College Football Playoff Odds: Clemson Favorite to Retain Title in 2020 But Who Is Next?

Clemson clinched a second national championship in three years on Monday night and the bookmakers have the Tigers as the favorite to retain the title next season.

The Tigers thrashed Alabama 44-16, becoming the first major college football team to go 15-0 in a season since 1897 as they secured a third national title overall.

Read more: Is Clemson the greatest college football team ever after going 15-0?

The Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas has Clemson as 9/5 (+180 in moneyline terms) favorite to become national champions next season, followed by Alabama at 5/2 (+250 in moneyline terms).

The two programs have dominated college football over the last four years and arrived at the College Football Playoff championship with a combined 106-4 record. While both teams have a number of players expected to enter the NFL draft in March, they are also set to retain their quarterbacks.

Trevor Lawrence, who became the first freshman since 1985 to lead a team to the national championship, will return to Clemson next year, while Tua Tagovailoa, who threw two interceptions on Monday night, will remain in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama was a 5.5-point favorite ahead of the game and the SuperBook had the Crimson Tide as the +150 favorite to win the title next year, while Clemson was at +350. With Alabama trailing by 15 points at halftime, the odds moved to +200 for Alabama and +250 for Clemson, before settling at the current figures.

Jeff Sherman, VP of risk management at the SuperBook , was quoted as saying by ESPN that Alabama had initially been made favorite because of the "overwhelming support they receive even at the low odds."

Behind the two powerhouses of college football, Ohio State and University of Georgia both have 12-1 odds of winning the title next season.

The number-six ranked Buckeyes went 13-1 this season and defeated Washington State 28-23 in the Rose Bowl Game on New Year's Day, as Urban Meyer retired from coaching with an 83-9 record.

The Bulldogs finished the season as the fifth-ranked team in the country with an 11-3 record but were upset by Texas in the Sugar Bowl, losing 28-21 to the Longhorns last week.

University of Michigan and Oklahoma have the next-best odds. The Wolverines were ranked seventh in the final AP Poll of the year and went 10-3, before suffering a 41-15 at the hands of the 10^th ranked Florida Gators in the Peach Bowl.

The Sooners, meanwhile, finished 12-2 and were one of the four teams to make it to the College Football Playoff semifinals, where they lost 45-34 to Alabama.

Next year, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans will host the CFP on January 13.