They’ve hooked up in the championship game three times in the five-year history of the College Football Playoff, so it isn’t surprising to see the Alabama Crimson Tide and Clemson Tigers at the top of the early odds board at online sportsbooks for a national championship. The two programs have dominated the college football landscape in the CFP era with Bama reaching every final four while Clemson has gone in each of the last four seasons. The Tigers routed Alabama for the championship last year, matching the Tide with a pair of titles since the CFP was adopted. What’s more, both programs have each gone a staggering 55-4 in that four-year stretch.
There is a significant dropoff in odds following the top-two. Georgia is the only other team with less than 10/1 odds to win a title. The problem? The Dogs are in the same conference as Alabama and will likely have to beat the Tide in the SEC title game to earn a spot in the CFP. Now that Urban Meyer is no longer coaching Ohio State, can Jim Harbaugh and his Michigan Wolverines escape the Big Ten? It would be foolish to go against Alabama and Clemson to reach the CFP, but like we saw with the NBA’s Golden State Warriors, anything can happen on your way to a championship.
The 2019 college football season opens on Saturday, August 24 with two games on the FBS schedule. Week 1 officially kicks off on Thursday, August 29. The season runs through November 30 with 10 conference championship games scheduled for the first weekend in December. The annual Army-Navy clash on December 14 concludes the regular season with bowl game action beginning on December 20. The CFP National Championship Game is scheduled for Monday, January 13, 2020 from Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.
2019-20 College Football National Championship Odds at BookMaker.eu
Clemson +219
Alabama +243
Georgia +726
Michigan +1,204
Oklahoma +1,404
Ohio State +1,426
LSU +2,109
Texas +2,866
Oregon +3,017
Nebraska +5,000
Florida +5,000
Auburn +5,000
Notre Dame +5,500
Washington +6,000
Utah +7,000
Texas A&M +7,000
Penn State +8,500
Iowa State +10,000
USC +12,000
Miami Florida +12,000
Mississippi State +13,000
Wisconsin +13,000
Iowa +14,000
Virginia Tech +15,000
Florida State +15,000
TCU +17,500
Washington State +17,500
Baylor +17,500
Stanford +20,000
Michigan State +22,500
Oklahoma State +25,000
Purdue +25,000
Syracuse +27,500
UCLA +30,000
Teams to Watch
Clemson Tigers
Current Odds +219
Not only is Clemson the defending champs, they return the player who helped get them their second title in three years. Trevor Lawrence stepped in and looked like a savvy veteran leading the offense to some wacky numbers. Dabo Swinney has gone to another level recruiting top-notch talent and the Tigers have a favorable schedule with a visit from Texas AM and a trip to Syracuse the only hurdles. Will that prepare the Tigers for a title defense? I don’t know, but they certainly are a stacked team with weaknesses you have to dig to find.
Alabama Crimson Tide
Current Odds +243
Under Nick Saban the Tide has been ridiculously good going eight straight seasons without losing more than one game, excluding bowl games. And they’re doing it in what is widely considered the toughest conference in college football. The gap narrowed last year and Clemson overtook Bama as the best program in the country with a convincing win in the CFP Championship. To me that makes the Tide even more dangerous in 2019. There is no quarterback controversy with Tua Tagovailoa leading a group that pounded opponents last year. Tua may have the most to prove after his collapse in the title game loss. Not to worry, though. The Tide is loaded once again despite the departures of several key players on both sides of the football. Saban has a bunch of new coaches he needs to get acclimated to the system, but the talent is overwhelming.
Texas A&M Aggies
Current Odds +7,000
Jimbo Fisher wasn’t paid a boat load of money to win nine games and play in the Gator Bowl. Nope, he’s the guy flagged to get the Aggies somewhere they’ve never been: the CFP. In some respects last season could be viewed as a success. The Aggies posted their highest win total in five seasons, finished second in the SEC West, and ended a three-year bowl losing streak. Now it’s time to take the next step. Kellen Mond needs to become an elite quarterback and the Aggies should be better offensively if that happens. This is possibly the most talented team Fisher has ever coached, but a rigorous schedule with Clemson, Alabama, Georgia and LSU on the slate is an obstacle. There’s never been a two-loss team in the CFP, but AM could be the first.
Texas Longhorns
Current Odds +2,866
Under Tom Herman the Horns are trending up and they will challenge Oklahoma for Big 12 supremacy. In order to get to the CFP, the Horns need to beat OU, something they did during the regular season only to fall in the conference championship rematch. The key to the offense is Sam Ehlinger, who accounted for 41 touchdowns last season. His continued maturity will make the group more explosive taking some pressure off a defense that could have as many as nine new starters on the field for the opener. The good news is that Herman’s incoming crop of defenders can ball. The bad news is that there is no margin for error. If the group comes together sooner rather than later, it could be a special season in Austin.
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