How to bet on college football odds and lines - Quick Guidelines

College Football betting is not the same as the NFL. Pointspreads and moneylines tend to be higher as a result of the parity and vast number of teams which play on any given week. The talent disparity is quite large in the non-conference portion of the schedule. Teams are forced to enter hostile environments in order to collects paychecks for their schools. These games often result in non-competitive outcomes.

The nuts and bolts of college football betting comes down to statistics. The correct use of the numerous stats can result in profitable decisions. College football is less dependent on situations and angles and more dependent on certain statistics. Rushing offense and rushing defense, pass efficiency offense and defense, and turnover margins are huge. These vital stats are much more important in college football betting than nfl football betting.

A straight bet on a college football game incurs the standard juice of $110 to win $100. The extra $10 is the bookmaker vigorish or vig. In order to win $100, you must bet $110. If you win you will receive $210 from your ticket.

There are three basic ways to make bets on college football: by betting on the "point spread," the "over/under," or the "money line. Lets take a look at these three different types of online bets:

Pointspread: A pointspread is a handicap towards the underdog. The point spread or spread is where the favorite of the match, game or event not only is required to win the game or event but also needs to win by a certain amount of points, runs, goals, etc. At the same time, the team that is not favored, also know as the Underdog will be given the same amount of points, runs, goals, etc on his/her favor. Spreads go hand by hand with money lines, meaning that a certain price is usually added to the Point Spread or Handicap. ½ points, runs, goals, etc are used as tie breakers. In the event that the final score minus the handicap or vice versa adds up to 0, the bet will be considered a push or no action.

For Example: Colts +3 -110 / Patriots -3 -110

In this example if you are betting the Patriots to win the game, they not only have to win the game but they also need to win by more than 3 Points in order for you to win your bet, because there is a -110 implied, you will also need to Risk $110 to win $100 when betting this.

Over/Under or Total: A total bet is a wager on the total outcome of the game and not on one of the sides. Bettors will be given the choice to bet on the score to be more or less than the specified number and it behaves the same way as a spread or a Spread or Handicap.

Moneylines: a Moneyline is an indicator of odds that a given team needs to win the game match or event; the favorite team will be identified with the lower of the numbers. A negative Moneyline indicates how much the player needs to risk in order to win $100, and a positive Moneyline indicates how much a player can win by risking $100. When betting on a Moneyline, your pick or selection is only required to win the game in order for you to win your wager, unless, a Draw or Tie is part of the Bet selection, in which case if the game ends up in a tie, and you bet one of the other teams, your bet will be a loss because the tie was also a bet possibility.

For Example: Yankees-130 / Red Sox +110

In this example you will need to risk $130 in order to win $100 if you are betting the Yankees to win the game, in the other hand, you will be paid $110 for every $100 you bet on the Red Sox if they win the game.