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Deion Sanders' Colorado Buffaloes have been predicted by many college football pundits and fans to struggle this year. However, the odds in Vegas do not reflect the same outlook.
According to a social media post from Bet MGM analyst John Ewing, the Buffaloes' odds have all of a sudden fallen due to a large amount of bets being placed on the Buffaloes to win the national championship this season.
The improving odds have turned the Buffaloes from complete outsiders to potential dark horses to win it all. Why is this the case?
First, the Buffaloes' chances to win the national championship are helped by two major changes to college football this year. The playoffs, which used to be a four-team bracket, have been expanded to 12 teams with the top five conference champions in the CFP rankings automatically qualifying.
As with all teams, the expanded playoffs allow more teams to qualify (similar to March Madness. If the Buffaloes, who went 4-8 last season and last had a winning season in 2016, were to go on a winning streak, their chances of winning the national championship would be boosted.
The other change is related to the CU program itself. The Buffs are no longer in the Pac-12, where they struggled to compete with the Oregon Ducks and Washington Huskies. They are now in the Big 12, which features an easier set of opponents than the Pac-12, considering Texas and Oklahoma are departing. This will help the Buffaloes, as they no longer have to face any major powerhouses.
A final reason why the odds are getting better for Colorado is that the fans believe in what Deion Sanders is doing, with star players Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter leading the Buffaloes.
Can Colorado use its rebuild to win the national championship?
Odds fluctuate, so while Colorado may be riding some popularity now, a lot of hope could be gone come September and October.
Coming into this season, the Buffaloes are again rebuilding. After winning their first three games, they slumped to 4-8, and some players had negative experiences under Deion Sanders.
With the new talent at many positions, this team is seen as a mystery. Nobody knows what to expect from the Colorado Buffaloes, and this can be played to their advantage. The unknown factor, at least for the first few weeks, can be used to shock their opponents. However, this will not last long, and when conference play begins, their opponents may have figured out how Sanders is playing the team.
If the latter occurs, the Buffaloes' chances of a national championship win will drop, and the Vegas bookmakers win.
Do you think that the Colorado Buffaloes will win the national championship this season?
