Way Too Early 2026 National Championship Odds: Looking at Where Georgia Tech and the Other ACC Teams Land

Where is Georgia Tech starting out in the early national championship odds?

Jackson Caudell | Jan 16, 2025

Dec 27, 2024; Birmingham, AL, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10) warms up before the 2024 Birmingham Bowl at Protective Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images / Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

he 2024-2025 College Football Season comes to a close on Monday night when Notre Dame faces Ohio State in Atlanta, but for most programs in the country, they are already hard at work to prepare for spring practice and looking forward to the 2025-2026 season. While it is obviously way too early to pay much attention to the odds for next season, it does give a glimpse at how the oddsmakers are viewing the ACC race heading into next season.

At Fanduel Sportsbook, Georgia Tech is at +11000 to win the college football playoff next season, 6th best odds in the ACC.

Coming into the 2023 and 2024 seasons, Georgia Tech has not had to face high pre-season expectations. The win totals in Vegas had them falling short of a bowl game in each of Brent Key's first two seasons as the head coach of his alma mater, but the Yellow Jackets exceeded expectations both times and ended up in a bowl game. Georgia Tech has played the underdog role pretty well, but with talented players returning, one of the program's best recruiting classes getting on campus, and a pretty solid transfer portal class, the Yellow Jackets could enter the 2025 season ranked in the top 25.

The ACC team with the best odds of winning the national championship next season is Clemson at +1800. The Tigers are the reigning ACC Champions and are returning many of their key pieces for next season. They are likely to remain the favorite to win the ACC all the way through the offseason.

Miami (+4000), SMU (+6000), Louisville (+6000), and Florida State (+8500) round out the top five. Miami recently made a huge acquisition at the quarterback position, landing former Georgia quarterback Carson Beck and they have brought in the top-ranked recruiting class in the ACC three years in a row. SMU made the conference championship and the college football playoff in their first year in the conference and should remain in the hunt. Louisville has brought in a lot of talented transfers to a solid roster and has one of the best coaches in the country, Jeff Brohm.

Florida State is going to be a wildcard in the ACC this season. They had a disastrous 2-10 season and have undergone a lot of changes this offseason, but won the conference just two years ago and went 13-0. Will it be a rebound or was this past season a sign of more bad times to come in Tallahassee?

Dec 27, 2024; Birmingham, AL, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10) throws the ball on the run against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the first half of the 2024 Birmingham Bowl at Protective Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images / Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

CBS Sports CFB analyst Chip Patterson recently named Georgia Tech as a potential darkhorse for the College Football Playoff in 2025:

"The return of both Haynes King and Aaron Philo give Georgia Tech one of the better quarterback situations in the ACC. And given the way Brent Key has developed and prepared this team for its biggest games, it's hard to think there isn't another strong showing ahead in 2025.

Both players provide the kind of athleticism that makes Georgia Tech's offense hum, and you get the combination of King's experience with a player in Philo who flashed during his true freshman season.

The Yellow Jackets finished in a tie for fourth place in the ACC standings this year and flexed their muscles late in the year with the win against Miami and near-upset of Georgia in eight overtimes. They lost some notable talent to the portal, for sure, but I like Georgia Tech to be a sleeper that can challenge Clemson, Miami and others in the ACC."

I agree that Georgia Tech should be considered a darkhorse to win the ACC and make the playoff. There is a lot of uncertainity in the conference next year as far as who the top contenders are and while Clemson and Miami have the most talent, they have flaws as well. The Yellow Jackets can make the argument they have the best quarterback in the ACC and that will go a long way in helping establish themselves as a contender.

The way too early top 25 lists are going to be very popular as the college football season winds down, then all eyes turn towards next season. One of the first way too early top 25 rankings comes from Bleacher Report, which ranks the Yellow Jackets 25th heading into next season. Georgia Tech is one of four ACC teams ranked in the top 25, behind SMU (7), Clemson (9), and Miami (18).

Haynes King is returning, running back Jamal Haynes is also back, joined by Penn transfer Malachi Hosley, a talented receiving corps, an offensive line that returns All-ACC guard Keylan Rutledge, and talent from a defense that was much better in 2024 than 2023. The most important retentions might be on the coaching staff. Coordinators Buster Faulkner and Tyler Santucci are slated to be back, as well the rest of the coaching staff. Georgia Tech has one of the best coaching staffs in the ACC and being able to retain them is huge for next season.

The pieces are in place for a potential special season in 2025 and while Georgia Tech always plays a tough schedule, next year's schedule is not as tough as years past. Yes, they play Georgia and Clemson, but no other team on their schedule is likely to start the year ranked. That is not to say that it will be a cakewalk, but Notre Dame is not on the schedule, nor is Miami or SMU. The trip to Colorado to start the year could be tough, but the Buffaloes are losing likely top-10 picks Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders. As far as schedules go, next year's looks to be breaking in favor of Georgia Tech being able to contend in the ACC.

2026 National Championship Odds for the ACC (As of 1/16)

1. Clemson- +1800

2. Miami- +4000

3. SMU- +6000

4. Louisville- +6000

5. Florida State- +8500

6. Georgia Tech- +11000

7. North Carolina- +11000

8. Syracuse- +13000

9. NC State- +14000

10. Virginia Tech- +17000

11. Duke- +21000

12. Pitt- +21000

13. Boston College- +32000

14. Cal- +32000

15. Virginia- +100000

16. Wake Forest- +100000

17. Stanford- +100000

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