College Football Championship Game Odds: Lines, Betting Trends on Playoff Final

Patrick Everson Sports Betting Expert

5 minute read

College Football Playoff championship odds are up and getting a lot attention, with the two finalists set. And the top seeds are nowhere to be found.

It'll be No. 8 Ohio State vs. No. 7 Notre Dame on the College Football Playoff championship game odds board.

Here's everything you need to know about college football odds for the Jan. 20 championship game: opening lines, spreads and betting trends, as multiple oddsmakers provide their insights on college football championship game odds. Check back regularly for updates and use our BetMGM bonus code to get the most out of your action.

2024-25 College Football Playoff Championship Odds

Ohio State vs. Notre Dame Odds

• Opening point spread: Ohio State -8.5
• Opening moneyline: -380/Notre Dame +320
• Opening total: Over/Under 47.5
• Time: 7:30 p.m. ET Monday, Jan. 20 (ESPN)

UPDATE 6 P.M. ET MONDAY: As kickoff draws closer, Ohio State is -8.5 (-115) at BetMGM, down a point from the -9.5 opener. In fact, since opening on Jan. 10, the line has spent most of the time at some iteration of Buckeyes -8.5.

"There's lots of interest on the Buckeyes to cover -8.5," BetMGM trading manager Seamus Magee said. "Notre Dame outright won't be a great result for the house, though we do claw a bunch of money back with the futures book. And it knocks out a ton of parlays with Ohio State moneyline.

"So the best result is Ohio State by 8 or less."

BetMGM opened the total at 45.5, went to 46.5 Wednesday, then returned to 45.5 (Over -125) Thursday. It's been at 45.5 flat since Friday. The Under is absolutely the need tonight.

"Big time. Plenty of interest on the Over, and definitely some Over action with touchdown scorers in single-game parlays," Magee said.

UPDATE 1:30 P.M. ET MONDAY: Six hours from game time, the Buckeyes are laying 8.5 points in ESPNBET's college football championship odds. That's down a point from the opener of Ohio State -9.5.

The Buckeyes are netting 53% of spread bets/70% of spread money. On the moneyline, bet count is dead even, while 62% of cash is on Ohio State.

"We saw some early action on Notre Dame +9.5. But it's been largely Ohio State since we moved a point [Jan. 12]. So a Buckeyes win by a touchdown or less would be our ideal result, as things stand now," ESPNBET trading director Adrian Horton said.

The total opened at 46.5 and is now 45.5, though 80% of bets and 73% of dollars are on the Over.

UPDATE 7:30 P.M. ET FRIDAY: Exactly 72 hours from kickoff, Ohio State is laying 8.5 points in Fanatics Sportsbook's College Football Playoff championship game odds. The Buckeyes opened -9.5, quickly dropped to -8.5 and bottomed out at -8.

Factoring in both straight bets and parlays, there's two-way play on the point spread. The moneyline, though, is seeing 78% of bets/90% of cash on Ohio State, again including parlay play.

"Ohio State moneyline is a big part of parlays. That's something we'll watch as parlays play out Saturday and Sunday in the NFL playoff games," Fanatics trader Ethan Useloff said. "There's a ton of action trying to go 5-for-5 on moneyline parlays."

The total opened at 46 and is down a tick to 45.5. At 45.5, the Over is seeing 70% of bets, while 55% of money is on the Under. And again, that factors in both straight bets and parlays.

UPDATE NOON ET THURSDAY: Four days from the title game, BetMGM has Ohio State as 8.5-point chalk vs. Notre Dame in college football championship odds. The Buckeyes opened -9.5 Friday night and have since toggled between -9.5/-8.5 at various juice.

Ohio State is bettors' early lean on the spread. However, Notre Dame +280 is attracting a lot of attention on the moneyline.

"An Ohio State win and Notre Dame cover is best for the book. We'll be better off if Ohio State just wins this outright," BetMGM trading manager Seamus Magee said. "There is plenty of interest on the Notre Dame moneyline, making the Irish a small loser when coupled with the futures book."

The total opened at 45.5, advanced to 46.5 Wednesday and is now 46.5 (Under -115). BetMGM will almost assuredly need the Under on Monday night, per usual.

UPDATE 2:30 P.M. ET MONDAY: After a weekend to percolate, Ohio State is down to -8.5 from a -9.5 opener at Borgata Sports, a BetMGM shop in Atlantic City.

"All the early money at 9.5 was on the Irish. We have seen the action start to even out at 8.5," Borgata sportsbook director Tom Gable said. "There's no real liability on the side presently. We do have some small liability on Notre Dame in the futures book, but we win to Ohio State."

The total opened at 45.5, briefly touched 46, then returned to 45.5.

"Nothing of consequence on the total so far," Gable said.

UPDATE 11:10 P.M. ET FRIDAY: Ohio State took down Texas 28-14 as a 3.5-point favorite in the Cotton Bowl, advancing from the second semifinal. Leading 21-14 but with Texas inside the 10-yard line, the Buckeyes got a huge scoop-and-score from Jack Sawyer to seal the deal.

Ohio State (13-2 SU/9-6 ATS) was a middling 6-6 ATS in the regular season, but is 3-0 ATS in the postseason, with all three wins by double digits.

The SuperBook opened Ohio State -8.5 vs. Notre Dame and immediately moved to -9.5 in college football championship odds. Minutes later, the Buckeyes advanced to -10.

"It was one-way traffic on the Buckeyes. We just wanted to see what the early buy point would be on the Irish. Then we took a respected bet at Notre Dame +10," SuperBook risk supervisor Casey Degnon said. "We settled at 9.5 with the market.

"There are more tickets and money on Ohio State so far. No surprise there."

The total was also on the move right away, dipping from 47.5 to 46.5, then to 46.

"We took a couple of small bets along the way," Degnon said.

UPDATE 11:15 P.M. ET THURSDAY: Notre Dame (14-1 SU/13-2 ATS) rallied from a 10-0 second-quarter deficit in what became a screamer of an Orange Bowl semifinal vs. Penn State. The Fighting Irish went on to win 27-24 as 1-point underdogs.

The Irish tied the game at 24 on Riley Leonard's 54-yard touchdown connection with Jaden Gatehouse, with 4:38 remaining. Notre Dame then got an interception, leading to a field goal for the victory in the waning seconds.

Awaiting the Irish: Either Ohio State (12-2 SU/8-6 ATS) or Texas (13-2 SU/8-7 ATS). The Buckeyes face the Longhorns in the Cotton Bowl on Friday night.

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Since a shocking Week 2 home loss to Northern Illinois, Notre Dame is 13-0 SU and 12-1 ATS. The Irish are on an 11-0 spread-covering spree.

DraftKings Sportsbook put up College Football Playoff championship game odds on both potential matchups:

• Ohio State -7.5 vs. Notre Dame
• Texas -2.5 vs. Notre Dame

The Ohio State-Notre Dame matchup quickly got bet up to Buckeyes -8.5. Check back Friday night when the final matchup is set, for insights on CFP championship odds and early action.

Patrick Everson

Patrick Everson is a senior reporter for VegasInsider. Based in Las Vegas since 1994, he's worked in the sports betting journalism/content space for more than a decade. He's most known for his deep roster of contacts behind sportsbook counters, providing readers and viewers with the ins-and-outs of how events are being bet. He's also a thought leader in the sports betting space, often appearing on or moderating panels at national conferences. More from Patrick Everson