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David Purdum, ESPN Staff Writer
Georgia enters the offseason as the consensus betting favorite to win next year’s national championship, the first to be decided by a 12-team playoff.
The Bulldogs were listed with 17-4 odds Monday at ESPN BET, followed by Alabama at 6-1 and Ohio State at 8-1. It’s the second straight season the Bulldogs have been the preseason favorites.
Michigan beat Washington in Monday’s championship game, but with questions surrounding coach Jim Harbaugh’s future, the Wolverines were listed at 9-1 for next season’s title, along with Texas. The Wolverines and Longhorns play in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Sept. 7.
Washington begins the offseason as a 60-1 long shot at ESPN BET.
The six highest-ranked conference champions will receive automatic bids to next year’s College Football Playoff, with the top four teams receiving first-round byes. The six highest-ranked teams remaining will round out the 12-team field.
Joey Feazel, lead college football trader for Caesars Sportsbook, said power ratings and schedules remain the primary factors in creating the national championship odds with the new expanded playoff.
“When the eight games are added to the mix for the national championship, it will certainly open up doors for more teams to compete, especially when you add the guaranteed spot for a non-Power 5 [team]. Things will certainly get interesting,” Feazel told ESPN.
James Madison, at 400-1, had the shortest odds of any non-power-five conference team as of Monday at ESPN BET.
Coach Deion Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes were 250-1.
Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe is the early betting favorite at 8-1 to win next season’s Heisman Trophy at Caesars Sportsbook, with Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers and Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel each listed at 10-1. Georgia quarterback Carson Beck is 12-1.