Did you know that in 2016, more than 179 million fans watched over 100 billion minutes of college football games on ESPN?
While the NFL’s professional football league remains the favorite ruling sport in America, the steady growth in popularity of college football cannot be ignored.
It’s no surprise that football is a fantastic arena for sports betting. It attracts a whopping $95 billion in bets, even though a small fraction of it is through legal channels today.
As enjoyable as college football games are to watch, they get even more exciting when you add wagers to the mix.
Betting on college football games allows you to participate in one of your favorite pastimes and make a little money as well, as long as you can find the right college football picks.
Read on to understand why college football is so popular, how you can use it to learn sports betting, and how to succeed at making bets.
Why Is College Football so Popular?
One of the reasons why college football is so popular is that there’s something for everybody. There are 130 teams in FBS subdivision and another 128 in the FCS subdivision.
That’s total of 258 distinct teams with different sets of capabilities.
There are rabid fans and marching bands. There are myriad types of coaching styles and bizarre team rituals. No matter your preference, you’re sure to find a team with a vibe you like.
Few sporting events can surpass college football regarding opportunities for making bets.
College football provides an excellent forum for beginners to learn the basics of sports betting because of the sheer volume of games and variety of teams available.
What is Sports Betting?
The most straightforward definition of sports betting is putting a wager on an expected outcome from a sporting event.
A wager could increase the interest in the game, make it more exciting, and also bring home a little cheddar if you placed the right bet.
The potential rewards of sports betting include being able to make some money, the entertainment value it carries, and the satisfaction of being able to make accurate predictions.
How Does One Get Started with Sports Betting?
One of the first choices you have to make is whether you’re betting for fun or making money.
If you’re betting for fun, you have a peripheral interest in the actual outcome of a college game. Win or lose, it doesn’t matter so much to you. The thrill and satisfaction of being right are what you seek.
However, if you’re interested in making money, then you need a more serious approach.
The good thing is that betting on college football is a pastime with meager entry requirements. You don’t need to be an expert at the game or a master statistician to get started.
All you need is an understanding of a few basics of sports betting, and a reliable source for quality sports information.
The Basics of a Sports Bet
At its simplest, a bet is a wager on an expected outcome.
Every wager has five major components. They are the parties, the selection, the stake, the odds, and the payout.
Out of all these components, the selection and the odds are what hold the bettor’s attention the most.
Bookmakers offer odds for all kinds of selections. There are more than a dozen different types of selections or bets that you could make.
The Different Types of Sports Bets
The most straightforward type of bet is the moneyline bet, where you just place a wager on the team you believe will win. However, you can make things even more fun by playing point spreads.
Point spreads are extremely popular in football. In a point spread wager, you’re putting money on a team being able to win a game by a margin that is greater than the size of the spread.
Casinos in Vegas employ oddsmakers to set the spreads for each game. These professionals decide on which games to feature and develop power rankings for each team.
They then use these rankings and factor other things like home-field advantages and generate the point spread for each game.
When placing bets on point spreads, you can improve your chances of winning if you find good football picks.
Having a reliable set college football picks gives you an edge. Your goal should be to have an edge as often as you can. Over time, this advantage will allow you to win more often than lose. If you win more and lose less, you will make a lot of money.
What Are College Football Picks?
College football picks are statistical numbers generated by professional handicappers to represent the most probable outcome of a college game.
Sports handicappers are professionals who use mathematical techniques, experience, and lots of data to generate their preferred picks.
What Advantages Do Picks Provide?
Picks allow bettors to analyze the odds offered by bookmakers and exploit the ones that show value.
One of the golden rules of sports betting is to always bet on wagers with positive value. Simply put, positive value exists in a wager when it is more likely to win than the odds suggest.
If you make bets on wagers with positive value consistently, you will win more gambles than you lose. It’s the most critical difference between casual bettors and serious ones.
Having a trusted source of college football picks gives you the edge you need. When you make bets based on dispassionate facts, not because of some vague emotional attachment to a team or loyalty or something like that, you instantly improve your chances of success.
A Word of Caution
Just because it’s easy to get started with betting on college football, it doesn’t mean you will enjoy success. It is a well-known fact that over 90% of all bettors lose money.
If you don’t want to end up as another sad statistic, it is essential to make some strategic decisions at the beginning of your sports betting journey.
This includes making prudent money management choices. Don’t wager more than you can afford.
If you’re ready to begin your journey into the world of sports betting, arm yourself with every advantage possible.
Look for a sports handicapping service that is well known, well respected, and has a proven track record of successful picks.
Here at Oskeim sports, we’ve been accredited by the Better Business Bureau. We also publish our picks in a pick archive.
Check out our free college football picks and begin your journey making bets with a high degree of confidence. Our service will allow you to enjoy your football games and be successful in the long run.