Week 16 of College Football has arrived, with Bowl games and the College Football Playoff all kicking off.
The race gets real now, with the top teams in the country aiming for the National Championship title in just over a month.
NCAA Bowl games start on December 14th, and the CFP gets going December 20th.
Keep reading to get a CFP preview and the top insights into our college football odds for the first round.
View the latest NCAAF odds at Bovada
#10 Indiana (+270) at #7 Notre Dame (-340)
Both the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Indiana Hoosiers are rocking impressive 11-1 records heading into Friday night’s opening CFP game.
The similarities don’t end there. Less than 4 points separate their offensive points scored per game (Indy’s 40.3 to the Irish’s 39.8), and when it comes to points allowed per game it’s even closer: ND’s 13.6 is just ahead of Indiana’s 14.7.
This is a game of strength vs strength. Indiana has the #1 rush defense in the country based on yards allowed per game, while Notre Dame Is 2nd in the nation in rushing yards per carry.
With all these stats indicating a virtual stalemate, where do look for the real edge?
It might be in Notre Dame’s exceptional secondary, which ranks first in the country in passing success rate and completion rate. With Indiana QB Kurtis Rourke just off thumb surgery last month, this could prove to be the area for the Fighting Irish to make the ultimate difference in the game.
Then again, the current +8.5 spread for Indiana might be tempting for some bettors, given that the Hoosiers are 9-2 ATS in the last 11 games they’ve played. If Rourke is fully recovered (as he appeared to be in his last outing), the +270 moneyline for Indiana is also worth a look.
Whoever enjoys the sweet taste of victory on December 20th will get to play Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on January 1st, so both sides will be going all out from the first snap in this CFP first round battle.
Get in now on dozens of prop bets and all the latest lines for Indiana vs Notre Dame.
#11 SMU (+280) at #6 Penn State (-360)
Southern Methodist University takes on Penn State on Saturday for a huge CFP first round battle.
These 11-2 teams earned their spot on the race for the National Championship, but in different ways.
SMU won the final at-large spot in the 12-team CFP, just beating out 3-loss Alabama, while Penn State has been a Top 10 force all season long. The Nittany Lions’ two losses came at the hands of Ohio State and Oregon, two of the best teams in the country, by a combined total of just 15 points.
And even though the Nittany Lions are coming off a loss to #1 Oregon earlier this month in their Conference Championship game, they put up 37 points and gave the Ducks a proper scare.
The Nittany Lions have roared to 463 yards per game since that loss to OSU, and in that loss to the Ducks, they racked up 292 yards on the ground alone.
The defense is what gives these Lions teeth, though. They only gave up more than 30 points once (to those pesky Ducks) all season long and rank in the top 10 in scoring and run defense.
SMU will need to play immaculate football, but QB Kevin Jennings has the goods. He has led the Mustangs to a 7th-place ranking in scoring in the country, and he can take the up-tempo offense to success in Happy Valley with both his arm and his legs.
Can SMU use their high-octane offense to cover the 9.0-point spread? Place your bets with the latest odds and all the props for the SMU-Penn State game at Bovada.
#12 Clemson (+335) at #5 Texas (-450)
With the winner of this Clemson-Texas CFP game headed to the Peach Bowl to play Arizona State, the Tigers’ prospects of getting there are a little more fuzzy.
When it comes to the College Football Playoff teams, Clemson holds the lowest spot in the final CFP rankings. And it took a last-second field goal over SMU in the ACC Conference Championship game just to make it to the CFP.
The Texas Longhorns, meanwhile, held the #1 spot in the country for several weeks this season and are still a top team. They finished 11-2 and their two losses came at the hands on just one team, Georgia.
The bright spot for Clemson heading into this – and the reason their college football odds are even remotely close for this game – is QB Cade Klubnik. He’s returning to his hometown of Austin to face the ‘Horns. Klubnik also has 33 TD passes this season against just 5 INTs, and he’s averaging over 4 yards per carry when he runs the ball.
Klubnik is facing ‘Horns QB Quinn Ewers, a fellow Texan and an early season Heisman candidate. The last time they played each other was in the Texas High School State Championship, and it was Klubnik who walked away with the W.
But this Longhorns squad is built different than a high school team. Their defense is second in the country in points allowed, and they should give Klubnik problems all game long.
The current 11-point spread is the largest among the CFP First Round games, but it’s a tough call to say where it might go. Klubnik hasn’t faced a defense this tough all year – only 4 of his touchdown passes have come against Top 25 teams. But Clemson has the hometown QB story and the 11th-best scoring team in the country.
Play the point spread and find all the college football odds you need for Clemson vs. Texas at Bovada.
#9 Tennessee (+235) at #8 Ohio State (-285)
For Tennessee fans and college football bettors who are leaning Vols, this elite Ohio State defense is a problem.
The Buckeyes led the entire country in points and yards allowed per game this season in the NCAA. They lost to #1 Oregon by just a single point earlier this year too, on their way to an 10-2 record.
But it’s that second L on their record – a 13-10 win by Michigan in the final game of the season – that leaves the college football odds watchers a little concerned.
OSU’s poor performance in that home game – against a 6-5 Wolverines squad with barely any passing attack, not to mention the post-game brawl – could mean bad vibes surrounding the team heading into this CFP first round matchup.
The Volunteers have a top defense led by James Pearce Jr. and a talented QB in Nico Iamaleava. But they’ve also hit under 200 yards passing on seven different occasions this season – not the number you want to see against a team that has given up just 10.9 PPG.
If Buckeyes QB Will Howard, who threw two picks in that loss to Michigan, gets pressured by Pearce and the Volunteers aggressive defense, the game could finish closer than the 7-point spread suggests.
Play all the parlays, props, and moneyline odds for Tennessee vs. Ohio State now.
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*Odds subject to change
