The college football world was wishing for a March Madness kind of feel for the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff, with upsets galore. Instead, the 4 first-round matchups underwhelmed, providing a lot of time for holiday shopping. Favorites went an ideal 4-0 against the spread, consisting of 3 fairly non-competitive performances by underdogs Indiana, SMU and Tennessee. Sportsbooks and the public don’t appear to think so. A minimum of in two cases.

Both Penn State-Boise State and Texas-Arizona State feature double-digit spreads favoring the lower-seeded Nittany Lions and Longhorns. And the latter has actually been an especially popular pick with the general public. The Longhorns -12.5 is the most-bet side at BetMGM nationally in terms of overall dollars since Monday afternoon.

“All the money is can be found in on Texas,” Seamus Magee, a BetMGM trader, composed in a text to The Athletic. “We need Arizona State to cover +13.5.”

The enthusiasm for the Longhorns extends to the futures market also. Remember that massive $1.5 million wager on Texas to win it all at +390 chances? The ticket is still out there at Caesars Sportsbook.

Interestingly, the Longhorns’ challenger, Arizona State - the biggest underdog among the College Football quarterfinal matchups - is getting the most enjoy from sharp wagerers. The Athletic spoke with several bookmakers who had taken sharp action on No. 4 Arizona State - which had gotten as high as a 14-point underdog at some books against No. 5 Texas - to push the line to -12.5 or -12.

John Murray, the executive director at The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, informed us he got a wager on Arizona State +13.5 from a “very highly regarded player.”

Although reputable cash has come in on Arizona State to cover, sportsbooks will likely need the Sun Devils to do simply that, as public gamblers are stacking on Texas.

“We would like to see ASU cover, and after that Texas win the video game, so we get our Arizona State liability off the futures book,” Magee added.

While the Texas game will be substantial for the books, it isn’t the only video game in town. We talked with numerous bookmakers to break down where the wagering action is on the other 3 College Football quarterfinal matches. 6 Penn State (-11, 53) at No. 3 Boise State
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This video game opened Penn State -10.5 at most sportsbooks and has actually crept up somewhat to a consensus of -11. sports betting on the spread is fairly divided at the majority of sportsbooks. The total dollars wagered varies by book, as 52% of bets and 79% of the cash at BetMGM nationally are on Boise State -11, while 56% of bets but just 42% of the cash at DraftKings is on Boise State -11.5. Penn State to cover is presently the 2nd most popular CFP wager in terms of overall tickets at BetMGM books.

“We opened Penn State -10.5 and are resting on Penn State -11,” Thomas Gable, sportsbook director at The Borgata in Atlantic City, informed The Athletic. “I wouldn’t be amazed if this line approaches a little bit more before kickoff, but I presently invite any Boise State cash.”

Ohio State got the Oregon second possibility it desired. Are the Buckeyes ready for revenge?

No. 8 Ohio State (-2.5, 55.5) vs. No. 1 Oregon

Perhaps most unexpected to the general public is that No. 1 seed Oregon is an underdog versus No. 8 Ohio State. These teams satisfied back on Oct. 7 in Eugene, and Oregon won 32-31 as a 3.5-point home dog.
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So why is OSU favored?

Several oddsmakers The Athletic spoke with before the CFP preliminary had Ohio State atop their power rankings, and the lookahead lines for this hypothetical match were Ohio State -1 or -1.5. One oddsmaker mentioned that Ohio State playing up to its in its dominant first-round win over Tennessee likewise shaped his opening line.

Ohio State opened as a 1- or 1.5-point favorite (depending on the sportsbook) in this video game before highly regarded money pushed it to the existing line of -2.5. A somewhat higher majority of wagers at numerous sportsbooks, approximately 60%, are on the Ducks to cover, while close to 60% of the cash has come in on the Buckeyes. This will likely be the highest-handle game of the 4 come kickoff.

“We did take some highly regarded money at -1.5, rapidly went to -2.5 where it’s remained,” Gable stated. “It’s decent two-way action at that number today. The total has gone up 3 points from 52.5 to 55.5, which has actually been the biggest relocation of any of the totals. Money has actually all been on the over so far.

Joe Brennan, the CEO of Prime sports betting, a sportsbook in Ohio and New Jersey that accommodates sharp bettors, informed The Athletic that “Ohio State opened as a 1-point favorite, and immediately our Ohio wagerers believed we were too low. Our opening rate of Ohio State -1 has been increased to -2.5 and the total from 52 to 55.”

He did note, though, that the book had seen substantial buyback at the current line of Ohio State -2.5 and that 52% of the overall dollars at his book were taking the points with the Ducks.

GO DEEPER

The most likely upsets for the College Football Playoff’s second round
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No. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Georgia (-1, 45)

The favorite turned in this video game, as Notre Dame opened a 1.5-point preferred and is presently a 1- or 1.5-point underdog at sportsbooks.

What caused the line flip? Simply put, the wagering action.

Even though Georgia’s beginning QB Carson Beck is out for the season and has actually been replaced by relative unidentified Gunner Stockton, gamblers are gravitating toward the Bulldogs.

Georgia to cover is the most popular versus the spread wager at BetMGM books nationally in regards to ticket count (second-most popular by overall dollars bet), and it has actually been “one-way traffic on Georgia,” according to Magee. Nearly 70% of bets are on the Bulldogs at multiple sportsbooks.