In the U.S., gambling regulations vary from state to state. This is particularly the case when it comes to betting on college football. The NCAA has been pushing to ban player props for the sake of player safety. There are states that don’t allow any type of wagering on college football. Others don’t allow wagering on college teams or player props. Also, some states have no restrictions at all. Betting on college football is one of the most popular sports betting options.
Many different regulations
Pennsylvania is one of the states that allows betting on college sports but doesn’t allow wagering on college player props. Pennsylvania sports betting keeps growing, and fans love betting on college football.
States where sports bettors can’t bet on college props include Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, and Indiana.
Connecticut doesn’t allow wagering on college teams unless they take part in tournaments. Maine bettors can bet on college sports but not on in-state schools. That includes the main teams in tournaments, no matter where they take place.
States with no restrictions on college football betting or player props include Arkansas, Kentucky, Michigan, and Nevada.
Delaware, Illinois, and New York are some of the states that don’t allow any wagering on college football.
Several states restrict prop bets specifically for in-state college teams, rather than enforcing a complete ban.
College football prop betting
College prop bets are wagers bettors place on events in a game that don’t directly affect the outcome. For example, a bettor may bet on how many touchdowns a player will score. For any touchdown scorer bet, it doesn’t matter when the touchdown happens in the game. Sports fans can stream live football and make a touchdown scorer bet while watching. There are prop bets that focus on passing, running, and receiving.
State regulators are thinking more about restricting forms of betting that present a risk of competition manipulation. An area they are looking at is prop bets on college athletes. ‘Spot fixing’ involves getting a player to ensure that a particular event occurs during a game. It is more difficult to detect that ‘match fixing’ because it doesn’t determine the game outcome.
College athletes may be tempted to manipulate their performance. Curtailing prop bets in college sports is becoming more common. Most states tightened their restrictions on prop bets in 2024.
Types of betting on college football
The NFL schedule this year was released on Wednesday, May 14, 2025. Sports bettors are already thinking about what kind of bets they will place.
One of the most important things to understand about college football odds is the + and – signs. A moneyline bet is a bet on which team will win the game. All that matters is picking the winner. Favorites have a minus sign in front of the odds number, and underdogs have a plus sign. The favorite could be -300 and the underdog +250.
The point spread refers to the margin of victory or defeat. When a gambler places a point spread bet on a team, they must do better than the point spread number the sportsbook lists. If a team is -5 on the spread, it must win by six or more points for a spread bet on it to win. If the team is a +5, the bet wins if the team wins outright or loses by fewer than five points. Some bettors like to stick to point spreads in college football. The range can be wider than it is in professional football.
Another type of bet is an over/under bet. The sportsbook sets the point total, and bettors can bet the over or the under on that figure. The over bet wins if the combined score is greater than the number that the sportsbook set. An under bet will win for any point total less than the sportsbook’s number.
It is also possible to bet on college football futures. This involves betting on outcomes that are only likely to become clear towards the end of the football season. This may be a bet on the National Championship winner or on which teams will win their conferences.
