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Big 12 Sleepers: Prime Betting Spot for Colorado in 2024?

  • Another huge batch of transfers could help Colorado defy the odds after being picked to finish 11th in the Big 12.
  • TCU looks to return to prominence after a difficult 2023 season.
  • Arizona State has plenty of motivation after being picked to finish last in the Big 12.

 

When was the last time that a power conference in college football had more questions than answers coming into the season than what the Big 12 faces in 2024?

Big 12 Sleepers: Prime Betting Spot for Colorado in 2024?
Shedeur Sanders #2 of the Colorado Buffaloes- Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

The NCAA football odds list Big 12 newcomer Utah as the favorite at +325 to win the Big 12 title followed by Kansas State at +370. UCF, Oklahoma State, Kansas and Arizona are priced between +750 and +900 so when looking at sleeper teams to make noise in the Big 12 after seeing perennial contenders Oklahoma and Texas bolted for the SEC, we’re going to avoid them.

The addition of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and Arizona State as well as the departures of Texas and Oklahoma will shake things up in the Big 12. In a vote by the Big 12 media, Utah was picked to win the conference in 2024.

Here’s some information to consider when making college football predictions in the Big 12.

 

 

Top 3 Sleeper Picks in Big 12

 

1. Can Coach Prime Put His Money Where His Mouth is?

Colorado has two players in the top 15 in the odds of being the first player picked in the 2025 NFL Draft and yet the Buffaloes are 11th at +2600 in the college football odds of winning the Big 12 title. Colorado also came in 11th in the Big 12 preseason media poll.

How can a team have a dynamic quarterback like Shedeur Sanders and the Big 12 preseason Defensive Player of the Year in cornerback Travis Hunter and be so undervalued? This is the chance for Colorado coach Deion Sanders to back up his boastful rants. First, he will need to have a team that plays a little bit of defense.

Take a look at the 2023 defensive numbers for the Buffaloes. Vanderbilt and Stanford were the only teams from the Power-5 conferences to allow more points per game than Colorado. The Buffaloes ranked 130th out of 133 Football Bowl Subdivision teams in total defense.

Sanders brought in more than 50 transfers in his first season in Boulder and 42 more have joined since the end of the 2023 season. Colorado looked to upgrade many positions but none more than the defensive line. Pittsburgh’s Samuel Okunlola, LSU’s Quency Wiggins and Arizona State’s BJ Green are among the top incoming transfers.

Green joins Sanders and Hunter as preseason first-team All-Big 12 players after a vote by the Big 12 media.

 

 

2. Is TCU Ready to Become Relevant Again?

TCU took quite the tumble after its run to the national title game in 2022. The Horned Frogs went from being a part of the four-team College Football Playoff field that year to losing four of the last five games in 2023 to finish with a losing record.

TCU is tied for ninth at +1800 in the Big 12 championship odds. Can the Horned Frogs move up a couple of spots in the wide-open Big 12?

TCU was among the more active teams when it came to the transfer portal. Cal leading tackler Kaleb Elarms-Orr, Tulane edge rusher Devean Deal and Notre Dame defensive lineman NaNa Osafo-Mensah were brought in to help a defense that needs plenty of assistance.

The Horned Frogs have allowed more than 400 yards a total of 21 times over the last three seasons.

The first two conference games for TCU come against UCF and Kansas so it shouldn’t take too long to figure out if the Horned Frogs are contenders or pretenders.

 

3. Arizona State Eager to Defy Less-Than-Flattering Betting Odds

So just what can we expect from Arizona State in 2024?

According to the college football betting line, only BYU has longer odds of winning the Big 12 than the Sun Devils as Kenny Dillingham prepares for his second season as the head coach at ASU.

Quarterback Trenton Bourguet returns along with top running back Cameron Skattebo. Leading receiver Elijhah Badger is now at Florida.

USC running back Raleek Brown, Oregon cornerback Cole Martin, Michigan State quarterback Sam Leavitt, Texas edge rusher J’Mond Tapp and Florida State tight end Markeston Douglas are among the high-profile incoming transfers.

The final three defeats during a six-game losing streak in September and October that sent the 2023 season off the rails were by a total of 14 points, so perhaps the Sun Devils are close to turning things around.

October begins with showdowns against Kansas and Utah so more should be known about this team after those two matchups. Arizona State has plenty of bulletin-board material after the media picked the Sun Devils to finish last in the Big 12.

 

 

Odds and information are accurate at the time of writing. Please check with official sources for the latest updates before placing any bets.

 

Questions Of The Day

Which Big 12 team performed the best against the spread during the 2023 season?


Kansas State was 8-4-1 against the spread in 2023 followed by Kansas, Oklahoma, and West Virginia at 8-5.

What is the first game featuring a team from the Big 12 this season?


The season begins on Aug. 29 with four Big 12 teams facing FCS programs, including Colorado being favored by 8.5 points against North Dakota State.

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