Bet OVER on this college football win total before the 2024 season

With college football undergoing tremendous change, three teams under new leadership are primed to win in 2024.

These three teams, all led by first-year coaches, have the potential to advance to the final round and will do so at favorable odds.

Duke, 5.5 wins +150 (BetMGM)

Contrasting the success of Duke basketball with the instability of Duke football, one thing is noteworthy: With Manny Diaz taking over as head coach in 2024, the Green Blue Devils have had more head coaches since 2021 than the Hardwood Blue Devils have had since 1980.

Mike Elko’s tour before moving to Texas A&M was short but successful, with a combined 17 wins in 2022 and 2023. Diaz is looking for his second consecutive eight-plus-win season in Durham. Oddsmakers don’t like his chances. FanDuel and DraftKings each have Duke at +140 to win 5.5 games, while BetMGM has it at +150. Caesars Sportsbook has it at +115 to win 5 or more.

But Diaz, a defensive coach who led Penn State to 13.5 points per game in 2023, inherits a Duke defense that allowed just 19 points per game last season. Linebacker Tre Freeman returns after recording 106 tackles last season, and Princeton welcomes FCS All-American Ozzie Nicholas. Cornerback Chandler Rivers and safety Terry Moore have All-ACC potential in the secondary.

Duke hosts rival North Carolina at home on Sept. 28 and visits Northwestern in Week 2, which could be a chance to go 5-0 to secure a key conference schedule.

James Madison, 8.5 wins, +135 (BetMGM)

In its second season in FBS competition, James Madison made national headlines in 2023, going 10-0. While it fell short of a perfect regular season that would have stirred debate over divisional transfer rules, the Dukes achieved 11 wins for the fifth time since 2016.

More importantly, the longtime Football Championship Subdivision powerhouse has proven that its football brand translates to the FBS and Sun Belt Conference. First-year Dukes coach Bob Chesney has a similar opportunity at Holy Cross.

Chesney has led the Crusaders to four straight playoff appearances. Over the past two seasons, Holy Cross has averaged about 37 points per game, which is similar to JMU’s preseason average of 34.1 points per game.

Chesney also continues one area where JMU has had success under Signetti: finding veteran playmakers through the transfer portal.

The Dukes’ roster is peppered with experienced rookies, including Holy Cross All-American linebacker Jacob Dobbs and former Washington Huskies starting quarterback Dylan Morris.

The faces may be new, but the results will be familiar. The Dukes are expected to compete for a Sun Belt championship and double-digit win margin when they close the regular season against Appalachian State and Marshall.

Washington, 6.5 wins +112 (BetRivers)

First-year Huskies coach Jed Fisch inherited what was considered the worst team in a power conference when he took over in Arizona.

In his third year, the well-traveled Fisch led the Wildcats to one of the best seasons in program history. Arizona went 11-3 last season, including a win over Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl.

Taking over for Kalen DeBoer, who left to replace Nick Saban at Alabama, Fish takes charge of Washington, the 2024 College Football Playoff national runner-up. Despite the departure of some big names from the 2023 Huskies roster, Fish finds himself in a much better position for Year 1 than he did in Last Chance. Fish and his staff made a few key transfers from Tucson to Seattle, including two-way run-and-receive threat Jonah Coleman at running back.

Washington’s key transfer arrives from SEC Country: Quarterback Will Rogers, a four-year starter at Mississippi State, arrives in Montlake with 12,315 passing yards and 94 touchdowns. Rogers could instantly establish himself as one of the Big Ten’s top quarterbacks if Fish and passing game coordinator Jimmy Dougherty can work the same magic he used with Noah Fifita in Arizona last season.

The biggest obstacle to Washington winning more than seven games is the conference change.

The Big Ten’s shortened schedule didn’t help UW at all, with a cross-country trip to Rutgers, a visit to conference title contender Iowa a week after a national championship rematch with Michigan, and a road trip to Penn State.

I think the first month will be manageable.

A win in nonconference play, including against rival Washington State, and a win over Northwestern and Rutgers to kick off Big Ten play should give many bettors confidence heading into October.