SEC Betting Odds 2023

In the final season before the rich get even richer, two teams stand above the rest: Alabama and Georgia. However, LSU and Tennessee spoiled the party last season, with the Tigers winning the vaunted SEC West in Brian Kelly’s first year. Does the nation’s best conference continue their two-party system? Or will we see another team crash the party in 2023? Below, we’ll look at SEC odds for the 2023 college football season.

Included are team-by-team previews, power rankings, players to watch, and more.

SEC football odds 2023

To bet on a team future, simply click on the odds below.

2023 SEC Power Rankings

1. Georgia Bulldogs ()
2. Alabama Crimson Tide ()
3. Tennessee Volunteers ()
4. LSU Tigers ()
5. Texas A&M Aggies ()
6. Ole Miss Rebels ()
7. Mississippi State Bulldogs ()
8. Kentucky Wildcats ()
9. Florida Gators ()
10. Auburn Tigers ()
11. Missouri Tigers ()
12. South Carolina Gamecocks ()
13. Vanderbilt Commodores ()

Dynasties Roll On

The current state of the SEC is a two-team race: the incumbent dynasty Alabama and the rising dynasty Georgia. Last year, LSU got the best of the Crimson Tide and won the West for the second time in four seasons. But when it comes to odds and expectations, it’s Georgia and it’s Alabama.

Georgia Bulldogs

The two-time defending champions run it back with a lot of ground to gain offensively. Carson Beck reportedly is the leader to be QB1 this season after spring camp, ahead of five-star Brock Vandagriff. Receiver Ladd McConkey is the lone returner, but the Dawgs landed a pair of top receiver transfers: Dominic Lovett (Missouri) and RaRa Thomas (Mississippi State). However, the top receiving threat on the team is All-American Brock Bowers at tight end, likely playing his last season in Athens before departing for the NFL.

In the scope of the blue blood programs, losing a litany of starters isn’t a death knell. They return 70% of their defensive production despite another haul of top-round NFL draft picks leaving the program. However, they also lose rising star defensive tackle Bear Alexander to the transfer portal. Mykel Williams stands as the top rising defender, likely another in a long line of top NFL prospects. As a true freshman, Williams logged 4.5 sacks and six tackles for loss.

The expectation is set for the Dawgs. They’re the favorites to win their third straight National Championship and are the only Power Five odds-on favorites in their conference. Every coach is trying to replicate Kirby Smart in this age of college football.

Alabama Crimson Tide

The mantra for the last decade has been to never count out Nick Saban. Why are the Crimson Tide the second favorite nationally despite losing their Heisman-winning quarterback and the nation’s top defender? Because it’s Saban and because they’re Alabama.

However, that’s become a dangerous line of thinking over the past few seasons. Last year, if you bet on Alabama to turn it around and cover big games like Texas, Tennessee, and LSU “because they’re Alabama,” you lost quite a bit of your money.

This season, the Tide lose a lot. They return the sixth-fewest production on defense (38%) and 13th-fewest on offense (43%). From the brief action we saw of Jalen Milroe last year, the starting QB job is hardly his to lose and, if he does start, it’s likely the weakest starting QB in Crimson since Blake Sims. Perhaps the starting job will be won by RS freshman Ty Simpson or even blue-chip true freshman Eli Holstein. The receiving corps isn’t quite what it’s been lately, but the backfield – headlined by Jase McClellan – will be elite.

While there’s a lot to replace on defense, Alabama has the depth to do so. Linebacker Dallas Turner should be one of the most productive forces in college football and rising true freshman Caleb Downs was the No. 8 recruit nationally.

While it’s foolish to predict the downfall of Alabama, it’s equally as foolish to bet them on the benefit of the doubt.

Headhunters

Every year, a small handful of teams vie for division titles in the SEC. Last year, LSU and Tennessee both took the world by surprise; in past years, it’s been Ole Miss, Texas A&M, and Auburn. This year, it’s hard not to get back on the Kelly and Josh Heupel train.

LSU Tigers

Everywhere he goes, he wins. That’s been the career story for Kelly, who shockingly left Notre Dame for LSU last season. The Tigers were doubted and pieced together with a ton of transfers. But those transfers worked, namely Jayden Daniels at QB, and a lot of those players return for 2023. The Tigers return 81% of their offensive production (10th-most nationally) and 60% of their defensive production. They also return budding star defensive tackle Maason Smith, who missed 2022 with an injury.

Five transfers project to start on defense for LSU, mostly veteran and all-conference selections. LB Omar Speights (Oregon State) and three DBs – Denver Harris (Texas A&M), Duce Chestnut (Syracuse), and Zy Alexander (Southeastern, FCS) – are immediate impact players. This might be LSU’s best defense in a handful of seasons.

Tennessee Volunteers

Tennessee was well on their way to having their first Heisman finalist since Peyton Manning until Hendon Hooker suffered a torn ACL. It was individually brutal for Hooker, but the Vols finished strong anyway at 11-2 and trounced Clemson in the Orange Bowl. If not for a defense that couldn’t stop a nosebleed (63 points given up to South Carolina, anyone?), they may have been in the College Football Playoff.

Joe Milton, the rocket-arm veteran, rises as the likely QB1 this coming season. The Vols lost OC Alex Golesh to USF, but the offensive system likely won’t change under Heupel. There’s a lot of offensive turnover – namely Hooker and the Vols’ top two receivers – but plenty of talent returns like running back Jabari Small. It’s a matter of whether or not the defense can get its act together as Tennessee traverses another difficult schedule.

Are These Teams Worth Backing?

There’s a few perennial offenders in the overvalued train; Texas A&M owns a plot of land in the FPI top-10. This season, there’s three teams to beware that rank highly in power ratings.

Texas A&M Aggies

Death, taxes, and the Aggies writing a check they can’t cash (in every sense but monetary). Locked into an impossible contract with Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M has: zero ten win seasons, zero division titles, zero Playoff berths, and a missed bowl berth. Despite serious recruiting chops, the Aggies can’t piece together what their fans would consider a successful season. Like many teams, it starts at QB.

Conner Weigman gets his shot at being QB1, a young but unproven talent. The Aggies do return plenty of production and should well outperform their abysmal 5-7 record from last year, but they continue to be overvalued in the market.

Ole Miss Rebels

The old adage goes: “If you have two quarterbacks, you have none.” It’s a lesson in trusting in one QB and giving him the reps and looks needed to succeed. Ole Miss has three quarterbacks: incumbent Jaxson Dart, veteran transfer Spencer Sanders, and young transfer Will Howard. After spring, it appears Dart gets one more go at being QB1. However, if Lane Kiffin and the staff were truly confident in Dart, Sanders and Howard wouldn’t be there. Last year, Dart seriously underwhelmed.

The Rebels aren’t very deep defensively, a unit that ranked 65th in points per drive allowed last season. Beware overconfidence in a quarterback still carrying his high school prospect rating.

Florida Gators

Without an answer at quarterback, Florida is hapless. They head to Salt Lake City for a rubber match with Utah in Week 1 and, as it stands today, Graham Mertz would be the QB the Gators lean on for victory. He looked just as inconsistent in their spring game as he did at Wisconsin. Overall, the QB room looked atrocious in that spring exhibition. Talent isn’t the issue on the roster – Trevor Etienne, Ricky Pearsall, and Xzavier Henderson are a formidable trio – but without quarterback, the engine doesn’t move.

Florida is a program that, multiple times, has shown the propensity to collapse midseason. Players stop buying in, stop trying, and the train comes to an immediate halt.

Is Kentucky Undervalued?

From a 10,000-foot view, Kentucky being listed at 200-1 to win the SEC makes sense. A possible first round QB, Will Levis, departed the team and only 55% of a top-30 defense returns. Perhaps not baked into the line, is the potential for transfer QB Devin Leary, who comes in from NC State after missing much of last season.

Leary joins Liam Coen, Kentucky’s 2021 OC who returns for 2023 after a year in the NFL. Under Coen, Kentucky had their most efficient offense in modern UK history. Without Coen, Kentucky dropped from 15th in points per drive (2021) to 95th (!!!) in 2022.

Leary disappointed last season before exiting with injury. Overall, NC State fell flat of expectations due to a lethargic offense. However, a lot of that offensive disappointment came from OC Tim Beck, who ran a system that didn’t fit his players and led Leary to post just a 6.6 YPA in six games. In his first year with Coen, Levis averaged 8.0 YPA and completed 66% of his passes.

Despite losing their quarterback (who accounts for most of an offense’s production), the Wildcats bring back 71% of offensive production. They return a very experienced and strong offensive line and, though they weren’t starters, the defense returns a lot of experience.

Early on in the season, barring Leary not playing at 100%, Kentucky may be a value bet until the market adjusts.

Players to watch

LB Harold Perkins: Few players boast the freaky athleticism that Perkins does. As a true freshman, Perkins logged 13 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, and four forced fumbles. At 220 pounds as a linebacker, he runs a blazing 4.47 40-yard dash. Perkins also plays behind stud defensive tackle Maason Smith, who returns from injury. The interior of LSU’s defense looks reminiscent of past star Tiger defenses.

TE Brock Bowers: It’s tough to overshadow first-round NFL tight ends like Michael Mayer, Dalton Kincaid, and Darnell Washington, but Bowers vastly overshadows them all. As a true freshman, Bowers scored 13 touchdowns and was named first team All-SEC. As a sophomore, he was named an All-American on the back of nearly 1,000 yards at 15 yards per catch. Bowers might be the single biggest positional mismatch in the country this year.

QB Joe Milton: The rocket-arm veteran rises to be Tennessee’s presumed starter this year. His college journey is eerily similar to his predecessor, Hendon Hooker. Milton didn’t work out at Michigan, transferred to Knoxville, emerged late, and is ultra-efficient. In the Vols’ system – which rewards bombing the ball downfield – Milton should put up gaudy numbers. Don’t be surprised to hear his name announced as a Heisman finalist.

Best SEC betting sites

SEC results 2022

West	Conference Record	East	Conference Record
LSU	6-2	Georgia	8-0
Alabama	6-2	Tennessee	6-2
Mississippi State	4-4	South Carolina	4-4
Ole Miss	4-4	Kentucky	3-5
Arkansas	3-5	Florida	3-5
Auburn	2-6	Missouri	3-5
Texas A&M	2-6	Vanderbilt	2-6

Past conference champions

Year	Winner	Record
2022	Georgia*	15-0
2021	Alabama	13-2
2020	Alabama*	13-0
2019	LSU*	15-0
2018	Alabama	14-1
2017	Georgia	13-2
2016	Alabama	14-1
2015	Alabama*	14-1
2014	Alabama	12-2
2013	Auburn	12-2
2012	Alabama*	13-1
2011	LSU	13-1
2010	Auburn*	14-0

*Indicates National Champion

How to bet on conference winners

When betting conference futures– or any prop, at that– be sure to shop around at different books for the best price. Just because BetMGM offers LSU to win the SEC at +450 doesn’t mean they all do; FanDuel Sportsbook may offer the same prop at +600, increasing your potential payout. Here at TheLines, we compile all the odds for you so you don’t have to spend time flipping through tabs.

Betting conference winners in college football can be a tricky proposition. While it may be simple to click chalky teams like Alabama and move on, there’s not much value in that. Consider factors like:

• Returning production
• Coaching turnover
• Star quarterbacks
• Schedule (out of conference and home/away splits)
• Offensive line experience/cohesiveness

Betting college football differs heavily from the NFL. You need to consider talent gaps, coaching prowess, and positional depth, particularly at the line of scrimmage. Don’t let recruiting dominate team evaluation as those players won’t see the field for at least another season or two.

Keep up to date with TheLines coverage of the SEC all season long and follow us on Twitter for more college football betting content.