College Football Playoff National Championship Odds ahead of Week 2

Following the first week of the college football season the College Football Playoff national championship odds have shifted considerably, with a handful of previous favorites dropping back and some odds improving for contenders who took care of business.

While Clemson and LSU suffered defeats that saw them drop out of the top 10 of the AP Top 25 rankings, they still retain relatively high national championship odds.

Meanwhile, teams that won a marquee matchup, like Florida State and North Carolina, saw their odds improve. Let’s take a look at the updated odds from Fan Duel below.

+220 – Georgia Bulldogs

The leader in the national championship odds is the same as it has been. Georgia is once again the favorite to three-peat after demolishing UT-Martin in the team’s season opener.

Quarterback Carson Beck stepped into the starting role nicely and had a strong debut. Meanwhile, the rest of Kirby Smart‘s operation continued humming right along. It remains abundantly clear that Georgia is among the nation’s most talented teams.

+600 – Alabama Crimson Tide

The second favorite to win it all right now, Alabama got its opening week underway and got a chance to see how quarterback Jalen Milroe would do. Spoiler: Excellently. He accounted for five total touchdowns in a win over MTSU.

But the real test for Alabama comes this weekend, when Texas will work its way over to Tuscaloosa. In a rematch of last year’s 20-19 affair, Alabama will be looking to prove it remains a College Football Playoff contender.

+700 – Michigan Wolverines

Michigan was one of the teams with a reasonably stiff test in its season opener, taking on East Carolina to start. The Wolverines made short work of it, taking a 23-0 lead into halftime and cruising to win 30-3.

Quarterback JJ McCarthy carried the day with the ground game a little limited, throwing for 280 yards and three touchdowns. We know the Michigan ground game will get rolling at some point, which makes McCarthy being on point even scarier.

+850 – Ohio State Buckeyes

Ohio State sleepwalked through its season opener against Indiana a little bit, unable to put any real distance between its opponent on the scoreboard. Quarterback Kyle McCord got off to just a so-so debut.

Even with some mistakes, though, Ohio State was able to pull out a 23-3 win. Now it’ll have a chance to regroup and figure out what some of the offensive issues were.

+1200 – Florida State Seminoles

In one of the best games of the weekend, Florida State pulled away from LSU late to put together a dominant 45-24 win. The Seminoles scored 31 unanswered at one point in the second half, taking complete control.

Quarterback Jordan Travis has a stable of weapons to choose from on offense and looks like the real deal. But it was Florida State’s strong defensive performance that turned a lot of heads in the season opener. The ‘Noles were fast, physical and aggressive up front.

+2000 – USC Trojans

Playing for a second straight week, USC made quick work of a Mountain West foe. The Trojans have beaten up on two such opponents now in the first couple weeks, looking every bit the part of a team that will only really be tested by a team with similar high national championship odds.

Quarterback Caleb Williams is the real deal and continues to have plenty of options to target in the passing game. Meanwhile, a nice three-pronged rushing attack has emerged led by South Carolina transfer MarShawn Lloyd.

+2000 – Penn State Nittany Lions

Like Michigan, Penn State is a team that should have an elite ground game that didn’t quite get to showcase it in Week 1. It didn’t matter, as quarterback Drew Allar was more than capable of picking up the slack in the passing game.

Allar finished with 325 yards passing and three touchdowns as Penn State cruised by West Virginia 38-15 in the opener. The offense really seemed to kick it into gear in the fourth quarter, too. Now Penn State gets a bit of a breather against Delaware.

+2500 – Texas Longhorns

Texas clipped Rice 37-10 in its season opener, even if it wasn’t the perfect performance offensively. Quarterback Quinn Ewers did eventually pass for 260 yards and three touchdowns, and the Longhorns used a 21-point third quarter to pull away.

Now the real test looms for Texas. After narrowly falling to Alabama at home last year, the Lornghorns hit the road for Tuscaloosa to try to topple the Tide. It’s the weekend when we find out whether Texas deserves its current national championship odds.

Other National Championship Odds

+3000 – Notre Dame Fighting Irish
+4000 – Tennessee Volunteers
+4000 – Oregon Ducks
+4000 – Washington Huskies
+4000 – LSU Tigers
+6000 – Oklahoma Sooners
+6000 – Texas A&M Aggies
+6000 – Utah Utes
+8000 – Wisconsin Badgers
+10000 – Ole Miss Rebels
+12000 – Clemson Tigers
+12000 – North Carolina Tar Heels

There are a bevy of teams looking to sneak their way up the national championship odds list, including a Notre Dame squad featuring a very powerful run game now balanced out by quarterback Sam Hartman. Tennessee also looked excellent in its debut, downing Virginia quite easily. Could a West coast contender like Oregon or Washington continue to emerge? Can LSU rebound? Could Texas A&M or Utah emerge on the national stage? This weekend will continue to provide us more answers.