College Football Movers & Shakers: Week 8

TCU is one of the teams moving on up the college football futures list this week.

Online sportsbook Bovada released its latest round of college football futures on Monday, serving up an insight into how Las Vegas currently sees the footballing landscape.

While the SEC West was whittled down slightly with Alabama thrashing and thus eliminating Texas A&M from contention, most movement on this week’s futures list came as a direct result of the Big 12, which looks very different now than it did 48 hours ago.

Here’s a rundown of teams trending up and down in the wake of Week 8’s action.

Moving On Up

Oregon

Oregon (6-1, 3-1 Pac-12) took care of business against Washington (5-2, 1-2 Pac-12) this past weekend, dismissing the Huskies 45-20 thanks to 554 offensive yards.

That result alone was enough to ensure the Ducks would move up the rankings this week but the fact that Stanford (4-3, 2-2 Pac-12) and California (4-3, 2-3 Pac-12) were among the list of casualties this weekend means the team from Eugene is almost a lock to take the Pac-12 North title.

Altogether, bookmakers cut Oregon’s odds from 14/1 a week ago to 15/2 this week, leaving the Ducks in a tie for fourth place on the futures list.

Current Odds: 15/2

Georgia

Georgia (6-1, 4-1 SEC) saw its national title odds take a hit with the announcement of Todd Gurley’s suspension. The Bulldogs didn’t need Gurley to run over Arkansas (3-4, 3-4 SEC) this weekend though and may not need him going forward.

With two division games left on the docket, Mark Richt’s side has the inside track to the SEC East title. A win over Florida (3-3, 2-3 SEC) in Jacksonville in two weeks will be enough to lock up a berth in the SEC Championship Game, where the Bulldogs will await the survivor of the murder’s row that is the SEC West.

Bookmakers responded accordingly, slashing Georgia’s odds of winning the national title from 14//1 to 8/1.

Current Odds: 8/1

TCU

With preseason odds of 150/1, few expected TCU (5-1, 2-1 Big 12) to be a contender this season but after this weekend’s victory over Oklahoma State (5-2, 3-1 Big 12), the Horned Frogs have become the oddsmakers’ darling in the Big 12.

The dominant 42-9 victory was enough to see Gary Patterson’s side – narrowly beaten a week ago by Baylor – emerge as a respectable 20/1 outsider in the national championship hunt. Those odds were 50/1 just a week ago.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys – 66/1 to win a championship just a week ago – were removed from Bovada’s list this week.

Current Odds: 20/1

The Downward Spiral

Notre Dame

Notre Dame (6-1) came within an offensive penalty of leaving Tallahassee with a victory on Saturday night. Instead it was Florida State (7-0, 4-0 ACC) that walked away with the victory and potentially a College Football Playoff berth.

Odds of the Irish winning the national championship rose from 10/1 to 25/1 in the wake of the prime time showdown. That 25/1 figure shows that the bookies still respect Brian Kelly’s side which, while it faces a tricky road and will need a lot of help, isn’t out of the hunt for a playoff spot just yet.

Current Odds: 25/1

Baylor

A week after an improbable comeback saw off TCU, Baylor (6-1, 3-1 Big 12) came unglued against West Virginia (5-2, 3-1 Big 12) in Morgantown this past Saturday.

So used to piling the points on others, the Bears yielded 41 points to the Mountaineers, making it 99 points conceded over the past two games. That’s cause for concern for the team from Waco.

With the Big 12 a tangled web of possibility, the bookmakers have shown they’re not quite willing to throw their hat into Baylor’s ring, stretching last week’s 14/1 odds to 33/1. Art Briles team will now take a week off to reevaluate.

Current Odds: 33/1

Oklahoma

Considered by many experts to be the Big 12’s best shot at a College Football Playoff berth, Oklahoma (5-2, 2-2 Big 12) is all but out of the running as far as the national title goes.

A missed field goal with less than four minutes to play saw the Sooners come up short at home against Kansas State (5-1, 3-0 Big 12) on Saturday, giving the side from Norman a second loss on the season. A conference title still remains within the realms of plausibility as far as the Sooners go, but a national title looks highly unlikely. The bookmakers concur, sending Oklahoma to 100/1 just one week after the team was listed at 10/1.

Meanwhile, Kansas State – the only Big 12 team that remains undefeated in conference play – saw its odds halved from 66/1 to 33/1.

Current Odds: 100/1

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