are most commonly used by gamblers wagering on NCAA football games: point spread, moneyline, and totals (also called over/under bets). 

These types of bets yield some of the best chances of winning and are widely supported by bookmakers in the US. They are also the most accessible types of bets to place for new and experienced gamblers.  

Point Spread

In layman’s terms, a point spread bet is a wager based on how many points a team is predicted to win by or lose by. This spread is commonly set by bookmakers and is used to even the odds between teams leading up to a match.

Point spread odds are depicted by a value preceded by a – or + symbol. This symbol not only identifies the bookmakers’ favorite based on team rankings but also indicates how many points each team needs to win or lose by to fulfill the spread and win the bet. 

For example, let’s say that Florida State is due to clash with Ohio State. If Florida State has a point spread of -2.5, the team is considered the favorite to win. Moreover, this means that Florida State must win the upcoming match by at least three points to win the spread. 

Inversely, if Ohio State has a point spread of +2.5, the team will need to either win the game or lose by less than two points to win the spread. Failure to lose by less than this will automatically result in Florida claiming victory over the spread. 

Moneylines

Moneylines are the easiest types of betting odds to understand. They are based on simple mathematics and are published by bookmakers. However, not all bookmakers agree on moneylines for upcoming games. Therefore, it may be best to spend time comparing casino promotional deals and moneylines offered to ensure you get the best odds for your money.

Like point spreads, moneylines are preceded by a positive or negative symbol. However, these reflect the potential profit that can be made if a specific team wins. As a standard, this profit is worked out on a $100 wager—making it easier to calculate possible returns if your prediction rings true. 

As with point spread bets, a negative depicts a favorite to win. Using the same teams as above, if Florida State has odds of -110, gamblers would need to wager a minimum of $110 to make a profit of $100 if they win. 

Meanwhile, if Ohio State has odds of +188, the favorable odds denote them as the underdog. However, because the team is more likely to lose, the returns on a successful bet on them are more significant. As such, the team can win a gambler $188 in profit for every $100 wagered. 

Totals (Over/Unders)

Totals bets are the third simple bet type perfect for sports wagering newbies to try. These bets are based on the amount of points both teams will score combined during a match. Bookmakers release their predictions on the total number of points as a benchmark for gamblers. 

If a gambler thinks that Florida and Ohio State together will score more than 53 points during a game, they can opt to place an over 53 bet. If the combined final score is over this limit, the bet will be seen as successful.

However, if a bettor thinks a score over 53 is unlikely, he or she can place a bet under 53. When doing this, the bet wins if the final total of both teams is less than 53. 

Whether you go with an over- or under-bet, these bet types and odds are also commonly accompanied by moneylines to show how much profit can be made quickly. 

Additional Bet Types and Odds

While the three odds and bet types mentioned above are the easiest and most common to place, there are a few other options available from bookies. Some of these include:

Props

Prop bets are placed on specific players in a game rather than the team’s performance as a whole. These bets are trickier to predict but yield greater returns if you’re lucky enough to be correct. 

Prop bets come in various forms and can focus on specific events during a game. These include whether or not a particular player will score a touchdown; if a specific player will throw an interception; or how many yards a player will rush for. Additionally, bets can be placed on things like who will get the first touchdown.

Parlays

A parlay bet is the amalgamation of several bet types to form a single bet with multiple factors. Parlay bets offer boosted profits if you can win but are notoriously difficult to predict—making them recommended only to those who have an intense passion and dedication to sports betting. This is because if even a single factor is incorrect, the entire wager is a bust.

Parlays usually combine the three most common elements mentioned above: point spread, moneylines, and totals. For this type of bet, a prediction will need to be made on which team will win by more than a particular amount, how much over a figure the combined scores will need to be, and who the ultimate winner will be. For fans who take their sports data seriously, this type of bet has a lot of potential—but it may carry too much risk for newcomers.