College Football

College Football championship odds, picks, predictions: Georgia remains favorite

Updated Sep. 27, 2023 7:30 p.m. ET

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We are a third of the way through the college football regular season. 

Can Georgia three-peat as national champions? The Bulldogs were +220 at the start of the season and have moved to +200.

Will Michigan finally get over the hump? The Wolverines were fourth in odds at the start of the season and now sit second at +600.

Or will a surprise team make the College Football Playoff? Florida State and Texas started the season tied for ninth in odds at +2500 but are currently tied for third at +800.

RELATED: As Colorado, Deion Sanders reset expectations, what spells success?

Alabama, meanwhile, opened as the +600 second choice, but the Tide has fallen to +4000.

Clemson opened at +1600, but after a 2-2 start, now sits at +30000.

Let's take a look at the current odds to win the national championship and get some insight from Geoff Schwartz on which teams are worth a sprinkle.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS

Georgia: +200 (bet $10 to win $32 total)
Michigan: +600 (bet $10 to win $70 total)
Florida State: +800 (bet $10 to win $90 total) 
Texas: +800 (bet $10 to win $90 total) 
Ohio State: +850 (bet $10 to win $95 total)
Penn State: +1200 (bet $10 to win $130 total)
USC: +1600 (bet $10 to win $170 total)
Washington: +1800 (bet $10 to win $190 total)
Oregon: +2000 (bet $10 to win $210 total)
Oklahoma: +3000 (bet $10 to win $310 total) 
Alabama: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total)
Notre Dame: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total)
LSU: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total)
Utah: +6000 (bet $10 to win $610 total) 
Miami (Fla.): +7000 (bet $10 to win $710 total) 
North Carolina: +12000 (bet $10 to win $1,210 total)
Washington State: +12000 (bet $10 to win $1,210 total)
Duke: +15000 (bet $10 to win $1,510 total)
Kansas: +15000 (bet $10 to win $1,510 total)
Missouri: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total)
Tennessee: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total)
Florida: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total)
Kentucky: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total)
Texas A&M: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total)
Syracuse: +25000 (bet $10 to win $2,510 total)

*odds as of 9/27/2023

Editor's Note: Expert's picks made July 2023

Insight via FOX Sports Betting Analyst Geoff Schwartz:

College football has over 130 teams, with 69 of those teams in the Power 5 conferences. With the wide array of options for winning a college football title, it should be difficult to pick winners each season. Quite the opposite is true.

Thanks to Bud Elliott of 247Sports, we know only 16 teams have a chance to win the title this season. Bud developed the Blue-Chip ratio, a formula that looks at the number of blue-chip prospects on each team. "Put simply, to win the national championship, college football teams need to sign more four- and five-star recruits (AKA "Blue Chips") than two- and three-star players over the previous four recruiting classes."  

Since 2011, every national champion has over 50% blue chips on the roster, with most exceeding 60%. 

With that in mind, I’ll give you two teams who can win the title. 

Georgia +215 (at time of pick)

There has not been a team that has won three straight college football championships since the players could fold their leather helmets into their back pockets after a game. 

After two championships, the only thing holding back Georgia from winning a third straight would be apathy, which I doubt happens with new players all over the field, and a slight talent drain. Georgia’s defense was historically good in 2021 and slightly worse in 2022, and now its lost most of those players to the NFL. 

Are the new crop of Georgia defenders as good? I’d guess they are, and we will see the same Georgia defense. 

On offense, UGA must replace Todd Monkin at offensive coordinator and Stetson Bennett at quarterback. On paper, new QB Carson Beck is more talented than Bennett, which could give it an upgrade at the position after two straight titles. Georgia’s schedule is a cakewalk, and its toughest game will likely be the SEC Championship Game. 

If the Bulldogs get there undefeated, they are in the playoff regardless of the result of that contest. As we saw in 2021, an SEC title game loss doesn’t mean much for the title run. 

Georgia is the best team in the country, so why not?

Michigan +800 (at time of pick)

I could easily pick Alabama here and would feel awesome with that selection. However, I will take the Wolverines and pray they figure out how to win a game once the new year begins. Michigan’s Blue-Chip ratio is well below that of Georgia, Clemson or even Alabama, but it has a formula that wins games. It beats people up at the line of scrimmage and mostly does not make mistakes.

JJ McCarthy is talented at quarterback, Blake Corum returns at running back, and the offensive line is loaded with talent. 

While the veteran defense still needs to find that consistent pass rush it saw with Aidan Hutchinson and David Ojabo, the talent will be excellent again. I’m fine with sprinkling a few bucks on a team that made the playoff two years in a row.

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College Football

Georgia Bulldogs

Alabama Crimson Tide

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USC Trojans

Washington Huskies

Oregon Ducks

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LSU Tigers

Utah Utes

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Geoff Schwartz