Five Bets You Should Make Before Football Season

The dog days of summer are winding down, and I, for one, can’t wait for Saturdays in Columbia, Mo., packed with college football — and relaxing NFL Sundays on the couch.

With baseball season reaching the second half and the Cardinals looking like sellers at the deadline, it's making me want football season that much more.

The Breakdown folks have motivated me to produce more content, so I've decided that what better way to prepare for the fall than by giving you five bets you need to make (responsibly)?

Note: All odds below are from DraftKings.

Missouri Tigers o7.5 wins (+130) — Normally, I would stray away from betting on my teams, but this one seems too good to pass up on. If you haven't noticed, Eli Drinkwitz has something rolling in Columbia. The only team to win more SEC games over the past two seasons than Mizzou? Georgia. Then you look at the Tigers' schedule, and it makes you want to take out a loan for this bet. Mizzou doesn't play a road game until Oct. 18, and by then, they could have five wins and should have at least 4. Faurot Field is an underrated home field advantage that not a lot of people talk about, with Mizzou only losing one home game in the past two years. They do say hello to a new quarterback in Beau Pribula (Penn State transfer), but I do think Drink and Co. can get the job done and reach eight wins if the QB play is comparable to what they got from Brady Cook the last two seasons.

Clemson to win National Title (+1000) — I have to admit, I made this bet myself this week, mainly due to the recent ranking from BFW of the top 10 players heading into the 2025 college football season. Three players inside the top 10 made me realize that this team has a lot of talent returning and a top coach in CFB in Dabo Swinney. The good news is that it won't take long to figure out what kind of team we are working with here, as a matchup with the LSU Tigers awaits on Aug. 30 in Clemson. I won't lie and pretend I know a lot about ACC football, but the schedule for conference play also seems favorable. Anytime you can have one of the top 3 Heisman candidates leading your team (Cade Klubnik), you have to feel good about your chances.

LA Rams o9.5 wins (-145) — Coming off a 10-win campaign that included a division crown and a playoff win over the Vikings last year, Los Angeles looks to build on its playoff momentum. Continuity is one of the team’s most significant assets heading into the new year, as head coach Sean McVay and veteran signal-caller Matthew Stafford return to lead a roster loaded with familiar faces on both sides of the ball. Mix that in with landing star wideout Davante Adams to help bolster a receiving corps that already features Puka Nacua. With Kyren Williams continuing to anchor the run game, I really like this number for LA. They have a relatively easy schedule, as their opponents from last year posted a combined .491 win percentage, ranking 17th overall.

NFL Division Winners Parlay (Bills, Buccaneers, Eagles, Texans) (+884) — These are the four divisions I feel the most confident in. I could've thrown the Chiefs in here too to get +1704 odds, but I really hope they don't win, so I didn't. I think the Bucs are one of the more underrated teams heading into 2025 and will again play in the weakest division in football. The Eagles will be looking to run it back, and I don't trust any of the other teams in the NFC East, even with the Commanders winning a playoff game in 2024. Houston probably scares me the most on the list with the inconsistency we saw with Stroud last year, but I am banking on a better season. As long as the Jaguars don't come ready to play, you should have two other teams in that division (Colts and Titans) who are picking in the top 10 next year. For the Bills, all you need to know is that Josh Allen is back, and that's what matters most.

LSU to win the SEC (+800) — The last two bets I am giving are a little bit of long shots, but I do feel confident in them. Now, let's hope LSU loses the first game of the year to Clemson, but bounces back to steamroll the rest of their schedule. In reality, I like them because they are one of just a few teams returning a proven quarterback. Garrett Nussmeier returns for his senior year after throwing for 4,052 yards and 29 touchdowns in 2024, and is an early Heisman Trophy favorite, and he will lead one of the nation's top offenses. The defense can be a tad shaky, but Brian Kelly must be feeling some pressure, and this feels like a team that can get the job done, despite Texas and Georgia being respectable favorites.