NCAA College Football
Rutgers and Princeton faced off in college football’s first ever game in 1869, setting the stage for what has become one of America’s favorite pastimes and a multi-billion dollar industry. NCAA College football has come a long way since the rugby-style 6 to 4 brawl; the NCAA now features an incredibly fast-paced and exciting style of play. College football hosts some of the most dramatic finishes and unprecedented upsets in sports, making it one of the most entertaining sports to watch and profitable sports to bet on. NCAA football has become incredibly popular to both watch and bet on for a number of reasons. The NCAA Division I FBS, college football’s top level, contains 124 teams, resulting in dozens of games to bet on each week in the NCAA. With eleven athletic conferences, as well as independent universities, NCAA College Football features historic rivalries and heated in-conference games each week. In college football, the stakes are consistently high. A single win can knock a team out of contention for the national championship or propel a sleeper university into the BCS standings. College football teams and players are also capable of coming out of nowhere. Many of the game’s best players and schools are largely unknown commodities heading into the season. These factors make college football one of the most compelling sports to follow.
College Football Betting
College football betting can be highly profitable for new and old gamblers alike. Of college and pro football, college is typically considered the safer bet, as the talent gap between programs tends to be wider than at the NFL level. However, small schools frequently are capable of pulling off upsets against perceived stronger opponents, allowing insightful gambler to capitalize on underrated (underdog) schools. There are also a much larger slate of games to choose from on a weekly basis, which means that bettors can choose from more ncaa football games. College gamblers can use this for more particular selection, a means to spread out their bets, or simply to increase their betting volume and walk away with more winnings. For many bettors, Saturday is the most anticipated day of the week, as sports gamblers tend to use college football as their major payday. Keeping a close eye on the landscape of the NCAA and many of its programs can quickly turn a fan into a highly success gambler.
College Football Point Spreads
Point spread betting is the most popular form of college football betting. Point spreads are familiar, straight forward, and highly profitable for college football gamblers. For rookie bettors point spreads are often the place to start. For veteran bettors, it’s often the place they go to place their biggest bets. Point spreads at the college level will have a great deal of variance depending on the game. From straight pick ‘ems to seventy-point spreads, the college game offers a wide scope of bets every week. It’s important to understand how teams match up in terms of both style and athletic ability when handicapping college football point spreads. With so many available, point spread betting is the best way for many college gamblers to butter their bread.
College Football Money Lines
Money line is a great form of football betting whether you’re looking for safe payouts or riskier high reward gambles. College football money lines tend to reach extremely high levels on a weekly basis, as matchups between powerhouse universities and smaller programs create heavy favorites. There is a time and a place for each side of the wager in a large college money line. Despite the small payouts available, sometimes a lock is simply a lock. It’s worth risking your money for an almost assured earning given a high enough level of confidence in the matchup. Frequently, online sportsbooks or the public will overlook a talented roster of potential and write off sleeper teams. Evaluating what teams are primed for an upset or disappointing letdown, can be one of the best plays in sports betting. More even money line betting is also available and profitable for in-conference matchups and games between closer matched universities. FootballBetting.org offers further explanation and strategy for money line betting.
College Football Futures
In addition to betting on the weekly games, college football has a wide variety of futures bets available. Futures bets allow gamblers to invest in long term wagers that often pay out at high odds. College football futures bets include over/under win lines for individual teams, conference championship odds, the National Championship winner, and awards betting. With many teams flying under the radar prior to the college football season, futures betting can be very popular for bettors with a good understanding of college football’s programs. Some of the most popular futures betting in college football is betting on the Heisman Trophy Race. Money lines are available for NCAA Football’s most coveted award every preseason. The top regarded NCAA athletes are available to choose from, as well as many longshots with high payouts. Heisman betting has a number of factors to consider and is a great way to wager for those capable of properly handicapping the race.
College Football Prop Betting
Prop betting is a profitable and fun way to gamble on NCAA football. Nearly every college football game includes bets not just on the outcome, but also on events within the game. Prop bets have to do with everything from which team gets the ball first to what the last play of the game is. Higher profile games tend to have more available prop bets at the college level, with some having dozens of prop money lines. College football bettors can watch a game with money on not just the final score, but the coin flip, first play, halftime, final score, and much more. Prop betting can provide bets decided every couple minutes of a game, raising the excitement level to already exciting matchups.
Online Betting on NCAA College Football
College Football betting online has never been easier than it is today with the use of online bookmakers. Online sportsbooks allow sports bettors to get the most up to date lines and a plethora of spreads, money lines, futures, and props readily available. In addition to being an incredibly convenient, safe, and easy way to place one’s bets, sportsbooks tend to offer bonus money for deposits and free bets from time to time. Online betting has changed sports gambling from an intimidating task to an easy simple way to win money.
College Football Recruiting
College Football Recruiting, also known as drafting, is a crucial part of college football. Where high school football’s best talent commits to goes a long way to determining the eventual champions of college football. Different conferences and schools have different tendencies and strengths in recruiting. Universities such as USC are able to routinely sign the nation’s best quarterbacks, while Big Ten schools tend to attract top offense and defensive line talent. Following the recruiting and development of young talent can be a highly effective strategy in betting on college football.
Bowl Championship Series Rankings
The Bowl Championship Series is college football’s system for choosing the top four college football bowl games (Sugar Bowl, Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, and Fiesta Bowl) as well as the BCS National Championship Game. The BCS rankings are released near the end of college football’s regular season, ranking the top 25 college football teams. At the end of the regular season, the BCS rankings decide the NCAA’s top bowl games. The BCS rankings are determined by the Coach’s Poll, Harris Interactive Poll, and computer rankings.
BCS National Championship Game
The BCS National Championship game pits the first and second ranked NCAA teams against each other in the final game of the college football season, “Championship Monday.” The game’s winner receives the crystal football trophy and title of the BCS National Champion. The BCS National Championship Game typically the most bet on and most exciting game of the college football season.
The Rose Bowl
“The Granddaddy of Them All” is one of college football’s most storied and celebrated bowl games. The Rose Bowl has been played in Pasadena since 1922. The Rose Bowl occurs annually on New Year’s Day, and is played between the Big Ten and Pac 12 Conference Champions, unless the conference winner is to play in the BCS National Championship Game.
The Sugar Bowl
The Sugar Bowl is played annually in New Orleans, Louisiana, and is consistently among the best played bowl games in the nation. The SEC Champion (unless committed to the BCS National Championship) faces off against another at-large BCS team. This bowl game offers sweet betting opportunities for college football gamblers.
The Fiesta Bowl
The BCS’s Fiesta Bowl is one of the most anticipated college football games of the season and features the Big 12 Champion and another of the top BCS schools. The Fiesta Bowl is played in Glendale, Arizona and is one of the latest college football bowl games on the schedule.
The Orange Bowl
Since 1935, the Orange Bowl has been one of College Football’s finest bowl games. Played in Florida’s Sun Life Stadium, the Orange Bowl hosts the ACC Conference Champion and another at-large BCS school.
College Football Bowl Games
In addition to College Football’s BCS National Championship Game, Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and Fiesta Bowl, there are 27 NCAA bowl games that feature 54 of the nation’s best football teams. College Football bowl games occur in December and early January and are played between the top ranked teams in the eleven NCAA Athletic Conferences. Bowl Games are the goal and pinnacle of each team’s college season and present many of the best matchups and games of the year. Bowl Game betting is some of the most exciting sports betting in sports, as there is a huge slate of evenly matched games to choose from.
Bowl Game Qualification
To qualify for a college football bowl game, schools must meet certain criteria, basically they must meet the college bowl eligibily. Teams must have at least a .500 record. Strength of schedule and pedigree are both considerations in selecting which teams are to compete in bowl games. Bowl games are typically associated with predetermined conferences via predetermined agreements.
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference – ACC is one of college football’s most highly regarded athletic conferences. The ACC ‘s best schools include Clemson, Wake Forest, Miami, Virginia Tech, and Florida State. The ACC has two divisions and uses a championship game format to determine the conference winner. The ACC produces some of the nation’s best teams and players. The ACC Champion is awarded a berth in the Orange Bowl.
The Big Ten
The Big Ten Conference is consistently one of college football’s top conferences. The Big Ten feature’s top college programs Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. The Big Ten has produced several Heisman Trophy Winners and National Champions. The winner of the Big Ten Championship Game goes on to face the Pac 12 champ in the Rose Bowl.
The Big 12
The Big 12 Conference is one of college football’s power conferences, with the conference winner moving on to the Fiesta Bowl. Located in one of the nation’s best areas for high school talent, the Big 12 has much of college football’s top talent and best football programs. Among them is Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and West Virginia.
The Big East
The Big East Conference has one of college football’s largest memberships. While better known as a basketball conference, the Big East has several formidable football programs, including Louisville, Pittsburgh, and Rutgers football teams.
Conference USA
The Conference USA (C-USA) features fourteen football programs and has seven bowl game tie-ins. Located primarily in the South Eastern United States, the conference includes Central Florida, Southern Mississippi, and Tulane.
Mid-American Conference
The Mid-American Conference – MAC is comprised of many of the Mid-West’s smaller football programs. While it traditionally plays second fiddle to the Big Ten in its area, it features a number of talented teams and players in its own right. MAC’s programs include Miami (Ohio), Western Michigan, and Buffalo.
Mountain West Conference
The NCAA’s Mountain West Conference contains several of the Western United States’ competitive football universities. Among them are Fresno State, Nevada, New Mexico, and Air Force. The Mountain West has five bowl tie-ins, most notably the Maaco Bowl Las Vegas.
The Pac 12
The Pacific 12 Conference is historically one of college football’s best conferences. In addition to powerhouse USC, which has produced several Heisman winners and National Championships, the Pac 12 includes Oregon, Cal, and Stanford. The winner of the Pac 12 Championship Game faces off against the Big Ten Champion in the Rose Bowl.
Southeastern Conference – SEC
The Southeastern conference – SEC is considered to be college football’s most dominant athletic conference. Its top-tier programs include Alabama, LSU, Florida, and Georgia. The SEC features many of the game’s best athletes and consistently produces top NFL talent. The SEC has a total of ten bowl game tie-ins, most notably the Sugar Bowl.
The Sun Belt Conference
The Sun Belt Conference is comprised of twelve schools in the Southern US. The Sun Belt’s members include Troy, Arkansas State, and Middle Tennessee State. The Sun Belt has bowl game tie-ins with the GoDaddy.com Bowl and the New Orleans Bowl.
Western Athletic Conference
The Western Athletic Conference – WAC contains four members in 2013: New Mexico State, Idaho, Denver, and Seattle. It has one bowl game tie-in, the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.
FBS Independents
The NCAA has four universities that act independently from athletic conferences for football play, known as the FBS Independents. Notre Dame, BYU, Army, and Navy are all independent universities. Notre Dame has a long tradition of football success and traditionally is the top independent school.
NCAA Conference Realignment
The NCAA’s athletic conferences are constantly shifting, and college football has recently undergone a makeover, known as the NCAA Conference Realignment. The expansion, contraction, and shifts of the eleven conferences have changed the landscape of Division I FBS Football.