The LSU Tigers are the top favorite to win the college football national championship and prevail in the College Football Playoff. Equipped with the soon-to-be Heisman Trophy winner Joe Burrow, the Tigers not only look like the team to beat but have the easier path to the final. Let\u2019s take a look at the opening odds to win the College Football Playoff now that we know the matchups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Tigers moved up to No. 1 because they moved up to No. 1. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Confused? It\u2019s actually quite simple. The Tigers moved up to No. 1 on the odds list because they moved up to the No. 1 playoff seed. Ohio State had been ranked No. 1 the previous week, but LSU jumped Ohio State on the final weekend. LSU now gets to face Oklahoma in the College Football Playoff semifinals, while Ohio State has the much tougher semifinal against Clemson. LSU gets to stay close to home in Atlanta as well, another advantage for the SEC champion. Avoiding Clemson while seeing Ohio State having to face Clemson make LSU\u2019s path a lot more manageable than Ohio State\u2019s. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then add the fact that if LSU does beat Oklahoma in the semifinals, it will play in New Orleans and the Superdome for the national title. LSU has played in the Superdome in each of its recent national championship seasons in 2003 under Nick Saban and 2011 under Les Miles. LSU made the national title game in the Superdome in the 2011 season but lost to Alabama. LSU looks like they\u2019re in a good spot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Buckeyes\u2019 odds slipped whereas LSU\u2019s odds rose. That\u2019s because the Buckeyes had a shot at the No. 1 seed, which would lead them to play Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl, while LSU would have had to play Clemson as the No. 2 seed. However, now Ohio State has to play Clemson in the Fiesta Bowl and that makes their path all the more challenging. Facing the defending national champs in the first round is going to be a tall order \u2013 especially now that Clemson appears to be peaking. Ohio State clearly has the tougher road compared to LSU. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The big question mark for Clemson is how it will play against an elite team after not being tested by the Atlantic Coast Conference this season. Clemson had only one close call, at North Carolina, and crushed the rest of the ACC during the regular season. They had no real challenges in their non-conference schedule outside of a showdown with Texas A&M. Ohio State is a lot better than any other team Clemson has played. Will the Tigers suffer as a result, or will their playoff-tested quality rise to the surface again? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Sooners barely beat Baylor again, winning a second game against Baylor this season by a razor-close margin. The Sooners did what they had to do in order to make the playoff, but now they have to see if they can win a playoff game. They lost in 2015 to Clemson, lost in 2017 to Georgia and lost in 2018 to Alabama. Oklahoma has not been able to get over the hump and win a playoff game as the Big 12 champs have looked like they\u2019re a cut below the competition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The big key this year is Jalen Hurts. He had a great season, but he turned the ball over twice in the Big 12 Championship Game against Baylor and committed five turnovers in his two games against Baylor this year. Turnovers have been a big issue for the Sooners in all of their close games. If Hurts can\u2019t protect the ball against Baylor, LSU is going to eat him up. If Hurts plays a great game, Oklahoma has a chance, but if Hurts is anything less than great, the Sooners have very low odds of winning the Peach Bowl and advancing to the national title game against Clemson or Ohio State.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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