College Football Betting at Bally Bet Sportsbook

You can legally bet on college football games across many states. Some have restrictions on the types of player prop bets that you can place, but otherwise, you're free to wager on the colleges you think will win a particular game or go on to have a great season (via our futures lines).

College football is organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), which adopted the three-division system in the early 1970s. The many colleges are split into conferences like the Big 12, SEC, and Pac-12, with all eyes on the playoffs at the end of the season. The overall winner is crowned at the College Football Playoff National Championship game each January.

There are, quite literally, hundreds of college games to bet on each season, and you’ll find the best odds right here at Bally Bet. We offer a huge range of different wager types and markets to explore too, so whatever your instinct about a particular game, you’ll likely find the odds you want with us.

If you’ve ever wondered how to bet on college football, you’ll find the answers you’re looking for in this guide.

Popular Types of College Football Bets

For newcomers, sometimes college football betting terms can be hard to understand, so we thought we’d break down some of the most popular wager types and lines that you’ll find when looking at a round of games.

We’ll start with the three most popular college football bets available:

Moneyline

Some betting terms can be confusing, but moneyline is as straightforward as it gets. A moneyline wager simply allows you to predict who will win a particular game, with the odds presented as a representation of each team’s perceived chances of winning.

For example, if the Michigan Wolverines were priced at -150 and the Washington Huskies at +100, Michigan would be the favorite to win the game. For this bet, you'd need to stake $150 to win $100. For the underdog, Washington, a $100 wager would return $100 on top as a profit.

If you don’t know how to read betting lines, don’t worry. It’s easy when you know how: The minus sign (-) is given to the favorite to win the game, with the number indicating how much you’d have to wager to win $100. So, the greater the number, the greater the expected probability of that team coming out on top.

On the flip side, the plus sign (+) reveals the underdog in the game. The actual number shows how much you will win from a $100 stake. In this case, the greater the number, the more you'll win from a successful wager, but also, in the eyes of the book, the less likely it is that the team will win.

When you bet on college football futures, which we’ll come onto shortly, all teams will likely have plus odds. The favorites here will be those with the smallest values attached.

Spread

No guide on how to bet on college football games would be complete without a look at the spread, which is one way you can take your moneyline bets to the next level. The spread betting lines place a hypothetical handicap or head start on the two teams, which is then applied to the final score to create a spread result.

Let’s say again that you think the Michigan Wolverines will beat the Washington Huskies, but you wanted longer odds than were available in the moneyline option.

You might choose to back them on the spread where Michigan Wolverines is at -5.5 and Washington Huskies is at +5.5. In this case, you'd accept a -5.5 point handicap.

Imagine the game finishes 34-23 to Michigan. Spread bets on the Wolverines would be settled as winners because if you subtract 5.5 from 34, they'd still have enough points on the board to beat Washington’s total of 23.

If the game finished 34-31 to Michigan, then wagers on Washington’s +5.5 spread would win. Why? Because 5.5 added to 31 equals 36.5, which is greater than Michigan’s 34.

Totals

If you have no real inkling as to who will win the game, but you think the contest will be a low or high-scoring affair, you might consider wagering on the relevant over/under line instead.

We provide a center point for many college football games on the weekly schedule. You can choose to wager on the over if you think that it’s too low, or on the under if you think it's been set too high.

So, consider the following information: Over 60.5 Points and Under 60.5 points. If the book sets the line at 60.5 points for a game that ends 32-31, that equates to 63 total points, meaning bets on the over would win. You'll typically see this betting market referred to as either totals or over/under.

Props

Whether player prop betting on college football games is offered or not depend on your state, but team props are allowed across the board, with options including total points, passing yards, over/under touchdown lines, and so on.

Prop lines are particularly appealing when you don’t have a strong feeling about who will win the game, but you think that one of the teams will perform in a certain way.

Parlays and Teasers

What's a parlay bet in college football? Well, if there’s a slate of games and you've picked out more than one bet, you can wager on them as singles or bundle them together into what's known as a parlay.

This multiple wage combines the odds of each of your selections, which creates the potential for a larger payout than betting on the singles. However, it only takes one of your picks to lose for your entire parlay to be unsuccessful; it’s a game of risk and potential reward.

A teaser, meanwhile, is a certain type of parlay bet. With them, you can decide exactly what spread you want on a game before parlaying two or more of these selections.

To place a parlay or teaser wager with Bally Bet, simply add two or more selections to your bet slip. Then, enter your stake in the box on-screen — good luck!

Futures

You may have a strong feeling that one or more teams are set for a deep run into the playoffs. Our futures markets let you back the teams you think will win the National Championship game. For example, imagine a scenario where Georgia Bulldogs are predicted to win the National Championship with a price of +350. A $100 wager would return a $350 profit if Georgia could go all the way from the regular season standings to the final playoff game before lifting the trophy.

It's worth keeping in mind that futures are available throughout the season, so there are always opportunities to back your favorites.

All of the bet types we've mentioned here are available both pregame and after the kickoff via live betting. We take all of our lines in running, so you can still place a wager even as the action gets underway.

We regularly update our odds too, so you're free to place your bets at first show if you’ve spotted a value play or two, or you can wait a little longer until the confirmed team news is known.

By betting late, you’ll also get a look at the weather conditions; heavy rain, strong winds, and poor visibility can all help to shape the outcome of a college football game.

College Football Betting Tips

While some bettors simply go with their gut, the best college football bets are generally those that are a little more considered.

With that in mind, here are some pointers you might want to consider when you look to place your next wager.

Study the form

An appreciation of a team’s recent form and results is usually an excellent starting point. At the same time, sensible football bet advice will also point you toward an analysis of the team's strength of schedule. A college on a winning or losing streak may have been helped or hindered by the quality of their opponents.

Crunch the numbers

Researching team and player stats is another of the most advised football betting tips. Win/loss records, offensive/defensive efficiency, yards gained/lost, and turnovers are just some of the metrics to take into account here.

Of all the college football betting tips, considering head-to-head records – and why they might be weighted a certain way – is another strong launchpad for your research.

Bear in mind unique conditions

Some colleges have an exceptional record on home soil, maybe because of their intimidating stadium and fans or the uniqueness of the conditions. The thin air at high-altitude colleges in Wyoming and Colorado can play havoc with the passing range of quarterbacks unfamiliar with such a testing environment.

Also, don’t forget that college football is played from coast to coast. The conditions in Florida are massively different from those in Minnesota, generally speaking, so it's always wise to consider the geography of a game.

Bet smarter, not harder

Some bettors opt for a high-volume wagering strategy, and that’s rarely a smart idea if they haven’t taken a deep dive before making their selections.

It pays to be selective with your bets, so examine all of the angles available using the research points covered above and only take the odds where all of the boxes are ticked. In betting, as in life, less is often more.

Manage your money

Another cardinal sin of college football betting is to wager too much of your bankroll on a single bet.

Each to their own, as the old saying goes, but if you want to maximize your enjoyment of any kind of sports betting, it makes sense to wager small increments of your account balance each time.

NFL Betting vs. College Football Betting

There are a few differences between betting NFL betting and college football betting. It’s generally thought that the lines for NFL games are "sharper" — essentially a more accurate reflection of the franchises involved. You'll also have more props to bet on.

If college lines are less sharp, that suggests there could be value plays throughout a slate of games, particularly if you know your stuff about the NCAA.

There are sometimes restrictions to keep in mind when betting on your local college teams in particular states, but those games won't typically be available for you on the sportsbook anyway.