College football’s opening week isn’t just about Texas and Ohio State.
Sure, the No. 1-vs.-No. 3 showdown at Ohio Stadium is the most-bet game at sportsbooks, but it’s far from the only one.
Key Takeaways
- The spread for LSU-Clemson has held steady this week as both sides are getting action.
- Bettors can’t get enough of Notre Dame in a storied matchup with Miami.
- Despite a two-touchdown spread, favored Alabama is the go to against FSU.
No. 9 LSU at No. 4 Clemson on Saturday and No. 6 Notre Dame at No. 10 Miami on Sunday also highlight the Labor Day weekend betting card. There have never been more top-10 matchups in Week 1.
Plus, there are plenty of other games, like Alabama-Florida State, Syracuse-Tennessee, and South Carolina-Virginia Tech, to make Week 1 picks on.
Popular (+60% of money) College Football Week 1 bets at @BetMGM
— John Ewing (@johnewing) August 29, 2025
91% of money on Alabama -14
89% on Indiana -23.5
85% on Notre Dame -2.5
75% on Georgia -38.5
73% on Texas +1
69% on Penn State -43.5
69% on Michigan -34.5
63% on South Carolina -7.5
61% on Tennessee -14
Gambling…
Tiger tug of war
Saturday’s primetime matchup between two Tiger teams inside one Death Valley is the second most-bet game of the week at BetMGM and ESPN BET. The action has been all over the place.
Clemson opened as a 2.5-point favorite before being bet up to a consensus -4 this week. LSU is the fourth most-bet team by tickets at BetMGM, while Clemson is the online sportsbook’s fourth most-bet team by handle.
The splits are fairly close to even, with LSU getting 54% of the tickets and Clemson getting 52% of the money, but no team at BetMGM has taken more underdog bets than LSU.
Fanatics Sportsbook reported that 57% of the bets are on Clemson, while LSU has 51% of the spread tickets and 62% of the moneyline handle at +150. LSU has also seen over 63% of the spread money at ESPN BET. Under 57.5 points is the third most-bet total this weekend at BetMGM.
Feeling Irish lucky
Two storied programs that built a nationally profiled rivalry in the 1980s played nearly every year during that decade, but this weekend will be just the fifth time this millennium that the Fighting Irish and Hurricanes square off.
Bettors are taking advantage of this rare matchup as it's the third-most bet game at BetMGM. Notre Dame (-2.5) is getting hammered at Fanatics, which reported 94% of the handle and 73% of the tickets have come in on the Irish. ESPN BET took 80% of the bets on Notre Dame, while the third most-bet game at BetMGM has seen Miami only take 21% of the tickets and 15% of the money.
Notre Dame has received the third-most bets and money among all teams at BetMGM.
Bettors are also loving under 49.5 as 88% of the money at ESPN BET is leaning toward a score below that mark. Notre Dame tight end Eli Raridon has the most non-Texas-Ohio State player bets in the anytime TD market at BetMGM.
Betting big on Bama
This is the second most-bet game at bet365, despite having the largest spread among major games.
Coming off of a 2-10 season, it’s no surprise that bettors are a little sheepish when it comes to Florida State. The consistency hasn’t been there year in and year out, so the No. 8 Crimson Tide are outpacing even Texas as the most-bet team by handle at BetMGM.
The 14 points aren’t enough to keep ESPN BET customers away. Nearly 90% of the handle is on Alabama to cover as a huge road favorite, despite the Crimson Tide coming off an underwhelming season themselves and missing the playoff.
Interesting splits
- Sunday’s matinee matchup between South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer and the team his father ran spanning three decades has seen the favored Gamecocks’ line come down two points from open to -7.5. However, 63% of the bets and handle at BetMGM are backing South Carolina in Atlanta.
- Tennessee opens the season as a two-touchdown favorite over Syracuse, but the home team is only getting 54% of the tickets at BetMGM. DraftKings has seen 72% of the bets on the Vols. Both are reporting that UT has picked up over 60% of the handle.
- With Jaxson Dart now with the New York Giants, bettors aren’t trusting Ole Miss out of the gate, as 60% of the bets and 57% of the handle are on visiting Georgia State on Saturday.
- No. 2 Penn State’s -45.5 and Georgia’s -38.5 aren’t big enough spreads to scare off everybody. The Nittany Lions are getting 69% of the handle against Nevada, while the Bulldogs have seen a whopping 75% of the money. Bettors are also loving No. 20 Indiana as 89% of the handle is on the Hoosiers covering 23.5 points against Old Dominion.
- North Carolina opens the Bill Belichick era on Monday night as a 3.5-point underdog at Fanatics, which reported that more bets are on the Tar Heels, while the handle is in TCU’s favor.
