2017 College Football Bowl Odds: Early Lines for the Biggest Games

Here's who Vegas is giving the edge in the biggest bowl games of the year.

No. 2 Oklahoma is 8–0 straight up over its last eight games and 5–1 against the spread over their last six. The Sooners will try to extend their winning streak and advance to the national championship with a win in the Rose Bowl over No. 3 Georgia.

Oklahoma is a 1.5-point underdog in Pasadena at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. Georgia bounced back from a road loss to Auburn with a 3–0 record against the spread in a three-win run to end the regular season, outscoring its opponents 108–27 over that stretch, capped off by a 28–7 win over Auburn in the SEC championship game. This should be an exciting matchup between one of the nation's best quarterbacks in Baker Mayfield and one of the nation's best defenses.

No. 4 Alabama will try to avenge its loss in the national title game last year when it heads to the Sugar Bowl as 2.5-point favorites against No. 1 Clemson. The Tigers were the underdog in each of the last two playoff games between these two teams and covered the spread in both of them. The Tigers are 3–1 straight up and 4–0 against the spread in their last four games played on a Monday.

Both of these semifinal matchups will be played on New Year's Day. Earlier in the day, No. 12 UCF will face No. 7 Auburn (-9.5) in the Peach Bowl, and No. 14 Notre Dame will take on No. 17 LSU (-3) in the Citrus Bowl. Notre Dame was one of the hottest teams in the country, riding a 6–0 run against the spread the month of November, but the Fighting Irish are just 2–2 over their last four games and 0–4 against the spread, per the OddsShark College Football Database.

On Dec. 29, No. 5 Ohio State (-6.5) squares off with No. 8 USC in the Cotton Bowl. Since the start of the 2015 season, USC is just 1–7 straight up and against the spread in its last eight games as a betting underdog. Saturday, Dec. 30 will include a Fiesta Bowl matchup between No. 9 Penn State (-3) and No. 11 Washington, and the Orange Bowl featuring No. 6 Wisconsin (-6.5) and No. 10 Miami.

For more info, picks and a breakdown of this week’s top sports betting news check out the new OddsShark podcast with Jon Campbell and Andrew Avery. Subscribe on iTunes, or check it out at OddsShark.libsyn.com.