The top 25 teams in the nation garner the most betting action at online sportsbooks when it comes to the overall betting handle for college football. Teams such as Clemson, Alabama and Ohio State are consistently in the media spotlight and the general betting public tends to gravitate towards their weekly games.
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The betting public also focuses most of its attention on the matchups that will be broadcast nationally. The average bettor loves to be able to watch the games they bet on. However, from a value standpoint, betting the games that are not on the national radar makes the most sense.
There are five major conferences in Division IA (FSB) college football. Everyone is familiar with the teams in the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC. The other five conferences in this division are the Mid Majors. This list is made up of the AAC, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West and Sun Belt.
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The Mid Majors are often times an afterthought for bettors but that should not be the case. In reality, the best betting value on the board can be found in a few of these matchups. The betting lines tend to be much sharper for games featuring nationally ranked teams. Oddsmakers have to spend the majority of their time breaking down these matchups so a few Mid Major tilts are bound to fall through the cracks.
Mid Major Home Conference
The first step to successfully betting Mid Majors is sticking with a home conference. Most likely, you will want to go with one that is geographically close to where you live. This will give you the local edge when it comes to following certain teams. The local media is going to cover a Mid Major program far more closely than the national media. This will give you much more accurate information when it comes to player personnel.
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The main benefit of sticking with one home conference is overall familiarity. It is far easier to become knowledgeable about 10 to 12 teams that play one another each season as opposed to trying to breakdown matchups all over the country. Time zones for the games can be a factor. If you live on the East Coast, it gets tough to follow many of the games in the Mountain West.
Mid Major Rivalry Showdowns
As mentioned, gaining a higher level of familiarity with certain teams can lead to better predictability when it comes to the outcome of their games. This is especially true in the Mid Majors when it comes to head-to-head matchups between rivals. Most of the best rivalries in all of college football are based on geography. Both teams reside in the same state. The overall length of the rivalry is another key factor. Recent results leaning one way or the other are important betting trends.
There is still a very high level of emotion at the college level. To some of these players, beating a college rival as perceived underdogs can be the highlight of their football career. Getting points at home in a Mid Major rivalry is a great starting point for finding the best betting value in that week’s overall schedule.
Mid Major Parity
There are a few Mid Major programs that consistently gain attention on a national level. Central Florida out of the AAC and the Mountain West’s Boise State Broncos come to mind. However, the majority of the teams in Mid Majors can beat one another on any given Saturday.
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The overall depth of talent on these teams is not that deep, so key injuries can play a huge role in the handicapping process. So can weather and field conditions and everything else that has an impact on the outcome of a game. This is where those local media sources can really help the cause.
