2025 College Football Predictions

College Football Predictions - 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship Picks, Previews & Odds

The Football Bowl Division (FBS) is the biggest and most important level of college football, featuring the best teams and college athletes from across the country. The sport is hugely popular to watch and bet on, with many college games seeing larger attendances than the NFL . All NCAA football 2024 season games are available to bet on here at Stake Sportsbook , and we’ve created this guide to help you get started.

2024 College Football Schedule & Results

The FBS features a total of 134 teams, which are split into 9 conferences. During the regular season, teams play a total of 12 games, with 8 or 9 against opponents within their own conference. Each conference then holds a conference championship game between the top 2 teams to determine the winner.

College football teams that win at least 6 games during the season are eligible to play in a bowl game, which are largely standalone games that serve as the college football postseason . There are 41 bowl games with the biggest games being the Sugar Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Peach Bowl, and Cotton Bowl Classic. These six bowl games now serve as the host sites for the College Football Playoff quarterfinals and semifinals.

The 2024 season was the first one with a 12-team playoff to determine the National Championship . The 12-team field includes the 5 highest-ranked conference champions and 7 at-large selections. The top 4 conference champions receive a bye with the other 8 teams playing a first-round game with the higher seed hosting. The quarterfinals and semifinals are played at bowl sites with the last two teams playing in the title game.

The biggest surprise of the 2024-25 College Football Playoff is that the higher seed lost all of the quarterfinal games. Boise State saw its dream season end with a loss to Penn State. Quinn Ewers and Texas survived a double-overtime game against Big 12 champ Arizona State. Despite a lot of talk of his job security, Ryan Day led Ohio State to a lopsided win over Oregon. Finally, Jeremiyah Love and Notre Dame knocked off Georgia, who was playing with backup quarterback Gunner Stockton. Even if not every game has been competitive, the road to the national title has been an interesting one to watch.

NCAAF History & Winning Teams

College football has been played since 1869, and the Rose Bowl was first played in 1902. However, it wasn’t until 1906 that a regular college football season began under the IAAUS, which later became the NCAA. This organization was formed as a way to make college football safer, standardizing rules while keeping the game exciting to watch and play.

The NCAAF was originally comprised of a single division, but it split into 3 divisions in 1973 as the sport grew. Today, the FBS is comprised of the best college football teams in the country with the highest attendances. Top athletes get drafted into the NFL , many of whom go on to become the biggest stars in the sport.

The FBS conferences are:

• American Athletic Conference

• Atlantic Coast Conference

• Big 12 Conference

• Big Ten Conference

• Conference USA

• Mid-American Conference

• Mountain West Conference

• Southeastern Conference

• Sun Belt Conference

Recent winners of the NCAAF Championship game include:

• Michigan – 2023

• Georgia – 2022, 2021

• Alabama – 2020, 2017, 2015

• LSU – 2019

• Clemson – 2018, 2016

When & Where is the College Football Playoff National Championship Played?

The NCAFF regular season began on August 24, 2024, and ended on December 14, 2024, which is the same day that bowl games began. The National Championship Game is scheduled for January 20, 2025. The championship game will be held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.

2025 College Football Playoff National Championship Predictions & Picks to Win

The national championship odds have changed drastically throughout the playoffs. The top 2 seeds Oregon and Georgia had some of the shortest betting odds before the start of the 12-team playoff because they had a bye. But after the quarterfinals, Ohio State emerged as the leading favorite after the Buckeyes impressed in dominating wins over Tennessee and Oregon.

College Football Betting Tips, Odds & Previews

With over 100 teams at the FBS level and thousands of players, betting on college football is never easy. Even in the 12-team College Football Playoff, the outcomes of games can be hard to predict. There are always several factors to consider and key advice to always keep in mind.

• Always check injury records and team news - If a star player is out, it often makes a big difference in a team’s strategy and chance of success. Make sure you stay up to date with the latest college football news when betting.

• Bet on teams that beat the spread - If a team is beating the spread consistently, they’re likely doing something right. Betting on them to win, especially when they’re underdogs, can reward big if they can continue to defy the odds.

• Focus on key stats - Stats can tell you a lot about a game and the potential outcome, but it’s easy to get bogged down by the sheer number of stats available. College football experts focus on record against the spread, over/under percentage, explosive play rate, pressure rate, and early-down pass success rate.

• Don’t discount defense - Too many bettors get caught up with analyzing a team’s quarterback and offensive skill players. However, the teams with strong defensive fronts are also in great shape. In fact, the best defensive teams often have the best chance of success in the long run.

Types of Bets & How to Bet on College Football

If you’re familiar with betting on the NFL, you should already have a good idea of the types of college football bets. Here at Stake, we offer lots of different football betting markets, including:

• Moneyline - This type of bet is focused solely on the winner and loser of a game. However, the payout will be different based on whether you bet on a favorite or the underdog.

• Spread - To balance out the odds, every game comes with a spread. The favoured team must win by more points than the spread (often called covering the spread); otherwise, the underdog will win the bet, even if it loses the game.

• Handicaps - Handicapping is another way of betting against the spread.

• Total - Instead of betting on the winner and loser, a total bet is only concerned with the total points scored in a game. Each game has an over/under total, allowing bettors to place wagers on whether the game will end with more or less points than that total.

• Halves - Moneyline, spread, and total bets can be made but only apply to the first or second half of a game.

• Quarters - Likewise, bets can be placed that are only concerned with the results of a specific quarter of a game.

• Props - Player props are popular at all levels of football. They are based on the number of passing yards, rushing yards, or receiving yards a player accumulates in a game. There are also props for whether a player will score a touchdown and countless other in-game events.

• Outrights - An outright bet is placed on the eventual winner of a competition. This can include the winner of the College Football Playoff or the winner of a specific conference.

• Parlays - A parlay will incorporate multiple bets into a single bet, increasing the payout compared to a series of individual bets. However, it only takes one bet in the parlay to lose for the entire parlay to lose.

Betting on football odds is just like betting on any other sport. Simply choose a market and place your bet. You can read more details in our complete betting guide , but here are some quick steps to help you get started:

1. Log into your Stake.com betting account and check you have sufficient balance.

2. Make a deposit using any of the accepted payment methods , which includes several cryptocurrencies .

3. Take a look at our football picks for upcoming games.

4. Search for a team and select a game to see all the available markets.

5. Choose a bet to add to your bet slip then enter your stake and confirm.

6. Watch the match live here at Stake to find out if you’re a winner.

Live Stream College Football Games Free Online

Both pre-live and live betting markets are available here at Stake, meaning you can place bets before and during the game. Live betting allows you to take advantage of line movement as the action takes place on the field, and you can even enjoy live streams. NCAAF games are streamed through our platform for free. All you have to do is log into your account.

Bet on American Football with Best Odds on Stake Sportsbook

Stake is the best place to enjoy betting on American football. Whether you prefer NFL betting or NCAAF, we have odds on all the games throughout the regular and postseason. Take a look at our promotions page when you sign up to get the latest offers and deals, and be sure to enjoy the VIP Club for regular rewards .

At Stake, we also take customer safety and satisfaction seriously. We have an extensive customer support guide to answer your questions. There is also a Stake Vault to help ensure all of your financial transactions are secure. Last but not least, we always encourage safe betting habits. Check out our Stake Smart responsible gambling guidelines to ensure you’re having fun betting on college football while staying within your limits.