Ohio
College football 2026-27 national title odds: Ohio State, Notre Dame lead crowded pack
Indiana’s national championship is a sign of the changes that have happened to college football in the last several years. However, it’s still Ohio State that is opening as the favorite to win the national title next year, ahead of other big-name programs such as Notre Dame and Texas.
The Buckeyes have +600 (6-to-1) odds on BetMGM to win it all. OSU is ahead of three schools that are just behind at +700: Notre Dame, Texas and Oregon.
Ohio State and Notre Dame met for the national title a year ago. Oregon has made the College Football Playoff each of the last two years, and Texas made it to a semifinal last year. All four are bringing back starting quarterbacks.
The Hoosiers, fresh off their first national championship, round out the top five, just a tick behind at +800.
It’s no surprise to see Ohio State as the favorite. The Buckeyes are bringing back Heisman Trophy finalist quarterback Julian Sayin and elite wide receiver prospect Jeremiah Smith. OSU is going to lose a lot of NFL talent from its stout defense but has the headline stars to expect another strong team. The Buckeyes were 12-0 this season before losing back-to-back games, first in the Big Ten Championship Game and then the CFP.
Notre Dame was a source of plenty of controversy because of its exclusion from this season’s CFP, but the Irish have been a consistent contender under coach Marcus Freeman. Running back Jeremiyah Love is headed for the NFL, but quarterback CJ Carr was impressive as a freshman and could even be a Heisman contender next year.
As for the freshly crowned Hoosiers, there will be a lot of new faces. Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza is expected to be a top pick in the NFL Draft, and IU will also lose its top two running backs, standout wide receiver Elijah Sarratt and likely some NFL talent off its defense, which was dominant for most of the CFP. However, coach Curt Cignetti has, of course, been active in the transfer portal. Quarterback Josh Hoover (TCU) and wide receiver Nick Marsh (Michigan State) highlight IU’s portal haul.
Can Indiana prove to be a consistent winner? Cignetti has done nothing to make anyone think otherwise, but a lot of stalwarts from the last two seasons will be gone. At least for now, the betting odds imply IU should be a top-five team in the preseason.
Texas coming in so high is going to make some eyes roll after the Longhorns were the preseason No. 1 team last season and failed to live up to that hype. Arch Manning will enter 2026 with a year of starting experience under his belt, plus the Longhorns added former Auburn wide receiver Cam Coleman out of the transfer portal. If the offensive line shows improvement, the weapons are there for Texas to be good, although many will be more skeptical than they were entering 2025.
As for Oregon, it’s going to take some time to stop focusing on the Ducks’ getting obliterated by Indiana in the semifinal, but quarterback Dante Moore is returning to Eugene instead of going pro. He had a strong first year as a starter, even if memories of his tough showing in that semifinal will linger.
The rest of the top 10 is Georgia (+900), LSU (+1500), Texas A&M (+1500), Texas Tech (+1500) and Alabama (+1500). LSU’s inclusion on this list shows faith in Lane Kiffin having a quick rebuild. After his dramatic coaching move from Ole Miss to LSU, Kiffin landed quarterback Sam Leavitt out of the transfer portal from Arizona State.
Miami is just outside the top 10 at +2000 (20-to-1). The Hurricanes were one drive away from potentially winning this year’s national title and will bring back wide receiver Malachi Toney but will have a new quarterback with Carson Beck running out of eligibility.
These are the favorites for now, but plenty can still change before teams take the field in August. Indiana just won the national title after being at 100-to-1 before the season, so who knows whether there’s another surprise in store next year.
College football 2026-27 national championship odds
Odds per BetMGM
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — As concerns have grown over the impact of social media on young people, lawmakers are pushing to keep protections in tact to keep children safe online.
This week the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Ohio’s law, the Social Media Parental Notification Act, requiring parental consent for children under the age of 16 to use social media must be restored. Gov. Mike DeWine signed the act into law in July 2023.
Netchoice, the trade group that represents Tik Tok, Snapchat, Meta and other tech companies contested Ohio’s law in 2024, arguing that it was overly broad, vague and represented an unconstitutional impediment to free speech.
“An unconstitutional law protects no one, and we remain focused on ensuring the First Amendment rights of Ohioans are protected,” Paul Taske, NetChoice Litigation Center Director said.
Cincinnati-based Sixth Circuit’s panel does not agree with this view point, determined that the law is not unconstitutional and had the block on the law’s enforcement vacated.
“At bottom, the Act imposes a parental consent requirement,” Judge Eric Clay wrote. “That requirement constitutes a marginal burden that precisely targets the multi-faceted problem that Ohio has identified: Children’s unsupervised assent to terms and conditions for use of platforms that take advantage of and harm them.”
The Social Media Parental Notification Act is a way to protect children’s mental health against the “intentionally addictive” nature of social media, according to U.S. senator Jon Husted.
The law requires companies to get parental permission for social media and gaming apps and to provide their privacy guidelines so families know what content would be censored or moderated on their child’s profile.
Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson says the ruling is “a win for Ohio families.”
“The court agreed that parents –- not social media companies –- should get a say in what kids see online,” he said in a statement. “We have an obligation to keep our children safe, and today, the most dangerous place for our kids is the internet. This decision gives parents the tools to be involved and provide oversight.”
LICKING COUNTY, Ohio (WCMH) — When you think of wild animals in central Ohio, a black bear likely isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. That’s why one Licking County family said they couldn’t believe their eyes.
It was an average afternoon drive home for father and son, Justin and Aaron Rhodes, when something walked into the road in front of them.
“I didn’t even think it was real at first, so that’s why I had to do the double take,” Justin said.
Aaron said he thought it was “just a weird looking dog”.
To their disbelief, it was a bear. The sighting comes just one year after the animal was spotted in Licking County for the first time in more than two decades.
“It’s kind of hard to believe that they’re even around this area,” Justin said. “I’ve lived in this area for about 24 years now, so it’s been quite a while, and I’ve never seen one before.”
These sightings are becoming more common. The Ohio Division of Wildlife said the black bear population is growing in the state, and they expect those trends to continue. Ohio saw a record number of confirmed sightings in 2025.
Lindsey Krusling, a wildlife communications specialist with the Ohio Division of Wildlife, said they are seeing more breeding females establish homes in the state, signaling the species is returning. Experts said the work restoring natural forest land is a big reason why.
“We’re starting to get some black bears coming in from neighboring states like Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Kentucky,” Krusling said. “They’re naturally crossing those state borders and coming back to Ohio because we have more of that habitat available to them, especially those forested areas.”
As the black bear population grows, the Division of Wildlife is expanding its research. They are putting radio collars on some bears they find in the state to help track data, such as if the bears are staying here, how far they’ve traveled and if they’re successfully having cubs.
“We’re trying to get quite a bit of data from these bears, and we’re super excited to see where this takes us,” Krusling said.
The research is in the beginning stages, but they expect population growth to continue, Krusling said.
Sighting reports can be submitted here to help the Division of Wildlife track black bear populations throughout the state.
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