College Football Playoff Odds: Alabama Heavy Favorite Over Cincinnati, Georgia Lays Touchdown To Michigan

No. 1 Alabama is a 13- to- 14-point favorite over No. 4 Cincinnati, while No. 3 Georgia lays 6.5 to 7.5 points to No. 4 Michigan, per opening odds for the 2022 College Football Playoff.

The new CFP rankings and national semifinal matchups were announced Sunday, and sportsbooks around the betting market hung lines on their oddsboards within minutes.

With both games priced around key numbers, there was early arbitrage opportunity for savvy sports bettors. Alabama opened -13 with a total of 59 at SuperBook USA in Las Vegas, but FanDuel offered +14 for Bearcats backers and 57.5 for ‘over ‘ bettors’. Georgia could be had for -6.5 at BetRivers, while Michigan was available at +7.5 at FanDuel and as high as +9 at Circa Sports. The early consensus total for the Georgia-Michigan game was 43.5.

Alabama, as a 6-point underdog, upset Georgia in Saturday’s SEC Championship Game, 41-24, vaulting from third to first in the rankings. It was the first time Nick Saban’s ‘Bama squad has been a betting underdog since October 3, 2015, a record 92 consecutive games of being priced the favorite, according to a tweet from ESPN’s David Purdum.

SuperBook USA vice president of risk management Ed Salmons makes Georgia a 2-point favorite should the Bulldogs and Crimson Tide meet again in the CFP National Championship, the bookmaker told Gaming Today in a text message Sunday morning.

Also on Saturday, Michigan (-12) boat-raced Iowa 42-3 in the Big Ten title game, and Cincinnati (-10.5) handled Houston 35-20, as the Bearcats maintained their undefeated record and captured the American Athletic Conference championship. Cincinnati is the first Group of 5 team to make the CFP Playoff.

The Crimson Tide and Bearcats go on to meet in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. The other national semifinal pits the Bulldogs against the Wolverines in the Capital One Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. Both games are set for New Year’s Eve, Friday December 31.

CFP National Championship Futures Odds

There is disagreement among sportsbooks as to the favorite to win the 2022 CFP National Championship, as FanDuel prices Georgia the +125 chalk, while DraftKings and BetRivers have Alabama on the top of their oddsboards. BetRivers, in fact, lists the Tide at less than even-money.

Alabama, at least on paper, has the easier path to Indianapolis, certainly a factor in championship futures prices.

Here are odds to claim the national title at Lucas Oil Stadium on Monday, January 10 from three sportsbooks.