College Football Playoff Odds: Who Will Win in 2025-26?

The Ohio State Buckeyes are champions once again.

Ohio State defeated Notre Dame 34-23 on January 25, earning head coach Ryan Day his first title. The Buckeyes downed Tennessee, Oregon, Texas and Notre Dame to claim the title as the No. 8 seed. With many months until the start of the 2025-26 college football season (August 23, 2025), early odds are already in place for the next champion.

The announcement in 2022 that the College Football Playoff would be expanding to 12 teams was met with mixed responses. Some argued that 4 was the perfect number and that putting teams that “don’t deserve it” in the running is counterintuitive. Others – those of us choosing joy – refuse to complain about the prospect of watching more postseason college football.

On this page, we’ll check out the odds for the 2025-26 season, as well as the history of the playoff, some important storylines to keep aware of, and much more!

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2025-26 College Football Playoff Odds

As parity increases in college football, the notion of a 12-team Playoff makes more and more sense. We’ve already established that there is no true elite team in the game this season, but expanding to a 12-team field gives teams that would usually never have a chance a real chance to be crowned the 2025-26 champion.

Here’s a look at the initial odds for next season’s national champion:

 

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2025-26 College Football Playoff schedule

Here’s a quick look at the schedule for next season’s College Football Playoff:

• First Round (1 Game): December 19, 2025
• First Round (3 Games): December 20, 2025
• Quarterfinals (Cotton Bowl): Wednesday, December 31, 2024:
• Quarterfinals (Orange Bowl): Tuesday, January 1, 2026
• Quarterfinals (Rose Bowl): Tuesday, January 1, 2026
• Quarterfinals (Sugar Bowl): Tuesday, January 1, 2026
• Semifinal Game (Fiesta Bowl): Thursday, January 8, 2026
• Semifinal Game (Peach Bowl): Friday, January 9, 2026
• CFP National Championship Game: Monday, January 19, 2026

 

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Early Contenders for 2025-26 title

Here’s a look at which teams are considered top contenders for the national title in 2025-26 (Updated as of Jan 21, 2025, via FanDuel).

Ohio State (+450)

Well, duh.

Ohio State’s success next season really depends on who will play QB. Will Howard was excellent in the postseason this year, but Ohio State needs a consistent arm that can get Jeremiah Smith the ball in his place.

Julian Sayin is the obvious choice for a replacement, but he has yet to see any legitimate experience at the DI level. It’s an awful lot to expect a redshirt freshman to get Ohio State back to the title game, but Ohio State’s offense is sure not to skip a beat heading into 2025-26.

Texas (+650)

Texas is in good shape at the most important position on the field. The Arch Manning show begins for real next year in Austin with Quinn Ewers off to the NFL Draft.

Jahdae Barron’s loss on defense is a big one too, though Anthony Hill and Colin Simmons are expected to stay for another season. Not to mention, Manning will retain help from CJ Baxter and Ryan Wingo. Steve Sarkisian has worked with less before, and there’s no reason to think the Longhorns could be playing for a title next season.

Oregon (+650)

Oregon’s offense should still be strong in 2025. Dante Moore, a former 5-star prospect who transferred in from UCLA, is likely to get the nod at QB. Tulane transfer Makai Hughes and returning receiver Evan Stewart are major boons as well.

Oregon also has a favorable schedule next season and returns some talent on defense. Replacing star QB Dillon Gabriel is no easy task, but Oregon is sure to remain a legitimate title threat under Dan Lanning.

Georgia (+700)

As long as Kirby Smart is at Georgia, the Bulldogs will always be a threat to win the whole thing.

The Bulldogs are still trying to find their footing following Stetson Bennett’s departure. Carson Beck didn’t quite live up to expectations and will now play for Miami, leaving the reigns of the offense to Gunner Stockton. That is, for now.

The Bulldogs have already done some good work in the transfer portal, landing receivers Noah Thomas from Texas A&M and Zachariah Branch from USC. They have a long way to go to fill the gaps left by the offensive line -which loses 4 starters from this past season – but if anyone is up to the task it’s Smart.

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How to Legally Bet on the College Football Playoff

An increasing amount of states are offering legal sports betting, meaning that bettors in such states can wager on the 2024 College Football Playoff odds. Online sportsbook operators have launched in such states, giving prospective bettors a variety of ways to place legal and secure wagers on college football as well as other sports.

There are a few ways to bet on the College Football Playoff, including:

• Teams to make the expanded 12-team Playoff
• Team to win the championship (such as the odds you see on this page!)
• Semifinals and finals game odds (moneyline, point spread, game totals, team totals, etc.)
• Game and player props

Those looking for information on where to bet the College Football Playoff should know that the top online sportsbook operators consistently offer aggressive sign-up bonuses as well as betting promos and odds boosts for marquee events such as the CFP.

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FanDuel Sportsbook

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BetMGM

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College Football Playoff Odds History

Let’s take a look at the historical odds of past College Football Playoffs. Some notable mentions:

• The biggest preseason favorite to reach the CFP was the 2019 Clemson Tigers. Ahead of the 2019 season, Clemson had staggering -550 odds to reach to the semifinal round. Of course, Clemson rolled to a 13-0 start, beating Virginia in the ACC Championship Game to reach the four-team field.
• Conversely, Georgia, while not exactly known as a traditional underdog, was +825 to make the field ahead of the 2017 season. That Bulldogs team raced out to a 9-0 start before slipping up at Auburn. Georgia, however, would get revenge a few weeks later in the SEC Championship Game with a 28-7 win over the Tigers that punched their ticket to the CFP Semifinal Round.
• The Bulldogs’ incredible 2021 team was also an underdog to reach the CFP in the preseason, sitting at +660

Below, let’s explore the year-by-year history of College Football Playoff odds.

2024-25 College Football Playoff

Ohio State was far and away the best team in college football this year. For that, the 12-team Playoff did its job. The Buckeyes destroyed Tennessee and Oregon – and didn’t struggle too much with a really good Texas team. Notre Dame gave the Buckeyes a fight, but in the end that offense was just too difficult to overcome.

The Buckeyes had the 2nd best odds to win the title before the start of the 2024-25 season.

• Georgia: (+300)
• Ohio State (+325)
• Oregon (+700)
• Texas (+850)

Winner: Ohio State

2023-24 College Football Playoff

Michigan went through plenty of controversy in 2023, but it’s hard to argue the Wolverines were not the best team in college football. A deadly rushing attack mixed with strong QB play from JJ McCarthy and a stellar defense blitzed the way to a 15-0 record with wins over Ohio State, Penn State, Alabama and Washington.

The Wolverines had the 4th-best odds to win the title preseason, behind rival Ohio State.

• Georgia (+225)
• Alabama (+600)
• Ohio State (+600)
• Michigan (+1000)

Winner: Michigan

2022-23 College Football Playoff

Georgia was thought to regress in 2022 after a good chunk of its legendary 2021 defense was drafted to the NFL. Instead, the Bulldogs were stout across the board, winning their 2nd straight national title.

Their odds weren’t as low in 2022 as they were in 2021, but Georgia was still only the 3rd favorite to win the title.

• Alabama (+181)
• Ohio State (+304)
• Georgia (+380)
• Clemson (+1020)

Winner: Georgia

2021-22 College Football Playoff

Anyone who chose the Bulldogs as preseason favorites to win the title earned a solid payday come January. The Bulldogs’ 2021 defense was one of the best the sport has ever seen, and it earned Kirby Smart his first title as HC and Georgia’s first since 1980.

At +600 odds? Not half bad.

• Alabama (+250)
• Clemson (+460)
• Georgia (+600)
• Ohio State (+600)

Winner: Georgia

2020-21 College Football Playoff

After missing the CFP in 2019, Alabama reaffirmed its dominance in 2020 with a title game win over Ohio State for it’s 3rd CFP title.

The Tide weren’t preseason favorites to win the title, though. That honor went to Clemson:

• Clemson (+200)
• Alabama (+240)
• Georgia (+900)
• Ohio State (+1000)

Winner: Alabama

2019-20 College Football Playoff

Following a run of CFP appearances, oddsmakers juiced up the Tigers to a staggering -550 to make the field. Dabo Swinney’s team took care of business en route to an ACC Championship and CFP berth. The field included:

• Clemson (-55o)
• Oklahoma (+180)
• Ohio State (+230)
• LSU (+500)

Of course, the Tigers would go on to win it all–an outcome not many anticipated prior to the start of the season. Something else oddsmakers didn’t see coming was Alabama (-300) missing out on a playoff appearance.

Winner: LSU

2018-19 College Football Playoff

The 2018 College Football Playoff featured a pair of big-time favorites in Alabama and Clemson along with a pair underdogs that, well, frankly, we are classifying as such loosely in Oklahoma and Notre Dame. Their preseason odds to make the playoff:

• Alabama (-270)
• Clemson (-175)
• Oklahoma (+330)
• Notre Dame (+600)

Ohio State (+115) and Georgia (+180) were among the teams with the best preseason odds that failed to qualify.

Winner: Clemson

2017-18 College Football Playoff

The Crimson Tide entered 2017 as the overwhelming favorite to reach the playoff field at -230. They were joined by another top preseason favorite in Oklahoma and second-tier favorite Clemson. That season, it was. the Georgia Bulldogs that surprisingly crashed the party with +825 preseason odds. This year was a rare year in which a conference sent two teams to the playoff. The participants and odds included:

• Alabama (-230)
• Clemson (+550)
• Georgia (+825)
• Oklahoma (+260)

Winner: Alabama 

2016-17 College Football Playoff

This was a year in which oddsmakers (mostly) nailed the field in the preseason. Three of the four teams (Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State) were among the top four schools with the best preseason odds. Only Washington (+500) was a bit of a surprise to the party. Here’s how the participants’ preseason odds stacked up:

• Alabama (+125)
• Clemson (+155)
• Ohio State (+195)
• Washington (+500)

It was a bit of a surprise that the Baker Mayfield-led Sooners (+175) missed out on the field, but the 11-2 Sooners never recovered after losing two of their first three games.

Winner: Clemson

2015-16 College Football Playoff

The 2015 field was one of the rare years that featured multiple surprises. CFP staple Alabama was joined by Clemson, Michigan State and Oklahoma. In the cases of Clemson and Oklahoma, keep in mind that 2015 was a season in which not too many people saw championship upside in these schools.

• Alabama (+190)
• Clemson (+525)
• Michigan State (+550)
• Oklahoma (+800)

TCU was among the schools with the best preseason odds at +190, but the Horned Frogs fell short after a heartbreaking 30-29 loss to Oklahoma just before Thanksgiving.

Winner: Alabama

2014-15 College Football Playoff

The first year of the current format featured heavy preseason favorites such as Florida State, Alabama and Oregon as well as a Ohio State. The inaugural field:

• Alabama (-120)
• Florida State (-250)
• Ohio State (+500)
• Oregon (+125)

Winner: Ohio State

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College Football Playoff Appearances by School

Clemson and Alabama each lead the way with 6 College Football Playoff appearances and 2 national titles. Georgia also joins the list with 2 Playoff titles. A look at the full list by schools.

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College Football Playoff Appearances by Conference

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the SEC leads the way in terms of College Football Playoff appearances, wins, win percentage, qualifying teams and titles. Here is a look at CFP performance by conference.

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College Football Playoff Odds History

Interesting notes from the history of College Football Playoff odds

• The biggest favorite ever going into a season to make the four-team Playoff field was Clemson in 2019 with -550 odds. Clemson did, in fact, make the Playoff that year.
• The most unlikely team to make the four-team field based on odds entering the season was Georgia with +825 odds in 2017.