College Football Playoff odds: Ohio State now clear favorite to win title

Penn State rebounded from its first defeat of the college football season in resounding fashion last week, pummeling Minnesota 45-17 and easily covering as a 5.5-point home favorite to snap an 0-3 ATS slide.

And that’s the extent of the good news for Penn State fans. Because steamrolling into Happy Valley on Saturday afternoon is undefeated juggernaut Ohio State.

Since opening the season with a lackluster home win over Notre Dame, the Buckeyes have been like a Category 5 hurricane — one that is now the favorite to win the national championship after destroying six straight opponents by 30-plus points.

The usual suspects — Georgia, Alabama, Clemson — are lined up behind Ohio State on the College Football Playoff odds board, while several surprise squads are lurking in the bushes.

Here’s an updated look at odds to win the 2022-23 college football national championship ahead of Saturday’s Ohio State-Penn State clash at Beaver Stadium.

Odds via BetMGM and updated as of noon ET on Oct. 25.

Ohio State entered this season as the third choice at BetMGM to win its first national championship since 2014. The Buckeyes’ +600 odds trailed only defending champion Georgia and last year’s runner-up Alabama (both at +200).

So what have the second-ranked Buckeyes (7-0) done to see those odds shrink down to +175? Oh, just score at least 45 points and give up 21 or fewer in six consecutive contests.

A sampling of the dominance:

— Ohio State has posted four straight victories to begin Big Ten play by the combined score of 204-61.

— The Buckeyes are on ongoing 4-0-1 run against the spread, covering as a favorite of 31, 19, 27 and 29.5 points while pushing as a 39-point chalk in a 49-10 rout of Rutgers.

— Led by Heisman Trophy candidate C.J. Stroud, the offense has scored an average of 31 points over the past six games … in the first half.

The Buckeyes do play three of their final five games on the road, beginning with Saturday at Penn State. But they’re currently 15.5-point favorites against the Nittany Lions and no doubt will be laying double digits the rest of the way. That includes a season-ending home game against undefeated and No. 4 Michigan.

While Ohio State has jumped over Georgia on BetMGM’s College Football Playoff odds board, it’s certainly not because the defending champs have slipped. The Bulldogs (7-0) had a close-call road win at Missouri (26-22), but otherwise they have won six games by 17 points or more.

So Georgia’s national championship odds remain exactly the same as before the season. However, the top-ranked Bulldogs have a few road blocks to navigate over the final month of the regular season.

After Saturday’s annual rivalry showdown against Florida, Georgia hosts undefeated and third-ranked Tennessee. Then come back-to-back tricky road trips to Mississippi State and No. 19 Kentucky. If the Bulldogs get through all that, they’ll reach the SEC Championship Game. Their likely opponent: Alabama.

The Crimson Tide, who suffered a last-second upset loss at Tennessee two weeks ago, have slipped to No. 6 in the Top 25 rankings. But in the sportsbook’s rankings, Nick Saban’s squad is third at +350 to win the title.

Ohio State, Georgia and Alabama (6-1) are the only teams whose national championship odds are in single digits at BetMGM this week. No. 4 Michigan (7-0) and No. 5 Clemson (8-0) are next, both tied at +1600.

Interestingly, the Tigers’ odds have doubled (opened at +800), while the Wolverines’ odds have been sliced in half (opened at +3500). Meanwhile, Tennessee checks in at +1800, which is a steep drop from the Volunteers’ preseason odds of 100-to-1.

The Vols’ surprising start certainly has resonated with bettors. At BetMGM, 13.5% of all national championship bets have been placed on Tennessee, second only to Alabama (13.6%). In terms of money wagered, the Vols (14.8%) are behind only Ohio State (21.6%) and Alabama (20.4%).

As a result, Tennessee is now BetMGM’s biggest liability.

Like Georgia, Ohio State, Tennessee, Michigan and Clemson, TCU enters Week 9 of the college football season with a perfect record (7-0). Unlike their fellow unbeatens, however, the No. 7 Horned Frogs aren’t getting much respect from oddsmakers.

TCU currently sits at +6600 at BetMGM, which is tied with No. 10 USC (6-1) for eighth lowest national title odds. Just ahead of the Horned Frogs and Trojans: No. 8 Oregon, which has won six straight games since a season-opening 49-3 loss to Georgia. The Ducks have gone from +5000 in the preseason to +4000.

What about Penn State? The Nittany Lions are tied for 12th in the College Football Playoff odds race at 200-to-1.

If you want to jump on those odds, here’s what Penn State must do to turn a modest investment into a big payday: Run the table (including upsetting Ohio State on Saturday), get a little help to nab a spot in the Big Ten championship game, win that to get into College Football Playoff, then win two more games.

Of course, a sixth consecutive loss to the Buckeyes — or any other loss — would obliterate that investment. So probably best to keep that money in your pocket.

The Inquirer is not an online gambling operator, or a gambling site. We provide this information about sports betting for entertainment purposes only.