Wild first CFB weekend against the numbers

Isn't it good to have football back?!

One of the really cool recent scheduling trends in college football is the loading up of big games over the Labor Day holiday weekend. It allows the networks to cash in on big-name teams playing each other, complete with sponsored "kickoff" branding, and it allows some top teams to dominate the sports conversation for that day or night.

Of course, those big games also mean a ton of action from gamblers here in Vegas, and we will start recaping the weekend with the biggest bet game of week 1 – No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 3 Florida State.

The handle on this game was big at several books, including CG Technology.

At Caesars, the Crimson Tide made a lot of players happy with their dominating win over the Seminoles, as Nick Saban once again proved deadly in big season openers. Just like USC a year ago, Bama rolled to an easy win.

As if the loss wasn't bad enough on its own, the bad news wasn't done after the game for the Seminoles. The season-ending injury to star QB Deondre Francois sent their odds of recovering from the loss in week one to win the National Championship to the floor.

Michigan took on Florida in a game that saw a lot of action on the Wolverines after 10 Gator players were suspended for an off the field incident. UM led for most of the game and easily covered the -4 line. William Hill reported that 84 percent of the money was on Michigan, who won 33-17, so many players were happy with the outcome.

However, it was the O/U number of 43 that burned a lot of gamblers who took the under. With Florida down 26-17, Gator QB Malik Zaire was sacked, fumbled, and it was recovered by Michigan for a touchdown. The final total could have been a push but instead the over hit.

The last two games worth mentioning were both stunners in their own unique ways.

If you bet Texas A&M on the moneyline, you were probably feeling pretty good when the Aggies went up 44-10. In fact, according to ESPN Stats and Info, Texas A&M had a 99.5 percent chance of beating UCLA on Sunday night at that point. I don't know about you, but that's about as sure of a win as you are going to get with four minutes to play in the third quarter of a college game.

Instead, we had history.

The last game of the weekend was the best of the bunch. No. 25 Tennessee went to double overtime against Georgia Tech in a back-and-forth battle that ended on the gutsiest of calls.

Moneyline players were freaking out as one play, a 2-point conversion for the win, was how this game was decided. Yellow Jackets head coach Paul Johnson had seen enough of his offense crushing UT at the point of attack to roll the dice. If you had Georgia Tech +4 (according to William Hill), you loved the call, while UT players were left shaking their heads.

A field goal at the end of regulation was missed by Tech that would have won the game 31-28 and saved the under, which opened at 59.5. (William Hill's opening number that was bet down to 54.5 at kick). Instead, collge football's overtime rules led to a 42-41 final.

Gambling is a skill, but sometimes it comes down to one guy making or missing a block. Watch No. 75 in white in the clip below. That guy either made you money or potentially blew your bet. That's sports and why gambling is so fun.

Some big games next weekend including Ohio State vs. Oklahoma and of course, week 1 of the NFL. Stay with us for full coverage of all it!

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