Best & Worst College Football Home Teams ATS in Power 5

By Dan Kilbridge Mar 14th, 2024 7:22 AM EDT

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College football will finally look and sound like college football again when the 2021 season kicks off in late August.

The band will be back in the stands, the fans will be back at the tailgates, and players will enjoy a home field advantage that was lacking on most campuses due to limited attendance throughout 2020. For college football betting, that means taking all those factors into consideration once again for the Saturday wagers.

It’s generally believed home field in college football will add anywhere from 3-6 points to the spread depending on the circumstance and environment. Sportsbooks and oddsmakers are well aware of these environments and they’re all baked in when spread betting. You can’t just bet Florida ATS at home every week because The Swamp is such an intimidating environment. Those factors are well understood and accounted for in the college football odds.

Rather than win-loss record, a team’s home record against the spread is a much better indication of value in terms of home field advantages. Perhaps certain fanbases long thought to impact games have lost their collective fastball, or lesser-known stadiums are sneaky-tough for visiting teams.

These five-year trends against the spread at home will provide a better understanding of value as opposed to handicapping home field advantage based on overall record, reputation and crowd size.

The Best Power 5 College Football Home Teams

Here's a look at the five best college football teams ATS in each of the Power 5 conferences over the past five seasons.

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The Worst Power 5 College Football Home Teams

Here's a look at the five worst college football teams ATS in each of the Power 5 conferences over the past five seasons.

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Worst: UCLA, 11-17-1 (39.3%)

Many of the best college football environments are found in remote locations, where the team is the only show in town all year. That’s obviously not the case in Los Angeles. The Rose Bowl is a beautiful venue, but it’s only half-full most of the time as the Bruins simply aren’t going to draw 80,000 fans in Pasadena these days. That’s part of the reason they’ve been such a bad home wager on betting apps lately. A special mention for Arizona. The Wildcats are a horrendous 50-79-2 ATS (home and on the road) since 2010, with the second lowest cover rate of all Div. 1 teams during that time at 38.8%. Something to keep in mind as Arizona sports betting prepares to launch this fall.

PAC-12 BETTING GUIDE: Check Out The Latest Pac-12 Odds & Betting Tips

ACC

Best: Virginia, 18-13-1 (58.1%)

The ACC is a highly-competitive conference when Clemson isn’t involved. That’s especially true in the Coastal Division and the Cavaliers have taken advantage in recent years, making the ACC title game in 2019. They’ve been favored more often than not at Scott Stadium and definitely fly under the radar as a strong home cover team. Too bad betting in Virginia does not allow you to wager on the Cavaliers.

Worst: Florida State, 13-17 (43.3%)

The Seminoles have the same problems as Nebraska and Tennessee – you’ve got these gorgeous, eight-figure football facilities, a history of championships and an extremely passionate fanbase with high expectations. That can be tough to deal with when the program takes a downward turn, and bettors can be slow to catch up. The Seminoles have been mediocre for four consecutive seasons and Doak S. Campbell Stadium is still getting a little too much respect at the betting window.

ACC BETTING GUIDE: Check Out The Latest ACC Odds & Betting Tips

About the Author

Dan Kilbridge

More About Dan

Handicapper Dan Kilbridge writes about college football, MLB and other sports for Bookies.com after spending three years covering Tiger Woods’ comeback and the PGA for Golfweek.