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 Monday.
Georgia Bulldogs
National title odds: 25-1 (opened 30-1)
Season win total: 8.5
FPI win total projection: 8.4
Phil Steele
Strengths: Nick Chubb and Sony Michel headline my No. 2-rated group of running backs in the country, and with nine starters returning on defense, that unit ranks in my top 20 nationally.
Weaknesses: The offensive line
Over/under (8.5): The Bulldogs have to face Notre Dame, Tennessee, Florida, Auburn and Georgia Tech all on the road and will be an underdog in at least four games this season. I'll take the under.
National title odds (25-1): When you account for the schedule that I listed above and the fact that I like the under, I'll pass on these odds.
'Stanford Steve' Coughlin
O/U (8.5): I don't know if there's a more important nonconference road game for a team than when Georgia travels to South Bend to play the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame on Sept. 9. That game sticks out to me because we will truly get to see if quarterback Jacob Eason has improved, and how he will handle an unfriendly atmosphere at night -- and you can bet he will be feeling pressure to score points. The Dawgs will then take on five of their six opponents from the SEC East in five straight games starting Sept. 30 in Knoxville and ending Nov. 4 vs. the South Carolina Gamecocks. It feels to me the improvement from Eason will be less than ideal from what the fans in Athens are hoping for, strictly because it's a lot harder to get better when you are facing SEC defensive speed week in and out.
Chris Fallica
O/U (8.5): Things couldn't have gone any better on the recruiting trail for Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs when Nick Chubb and Sony Michel decided to return to Athens. Eason should take a step forward in 2017 and all but four starters from the bowl game will return. Couple that with freshmen who could be impact contributors immediately on the offensive line and overall improvement defensively in the second year under Smart, and you have a very intriguing team for 2017.
UGA has road games early in the season with Notre Dame and Tennessee, but both of them will be breaking in new quarterbacks with coaches who will be under pressure to win this year. Georgia also avoids Alabama and LSU from the SEC West. Next year might be the year to circle in Athens, but given the state of the SEC -- and specifically the SEC East right now -- it wouldn't shock me if UGA arrives a year ahead of schedule. They'll win every home game -- that's six wins. Need two more to push. Can we find them between Florida in Jacksonville, at Tennessee, at Notre Dame, at Vanderbilt, at Auburn and at Georgia Tech? I'd play the over here.
National title odds (25-1): We know the SEC champ will be in the playoff, and its more than likely the East will be decided in a coin-flip game in Jacksonville vs. the Gators. As mentioned above, its more likely 2018 is the Bulldogs' year to challenge for the national title, but at 25-1 they are worth a few bucks.