With college football season on the horizon, ESPN Chalk's college football experts -- Phil Steele, "Stanford Steve" Coughlin and Chris Fallica -- combine to give you betting previews of the top 25 teams, according to the ESPN College Football Rankings. They break down each team's strengths and weaknesses, along with season win total bets and national title odds.
Odds from Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook as of Aug. 22.
Stanford Cardinal
National title odds: 25-1 (opened 20-1)
Season win total: 8.5
FPI win total projection: 7.5
Phil Steele
Strengths: Christian McCaffrey plays on their team, and the Cardinal also have my No. 21-rated offensive line. The defense had just three starters back last season and allowed 368 yards per game -- its highest total since 2009. This year the defense has six starters back, though, including my No. 18 defensive line, No. 5 group of linebackers and No. 14 set of defensive backs. I believe the Cardinal will be back to where they normally find themselves -- as a top-10 defense.
Weaknesses: Stanford loses a three-plus-year starter at quarterback in Kevin Hogan and goes from his 35 career wins to this year's group, which has a combined total of 10 career pass attempts. They have a brutal 10-week stretch with six road games, including five against teams on ESPN The Magazine's Top 25 list.
Over/under (8.5): I have Stanford favored in eight games, an underdog in two and a pick-em in two. That is right where I would have put the number, so no play for me.
National title odds (25-1): At 25-1, this is finally a team that might be worth a small wager. Keep in mind that with a young defense last season, they finished No. 3 in the AP Poll. The largest deficit I have them at as an underdog this year is just three points. While the schedule is tough, head coach David Shaw is one of the country's best, and they have a great chance of making the College Football Playoff, even if they pick up one loss.
"Stanford Steve" Coughlin
O/U: OK people, the Kevin Hogan jokes are not funny, at all; no, he did not play with me at Stanford back in the 1999 season, but he has now graduated on to the NFL after a remarkable career with the Cardinal. So where does offensive coordinator Mike Bloomgren turn to find his next signal-caller?
The candidates are very similar in stature: Ryan Burns is 6-foot-5 and 235 pounds and Keller Chryst is 6-5, 232. My issue here is that I can see them both getting time early on in the season, because neither has taken the steps necessary to be the man taking all the snaps. But that should be fine, because competition brings out the best in everyone. Think about it: Hogan didn't start until the ninth game of the season in 2012 and won the final five games, including a Rose Bowl victory over Wisconsin.
There isn't a tougher road schedule in the country than the one the Cardinal have to play, with games at UCLA, Notre Dame, Washington and Oregon highlighting that list. Shaw has plenty of weapons on the offensive side of the ball, including Heisman Trophy hopeful McCaffrey, running back Bryce Love, wide receiver Michael Rector and tight end Dalton Schultz, but the QB's best friend (no matter who he is) this season might just be sure-handed wide receiver Trenton Irwin.
Will the Cardinal get enough production from the QB spot and get these guys enough touches? We'll see. The defense is plenty talented, including DL Solomon Thomas, who I believe is an All-American in waiting, and the secondary has plenty of experience. I just see the schedule being too tough, with the Cardinals winning only eight games.
National title odds: At 25-1, I think there are better options out there -- teams that have the quarterback situation settled, which is what I think you need in order to win a title this season.
Chris Fallica
O/U: In five of the past six years, the Cardinal would have eclipsed that number easily, but the schedule looks brutal. In fact, FPI has the Cardinal as a potential underdog in as many as six games! That means they might have to pull three upsets just to reach nine wins. The quarterback situation is a bit unsettled, but remember 2012, when Josh Nunes started the year and eventually gave way to Kevin Hogan midseason, with the Cardinal going on to win the Rose Bowl. It's hard to imagine a team with one of the best offensive weapons in the country in McCaffrey going 8-4, though, so I'll say Stanford wins at least three of the potentially losable games and finishes at least 9-3.
College Football Playoff odds: Stanford arguably had a case to make the College Football Playoff last season as a two-loss team, but the Cardinal finished the regular season No. 6 behind two one-loss teams that had neither a stronger nonconference win nor a conference title game. It leads me to believe that the committee is really hesitant to put a two-loss team in the College Football Playoff, despite boasting the importance of schedule and conference titles. For that, and that reason alone, I wouldn't play Stanford, as it's hard to see them finishing better than 11-2.