NCAAF Best Bets: Championship Odds After Week 8 in CFB

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00:00We're in a whole new world of college football with the college football playoff expanding

00:07to 12 teams.

00:08And I think the new world also includes not having a bleeping clue as to who is going

00:12to win the championship this year.

00:14I mean, it is crazy.

00:16Let's bring in Bill Bender from Sporting News.

00:17And, you know, Bill, even if we have the traditional four teams fighting it out in the college

00:23football playoff, I don't think that anybody really knows right now who the best team in

00:28the country is.

00:29I mean, you can have rankings, you can say that you think you know, but at this point,

00:33it's about as wide open as I've seen.

00:35Yeah, forget about the national championship.

00:37I can't figure out the SEC.

00:38There's nine teams with two losses or less.

00:42Nine teams that are ranked between Texas to Vanderbilt.

00:45It's been wild.

00:46The Big Ten, same deal.

00:47I mean, who do you think is the best team in the Big Ten right now?

00:51On paper, it's Oregon.

00:52Yeah, they beat Ohio State.

00:53They probably have the best shot of any of these top five teams to go undefeated into

01:00college football playoff championship games or the conference championship games.

01:03But who knows from there?

01:05And Georgia, Texas was yet another reminder that I don't know how to pick a top five game.

01:10I should have.

01:11I was on Texas last week.

01:12Georgia proved that wrong in a hurry.

01:13Yeah.

01:14No, I mean, these games have certainly been crazy.

01:17And by the way, a lot of the games, too, like over before they begin, and then all of a

01:20sudden, like late in the game, you're like, wait, maybe there's a shot here.

01:24But Oregon is the number one team in the country.

01:25And by virtue of the quarterback on Ohio State, not really knowing how much time was left.

01:29I mean, think about that for a minute.

01:31You probably could also say the same thing about Georgia.

01:34They had one bad half all season against Alabama.

01:37Since then, they've been really good.

01:38They get that win against Texas.

01:40I find it very interesting, Bill, that Kirby Smart is playing this underdog card, I guess.

01:48Nobody wants to believe in us.

01:50I'm like reading all this stuff saying, wait a second here.

01:52I'm like, you guys are always good.

01:53There's no underdog card here with Georgia.

01:57And they're one of those teams, Bill, that's going to be playing in the playoff.

02:00I guess the question in your mind is, were you impressed enough with that win over Georgia

02:03to think that they should be, let's say, one of the main contenders to win the championship?

02:09Yes.

02:10And because of the defense.

02:12That was angry, Georgia.

02:13Now allowing 1.1 yards per carry to a really good Texas team that had dominated everybody

02:20up to that point.

02:22Kirby plays the underdog card better than anybody.

02:24He plays it when they're 30-point favorites.

02:26He plays it when they're a rare underdog.

02:29But it worked.

02:30And they played well.

02:32Most impressive part of that game was after the pass interference debacle where the fans

02:37were throwing things on the field.

02:38They reversed the call.

02:39Texas scores.

02:40What does Georgia do?

02:41They take the ball down the field, 11 plays, 80 yards, touchdown, game over.

02:46That's national championship DNA.

02:48They still have it.

02:49Don't love their running game.

02:51I still think that there's some work to be done there.

02:54But this Georgia team is good enough to win a national title.

02:57Yeah, I would agree.

02:58All right.

02:59So Alabama, in a very rare situation in the history of college football going back, let's

03:05say, 20 years, two losses.

03:07We haven't even got to November.

03:08I mean, they're on the outside looking into this thing.

03:10But again, you know, SEC championship, end of the season.

03:13They've done this before.

03:15And they find their way back in.

03:16Tennessee, on the other hand, did exactly what they were supposed to do and take care

03:21of the Crimson Tide.

03:22And I think finally, Bill, it's fair to say that Tennessee is right smack in the middle

03:26of this championship picture.

03:27They needed that win.

03:29It's huge.

03:30Huge for Tennessee.

03:31They're doing it differently.

03:32You know, Josh Heupel has this reputation as an offense guy and getting the ball up

03:37and down the field.

03:38Their defense is good.

03:41It's really good.

03:42Nikko's getting better with each week.

03:44Iamali Ava gets the late touchdown pass.

03:46In the past, when Alabama takes that 17-14 lead on the rushing touchdown, Tennessee folds

03:52there in the past.

03:53They answered.

03:54They scored 10 points.

03:55I think with Alabama, what I'm looking at is a different problem each week.

04:00Against Vandy, couldn't get off the field on third down.

04:03Against South Carolina, situational football at the end of each half.

04:07Against Tennessee, couldn't stay on the field on third down.

04:09And Jalen Monroe had a bad turnover.

04:11So I don't know, Craig.

04:14Do you really think they can go to Tiger Stadium and beat LSU on the road the way they're playing

04:18right now?

04:19I'm not sure they can.

04:20Yeah.

04:21I mean, especially, is it Saturday night?

04:23I don't know.

04:24Because Saturday night, no one wins at LSU through the years.

04:26That's the way it's gone in Death Valley.

04:28OK.

04:29So, look.

04:30Surprise of the season.

04:31There's a couple surprises.

04:33The Academy's both being ranked.

04:34I think that's a big one.

04:35This is probably the biggest, though.

04:37The fact that Indiana is 7-0 on the season.

04:40Seven wins, no losses.

04:41They're doing it in blowout fashion.

04:44No one had this at the beginning of the year.

04:47And you know, look.

04:48Being undefeated definitely gives them a shot at the college football playoff.

04:52But what's really interesting, Bill, and we'll look at the odds to make the playoff, too,

04:56is that the oddsmakers are still sort of telling us there's a little bit of a paper tiger here.

05:00They're still 2-1 to make the college football playoff.

05:03Being 7-0.

05:04I mean, there's only a handful of games left for this team, too.

05:06How have they turned this around so quickly?

05:09How has that school gotten so good this year?

05:12Kurt Cignetti is probably the Big Ten version of Steve Spurrier.

05:15He brings in 13 transfers from James Madison.

05:19They bring in Curtis Rourke, the Ohio transfer quarterback, who is going to sit this week.

05:23That's probably why those odds are the way they are.

05:26He's an NFL quarterback.

05:27His brother played with Jacksonville.

05:28He's been outstanding.

05:30Throws the ball down the field well.

05:31They run the ball effectively.

05:32If they had a different uniform on, you'd think you were looking at Michigan or Penn

05:37State.

05:39You'd be playing with that kind of style.

05:40That was an eye-opening blowout against Nebraska.

05:43I thought that game was going to be close.

05:45It was 28-7 at halftime.

05:47The big thing with Indiana moving forward is they have to take care of business against

05:50Washington this week, against a Huskies team that can move the football without Rourke.

05:56Tavin Jackson's up at quarterback, and they'll be judged on the Michigan and Ohio State games.

06:00But Craig, there is a scenario.

06:01I painted it out this morning.

06:03Get this.

06:05Imagine Oregon, Penn State, Ohio State, Illinois, Indiana.

06:10There is a scenario where all five teams could be 11-1 and 8-1 in conference play.

06:15It requires Illinois upsetting Oregon, but the fact we're talking about it says how wild

06:19this could be.

06:20Yeah.

06:21It's crazy that the Big Ten, SEC, both conferences are having a great year.

06:26Real quick, Indiana plus 200 to get in.

06:30Kansas State with a big statement.

06:32Iowa plus 165 to make the college football playoff.

06:35Anything you like there in particular?

06:37I can't give you LSU because that's even money.

06:39You've got to pick something else.

06:40Give me the Wildcats.

06:41I still think they're the best team in the Big 12.

06:43They've gotten through all the tough road games.

06:45They play Iowa State at the end of the year.

06:47They run the ball.

06:48They stop the run.

06:49Avery Johnson's gotten better.

06:50I'm still on Kansas State as the Big 12 champion.

06:53And they impress every week.

06:54All right, Bill.

06:55Great stuff.

06:56We'll catch up later in the week.

06:57Thanks again for coming on Newswire.

06:58Hey, thank you.

07:02Thanks for having me.

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