College football odds: How TCU's title odds have moved throughout the season

Updated Jan. 3, 2023 11:14 p.m. ET

Among those anxiously awaiting Monday's College Football Playoff (CFP) championship game between No. 3 TCU and the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs are bettors who had the foresight to place a wager on the Horned Frogs to win the title before the season started.

The Horned Frogs were listed at +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total) at FOX Bet to win the national title prior to the season. TCU, after all, was coming off a 3-6 Big 12 season (tied for sixth) that cost coach Gary Patterson his job in his 22nd season in Fort Worth. In stepped former SMU coach Sonny Dykes, the son of former Texas Tech coach Spike Dykes (1986-99), which has led to an epic turnaround for TCU.

After the Horned Frogs beat No. 2 Michigan 51-45 in the CFP semifinals at the Fiesta Bowl, TCU (13-1) is one victory from one of the most unlikely national championships in college football.

The Bulldogs and Horned Frogs will play for the national championship at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, on Monday night.

With the National Championship Game less than a week away, let's take a look at how TCU's title futures have moved throughout this college football season (current odds listed via FOX Bet).

No. 3 TCU vs. No. 1 Georgia (7:30 p.m. ET Monday, SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, California, ESPN)

Point spread: Georgia -13.5 (Georgia favored to win by more than 13.5 points, otherwise TCU covers)
Moneyline: Georgia -500 favorites to win (bet $10 to win $12 total); TCU +300 underdogs to win (bet $10 to win $40 total)
Total scoring Over/Under: 62.5 points scored by both teams combined

The Horned Frogs were not listed among contenders for the national title for the first month at FOX Bet. But after upsetting then-No. 18 Oklahoma 55-24 on Oct. 1 to improve to 4-0, the Horned Frogs' championship odds shortened to +10000 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total).

As TCU kept winning, its odds kept dropping — +8000 after beating No. 19 Kansas 38-31 on Oct. 8, +5000 after edging No. 8 Oklahoma State 43-40 in double overtime on Oct. 15, +6000 after beating No. 17 Kansas State 38-28 on Oct. 22.

Despite beating unranked West Virginia and Texas Tech to remain unbeaten, the odds on the Horned Frogs lengthened to +6000 before beating No. 18 Texas 17-10 on Nov. 12, dropping TCU's title odds to +2200.

Even losing to No. 10 Kansas State in the Big 12 Championship Game 31-28 in overtime did little as the Horned Frogs went from +1500 to +1600 heading into bowl season.

TCU was +1100 at FOX Bet to win it all prior to the CFP semifinals.

After beating the Wolverines, the Horned Frogs are nearly two-touchdown underdogs against the defending national champions.

Per FOX Sports Research, this is the largest point spread for any College Football Playoff or BCS Championship Game. The previous high came when Miami was a 12-point favorite over Ohio State in the 2002 BCS Championship Game.

Think this worries the Horned Frogs?

TCU's all-time record is 668-565-57 (54%), meaning the Horned Frogs have more wins in football than Stanford (665), Maryland (662), the Miami Hurricanes (652), Kentucky (640), North Carolina State (622), UCLA and Oklahoma State (621 each), among other name schools.

The Horned Frogs claim three unsanctioned national titles. 

Under Patterson, TCU went 13-0 in 2010 behind quarterback Andy Dalton, winning the Rose Bowl over Wisconsin 21-19. The Horned Frogs finished second in the Associated Press and coaches polls but were declared the national champions by the Congrove Computer Rankings.

TCU went 12-1 in 1935, capped off by a 3-2 (yes, 3-2) win over LSU in the Sugar Bowl. The Horned Frogs went 11-0 in 1938, winning the Sugar Bowl over Carnegie Tech (yes, the Carnegie Tech Tartans, known as Carnegie Mellon since 1967) 15-7 in the Sugar Bowl.

The Horned Frogs have produced quarterback Davey O'Brien, the Heisman trophy winner in 1938; eight players in the College Football Hall of Fame; 18 conference titles; and 17 consensus All-Americans.

So are you ready to lock in on TCU to continue this meteoric rise to hoist the trophy in Los Angeles? If so, get in on the betting action right now at FOX Bet!

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