The Big Ten is loaded with top-ranked teams, including the defending national champions, Michigan, newcomers Oregon and the new-look Ohio State Buckeyes. Here are some of the best ways to attack the futures market on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Big Ten Betting Preview
Just like everywhere else in the country, it is a year of change for the Big Ten conference. Michigan is the defending national champions, but they will have a brand new head coach, quarterback and much more this year. Ohio State also has a new QB and different talent across the board. As a newcomer to the conference, Oregon comes in with a new quarterback and one of the best rosters in the country. Washington made the national title game last year but also entered the conference with a new QB and new head coach. There is clearly plenty to get to, so here is my preview of the top teams in the Big Ten and my favorite futures to bet in the conference.
Ohio State (+155)
Ohio State has insane hype entering this season. They have the second-best odds to win the National Championship, behind only Georgia. I am not fully buying into this hype, however. Ohio State’s roster is stacked, and they will be a College Football Playoff team, but I don’t think they can win the National Championship.
Will Howard is not that big of an upgrade over last year’s quarterback Kyle McCord. Howard is a great runner and a gamer, but he is not an elite passer. They loaded up on defensive players, including getting the #1 player in the transfer portal, safety Caleb Downs. This defense should be elite and win most games for them.
Ohio State has great young talent at wide receiver with Emeka Egbuka, but they are without last year’s star, Marvin Harrison Jr. This offense also has an elite RB duo in Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson. They are certainly capable of having a phenomenal season, but they are overpriced everywhere in the market, so I am staying away.
Oregon (+200)
Oregon has a great chance to win the Big Ten and contend for a National Championship. The Ducks hope to plug Dillon Gabriel into the same system Bo Nix thrived in last season. They brought in a great transfer WR, Dylan Stewart, from Texas A&M, and are loaded at skill positions.
Dan Lanning has proven himself to be a great coach; this team is Georgia’s best matchup. As long as Dillon Gabriel stays healthy and lives up to his name, the sky is the limit for this team. However, they are also overpriced in the market, so I won’t be betting on their futures.
Penn State (+500)
Penn State is ecstatic about the expansion of the College Football Playoff. James Franklin has never been able to get this team over the hump, but they would have made multiple playoffs under the current format. The way their schedule breaks this year, they should be favored to win ten or 11 games, all but against Ohio State, which would set them up to make the playoff.
Penn State made one of the best offseason hires by bringing OC Andy Kotelnicki from Kansas. QB Drew Allar is an immense talent who is a top NFL prospect but was heavily restricted by scheme and play-calling last year. Kotelnicki is a great offensive mind and should unlock Allar’s potential.
Best Bets: Penn State to make the playoff (-140), Drew Allar to win Heisman 40/1
Michigan (+750)
Michigan is in a bizarre position this season. They just won the National Championship, but they lost an unprecedented number of players to the NFL, including quarterback JJ McCarthy. Even more importantly, Jim Harbaugh left for the NFL amid potential sanctions on the program due to the sign-stealing allegations.
Sherrone Moore was promoted to head coach from within the program, so they do have continuity in that sense, but almost everywhere else on the field, this team will look different. Their defense should still be one of the best in the country, but the offense has a lot of question marks. It looks like Alex Orji will be the starting quarterback, and his passing capabilities are massively in question. They also have a completely rebuilt offensive line.
This team could still be solid and have a chance to make the College Football Playoff, but with so much uncertainty, I don’t want to bet on any of their futures.
USC (+2000)
USC is one of the most intriguing teams in the nation. They are replacing a Heisman-winning quarterback, Caleb Williams, but QB Miller Moss has massive potential. Lincoln Riley has an incredible track record with quarterbacks, producing three Heisman winners, and the hope is that Moss will be next on that list. They also have incredible skill position players led by Zachariah Branch.
As always, the biggest question mark around USC is on the defensive side of the ball. Although they have a good amount of talent, their defense has been one of the worst-coached in the country over the past several seasons. Riley decided to replace DC Alex Grinch with D’Anton Lynn from UCLA.
Lynn came to UCLA last year and immediately improved their defense tremendously. If he can do the same at USC, this team has a high upside. I am waiting to watch USC for a couple of weeks, but I think they have serious value in winning the Big Ten or the College Football Playoff.
Futures to Bet
Iowa o8 wins (-120)—Iowa is one of the most unique programs in college football. They have one of the best defenses and special teams units in college football but one of the worst offenses annually. However, Iowa finally changed its offensive coordinator position, and QB Cade McNamara will hopefully make it through this season healthy. Their offense statistically cannot be any worse than last year, and their defense should be fantastic once again. Outside of Ohio State, Iowa can win every game on their schedule, so I love getting over eight wins here.
Wisconsin u6.5 wins (+112)—Wisconsin won seven games in Luke Fickell’s first year as head coach, but they didn’t do much to improve this offseason and have a much harder schedule than last year. Wisconsin has to play Alabama out of conference, and in Big Ten play, they have to travel to USC and Iowa and face Oregon and Penn State. Based on my expectations for the Badgers, those are five losses. That means you just need one more loss to hit this bet at plus money. Trips to Rutgers and Nebraska and games against South Dakota and Minnesota present even more opportunities for the Badgers to lose. I am not a believer in QB Tyler Van Dyke, and this Wisconsin team should really struggle this season.
Indiana 5.5 wins (-135)—The Hoosiers are just the 2023 JMU team with a better quarterback and better depth. JMU was one of the best Group of Five teams in the country last year under Curt Cignetti, and it earned him the head coaching job at Indiana. Cignetti brought a majority of his staff and roster from JMU to Indiana. So, this team will not have the normal slow gelling process that transfer-heavy teams with new coaches normally do.
Kurtis Rourke transferred in to play quarterback from Ohio, and he is a major upgrade over JMU’s quarterback last year, Jordan McCloud. This time should immediately fire on all cylinders with Rourke and his star WR Elijah Surratt. This team should be sneaky in the Big Ten and get into a bowl game, maybe even upsetting a top team along the way.
Rutgers o6 wins (-150)—Greg Schiano consistently builds up this program every year. Schiano took this team to a bowl game last year and won that game over Miami. This team can be even better this season after bringing in Athan Kaliakmanis, a quarterback from Minnesota, and WR Dymere Miller, a star at Monmouth. In conference play, Rutgers avoids Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon, and Penn State. This schedule sets Rutgers up to potentially have their best record in a long time.
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