NCAA Football Betting in Michigan

Betting on NCAA football online in Michigan is now legal. That is, as long you are 21 or older, currently inside the state, and you place your bets at licensed Michigan online or retail sportsbooks.

Michigan sportsbooks offer NCAA football moneylines, point spreads, over/unders, props, parlays and futures.

There are no local school or local game betting restrictions. That means Michigan sportsbooks allow NCAA football betting of all kinds throughout the offseason, regular season, bowl season, and the College Football Playoff national championship.

NCAA football is hugely popular in the Great Lakes State, with five Michigan schools competing in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, US college football’s top level.

Those schools are the 11-time national champion Michigan Wolverines, six-time national champion Michigan State Spartans, Central Michigan Chippewas, Eastern Michigan Eagles, and Western Michigan Broncos.

That should mean NCAA football betting will be as popular in Michigan as it is all across the US.

Here’s a detailed look at how to bet on college football in Michigan, including information about Michigan betting apps, the types of bets available across the state, and the rich history NCAA football enjoys right here in Michigan.

Where to bet on NCAA football in Michigan

Legal NCAA football betting launched inside the state’s first retail sportsbooks in March 2020. If all moves ahead as planned, Michigan’s first online and mobile sportsbooks could join the NCAA football betting party as soon as November 2020.

At that time, you will find a look at the top Michigan NCAA football betting sites right here. In the meantime, here’s a look at where to bet on NCAA football in Detroit and the plans Detroit casinos have for mobile sports betting:

• Greektown Casino Hotel: Penn National Gaming runs Greektown Casino Hotel and has partnered with Kambi to open up a temporary sportsbook on the property. It also plans to launch a permanent Barstool Sports-branded retail sportsbook and mobile sports betting app in the near future.
• MGM Grand Detroit: MGM Grand Detroit opened the Moneyline Sports Lounge in 2019 with plans to convert it into a sportsbook when Michigan legalized sports betting. It flipped the switch in March 2020, turning Moneyline into a BetMGM sportsbook. A BetMGM online sportsbook and online casino are coming up next.
• MotorCity Casino Hotel: MotorCity Casino Hotel partnered with FanDuel Sportsbook to launch a retail sportsbook in March 2020 and will launch a FanDuel online and mobile sportsbook as soon as it can.

Many of Michigan’s 23 tribal casinos will have sports betting available by the 2020 college football season. FireKeepers in Battle Creek opened the state’s first tribal casino in June 2020.

Michigan NCAA football betting apps

You will soon be able to bet on NCAA football with a smartphone or tablet through licensed Michigan mobile sportsbook apps.

This will easily be the most convenient way to bet on NCAA football in Michigan, since you can use the apps to place bets from wherever you are inside state lines.

Placing NCAA football bets with a Michigan mobile sportsbook app is a simple and easy four-step process:

1. Download the app: Michigan mobile sportsbook apps will be available for iPhone and Android devices. To download the app, visit any of the online sportsbooks and follow the instructions provided.
2. Sign up for an account: Just fill out any required personal and account information on the app to register for an account. The app will ask for is your email, cell number, and date of birth. You will also need the last four digits of your Social Security number to confirm your identity. Here’s where you should also enter the promo code for the app you find here on this website. That will ensure you get the best sign-up bonus available.
3. Fund your account: You can fund your account using one of several different deposit methods Michigan mobile sportsbook apps accept. These will include everything from cash at various retail locations, to credit or debit cards, online banking, and popular third-party payment processors like PayPal.
4. Start betting: Glance through the college football betting markets, select the line you want to bet on, enter the amount you want to bet, confirm all the info, and tap the screen to place the bet.

Is betting on college football legal in Michigan?

In December 2019, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a bill into law making sports betting legal inside state lines.

The law places no restrictions on NCAA football betting inside the state, making it perfectly legal for licensed retail sportsbooks to offer a variety of NCAA football bets to anyone over 21 and within state lines.

Detroit’s three commercial casinos launched the state’s first licensed retail sportsbooks in March 2020 and started taking NCAA football bets immediately.

If parts of the state’s rule-making process can be expedited, Michigan’s first online and mobile wagering could go live and start taking legal NCAA football bets by November 2020. If not, legal online and mobile wagering will surely be available by the start of the 2021 NCAA football season.

How does NCAA football betting work in Michigan?

There are a number of simple and easy ways to bet on NCAAF at Michigan sportsbooks. Standard NCAA football bets include:

• The moneyline: Pick the winner of an NCAA football game. You can take the bet at the currently posted odds and get paid if your team wins. Favorites are booked at negative (-) moneyline odds, indicating how much you have to bet to win $100 plus get back your initial wager. Underdogs are booked at positive (+) moneyline odds, indicating how much you stand to win for every $100 bet.
• The point spread: You can pick the winner of an NCAAF game with a spread that sportsbooks set factored into the final score of the game. Book the bet at the currently posted moneyline odds and get paid if your team covers the spread. Michigan covers a -7 spread if it wins by at least eight points. Michigan covers a +7 spread if it wins, or loses by six points or fewer.
• The total: Decided whether the total points scored by both teams combined will be over or under an oddsmaker-set line. Book the bet at the currently posted moneyline odds, and get paid if you are right.
• Parlays: Parlays pool two or more football bets into one. That means every bet that’s part of the parlay must win, but it also means a pretty significant payout.
• Props: Bet on games within the game, like statistical milestones teams or players may achieve.
• Futures: You can bet on which team will win the College Football Playoff national championship before playoffs. Futures markets are available before the regular season starts. You can book the bet anytime and lock in the odds even though they will be adjusted for future betting as the season goes on.
• Live betting: This is betting on NCAA football games that are already underway at odds quickly shift based on what’s going on in the game. The fast nature of live betting and the speed at which odds can change make it perfect for online sports betting.

The NCAA DI Football Bowl Subdivision

NCAA football’s top tier is called the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision.

There are 10 conferences with 130 FBS programs throughout the country. These schools compete for one of four spots in the College Football Playoff and ultimately a shot at the national championship title, plus invites to key college bowl games.

The College Football Playoff system has determined the rankings of teams since 2014.

An NCAA committee ranks the top four teams at the end of the regular season. These teams play in two premier bowl games that act as semifinals. The winners go on to play for the title in the College Football Playoff national championship game.

Although the NCAA is still working out if the season needs to be shortened because of the global COVID-19 pandemic, FBS regular season play is set to begin on Aug. 29, 2020, and end Dec. 12, 2020.

The College Football Playoff semifinal games are a part of an annual rotation of six bowl games. In 2020, these games will be the Fiesta Bowl and the Orange Bowl scheduled for Jan. 2, 2021.

The Fiesta and Orange Bowl winners will face off in the 2021 College Football Playoff championship game scheduled for Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Jan. 11, 2021.

Other high-profile bowl games considered a part of the FBS postseason are:

• Cotton Bowl
• Peach Bowl
• Rose Bowl
• Sugar Bowl

More than 30 other bowl games that are not part of the College Football Playoff are also scheduled from late December 2020 through early January 2021.

How to watch college football in Michigan

NCAA football games are broadcast on major US TV networks and cable sports stations and live-streamed over the internet.

Most conferences have a deal with specific TV networks and cable stations to broadcast games.

Michigan and Michigan State both play in the Big Ten, which has broadcast deals with ABC/ESPN and FOX that are among the richest in college football.

Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, and Western Michigan are all in the Mid-American Conference, which has a broadcast deal with ESPN.

Look for streams of these networks and cable stations on the internet to watch local NCAA football games online.

Michigan NCAAF teams

Michigan Wolverines

The Michigan Wolverines play in the Big Ten Conference. The team has played home games at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, which has a capacity of 107,601, since 1927.

The Wolverines have been named national champions 11 times. They won the Rose Bowl and the national championship while going undefeated in 1997. The Michigan defense allowed just 9.5 points per game throughout the year, led by cornerback Charles Woodson, who went on to win the Heisman Trophy. It was Michigan’s first NCAA football title since 1948.

The 2019 Michigan Wolverines were ranked in the top 10 in preseason polls but ended the year with a 9-4 record and a loss to Alabama in the Citrus Bowl.

Michigan State Spartans

The Michigan State Spartans play in the Big Ten Conference. The team has played at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, which has a capacity of 75,005, since 1923.

The Spartans have won six national titles but were not really a part of the NCAA football national championship picture until 2015.

The 2015 team put together a 12–2 record, won the Big Ten championship game over Iowa, and finished No. 3 in the College Football Playoff rankings. The Spartans lost to No. 2 Alabama in the CFP semifinal Cotton Bowl Classic.

The 2019 Michigan State Spartans finished the season at 7-6 and won the 2019 Pinstripe Bowl over Wake Forest. Longtime head coach Mark Dantonio resigned after the season.

Central Michigan Chippewas

The Central Michigan Chippewas play in the Mid-American Conference. The team plays home games at Kelly/Shorts Stadium in Mount Pleasant.

The 2019 Chippewas were MAC West Division champions, finishing the season with an 8–6 record and losses to Miami (OH) in the MAC championship game and San Diego State in the New Mexico Bowl.

Mount Pleasant is also home to the state’s largest tribal casino, Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort, which plans to have sports betting available for the 2020 season.

Eastern Michigan Eagles

The Eastern Michigan Eagles play in the Mid-American Conference. The team plays home games at Rynearson Stadium in Ypsilanti.

The 2019 Eagles finished the season with a 6-7 record, losing to Pittsburgh in the Quick Lane Bowl.

Western Michigan Broncos

The Western Michigan Broncos play in the Mid-American Conference. The team plays home games at Waldo Stadium in Kalamazoo.

The 2019 Broncos finished the season with a 7-6 record, losing to Western Kentucky in the First Responder Bowl.

Tips for betting on NCAAF in Michigan

Here are three NCAA football betting tips that may help you win more:

1. Learn to fade the public

Learn to take advantage of the artificial movements in a line caused by public betting. Oddsmakers haven’t changed the way they think a game might end up, but heavy betting on one side or the other has forced sportsbooks to move the line to reduce coverage. To benefit from this, you can stick to the oddsmakers’ original predictions.

2. Question home-field advantage

Typically, the home team will get three points on the spread just because they’re at home. Some don’t deserve it. Look to capitalize on sportsbooks that are lazy with home-field advantage.

3. Bet early

The NCAA football regular season schedule is filled with valuable betting opportunities. Once the postseason rolls around, value is a little scarcer because oddsmakers have fewer teams to focus on. The regular season is where you’re more likely to find an edge.