The Michigan State Spartans impressed the college football world on Saturday as they took down arch rival Michigan by a score of 37-33. RB Kenneth Walker III led the charge with 197 rushing yard on 23 carries, while scoring all 5 of Michigan State’s touchdowns. It was their biggest win of the season, and both the Spartans and Walker III are seeing some movement in their national championship and Heisman odds.
Let’s take a look at where some of the futures markets stand following an eventful Week 9 of the college football season.
National Championship
- Georgia +110
- Alabama +280
- Ohio State +500
- Oklahoma +1200
- Cincinnati +3000
- Michigan State +4000
Georgia and Alabama still have a stranglehold on the top 2 spots, just as they did before the season started, albeit in reverse order. Georgia’s odds shifted slightly following their 34-7 beatdown of Florida. The Dawgs were +120 to win it all last week and are now +110. Alabama was idle this past weekend, but with Georgia’s dominant win the Tide saw their championship odds shift from +260 to +280. Bama is back in action this Saturday against LSU.
Just 2 weeks ago, Ohio State was +800 to win it all. After routing Indiana 54-7, the Buckeyes moved to +550 to win it all. Following their win over Penn State on Saturday, the Buckeyes’ championship odds went from +550 to +500. A pair of key games remain on Ohio State’s schedule, as they host Michigan State in 2 weeks, then head to Ann Arbor for their regular-season finale. Michigan dropped from +3500 to +6000 after losing to Michigan State. Oklahoma (+1200) and Cincinnati (+3000) round out the top 5 spots.
After beginning the season as an unranked team, Michigan State now has the sixth-best odds to win the national championship. With a perfect 8-0 record, the Spartans are ranked as the No. 5 team in the country in the AP Poll. Their 4 remaining regular season games are at Purdue, vs Maryland, at Ohio State, and vs Penn State.
The initial College Football Playoff rankings will be revealed tonight at 7:00pm ET. Aside from Georgia in the top spot, there are a lot of unknowns about what the rankings will look like. Where will Cincinnati land after struggling with a one-win Tulane team? How much love will Michigan State get? Who is on the outside looking in? All of that will be answered tonight, and it is sure to bring more drama to an already drama-filled season.
Heisman Trophy
- Bryce Young, QB, Alabama +180
- Kenneth Walker III, RB, Michigan State +250
- CJ Stroud, QB, Ohio State +450
- Matt Corral, QB, Ole Miss +500
- Caleb Williams, QB, Oklahoma +800
- Kenny Pickett, QB, Pittsburgh +2500
- TreVeyon Henderson, RB, Ohio State +3000
Leading the Heisman Trophy odds right now is Alabama QB Bryce Young at +180. Because Alabama was idle this week, Young did not play. However, there were plenty of moves made behind him in the Heisman race. Most notably, Walker III now has the second-best Heisman odds at +250. He was +2000 a week ago. Walker is followed by Ohio State QB CJ Stroud at +450. Ole Miss QB Matt Corral dropped from +280 to +500 after a rough game at Auburn.
To show just how crazy this season’s Heisman race is, Oklahoma QB Caleb Williams has the fifth-best odds at the Heisman at +800. Williams doesn’t even lead his own team in passing yards, as Spencer Rattler still has more total yards than Williams. However, the Oklahoma QB spot now belongs to Williams, and he has impressed each week. He threw for 402 yards and 6 touchdowns on Saturday against Texas Tech, boosting his Heisman odds from +1400 last week to +800 this week. Following Williams, Pittsburgh QB Kenny Pickett (+2500) and Ohio State RB TreVeyon Henderson (+3000) are still in shouting distance.
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