Week 1 College Football Upsets Shake Up National Title Odds

Week one of the 2023 college football season started with a bang, and it wasn’t all fun and games for a handful of national title contenders. While a week one loss doesn’t disqualify a team from making a run at the College Football Playoff National Championship Trophy, it puts them behind the eight ball.

Take a look at the three biggest losers from week one. 

1. Texas Christian University (TCU)

Last year, TCU made an improbable run to the national championship game. While the Horned Frogs came up short against the University of Georgia, they put the college football world on notice that they’re back and here to stay.

However, a week one matchup against the University of Colorado Buffaloes — led by new head coach Deion Sanders — didn’t turn out as expected. Despite being favored by 20 points, the Horned Frogs lost the game 45-42. And with that, they’ve fallen out of the top 25 rankings. With the loss, TCU is nowhere to be found in the AP Top 25 poll. 

2. Clemson University

Clemson entered the season ranked in the top 10 — a place the team has become very familiar with over the past decade. 

The Tigers visited the Duke University Blue Devils as 12-point favorites but went home with their tails between their legs following a 28-7 beatdown. 

The loss dropped the Tigers back to the 25th spot in the most recent AP Top 25 poll. Because this was an Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) game, they’ll have some ground to make up as the conference schedule goes into full swing in a few weeks. 

3. Louisiana State University (LSU)

LSU went into its matchup against Florida State University (FSU) as two-point favorites, but a poor second half- showing killed any chance of starting the season 1-0. FSU won the second half 31-7 on its way to a 45-24 victory.

With the loss, LSU dropped to 14th in the AP poll heading into week two. The Tigers have some work to do in the Southeastern Conference if they still want to make a run at college football’s top prize. 

With all that in mind, take a look at the latest odds of these three teams winning the 2023 national title:

• TCU: +30000
• Clemson: +7500
• LSU: +3500

There’s value to be had here, but there’s no margin for error. One more loss is likely to crush the dreams of these programs. 

These three teams didn’t start the season the way they wanted, but all is not lost. Each team has 11 games remaining — plus a potential conference championship game — which is enough time to claw their way back to the top of the rankings and into the College Football Playoff.