College football has changed drastically in recent years. If a team has a weakness or only needs a few players at key positions to push for a national title, the transfer portal is an excellent resource.

Ohio State wasn’t overly reliant on the transfer portal last season, but certainly benefited from additions like QB Will Howard and S Caleb Downs. However, a strong portal class isn’t a guaranteed fix. Florida State’s 2024 portal class ranked seventh nationally at 247Sports and the Seminoles finished the year with a 2-10 record.

Success in the portal doesn’t always translate to wins, but tracking player movement can help predict what’s to come next season. Below are the three best college football betting futures based on the 2025 transfer portal.

RELATED: Check out the latest odds for Alabama to win the national championship

Carson Beck to win the Heisman Trophy

Best odds: +2000 at FanDuel Sportsbook

Former Georgia QB Carson Beck declared for the NFL Draft in late December. Beck then changed his mind and opted to stay in school for another season because the elbow injury suffered in the SEC Championship negatively impacted his draft stock. According to 247Sports, Beck ranks as the third-best player in the 2025 transfer portal class.

Beck didn’t stay in the portal for long, quickly announcing his commitment to Miami. The Hurricanes have shown to be an excellent destination for transfer QBs after Cam Ward joined the team last season and finished fourth in Heisman voting. Ward could be the first player selected in the NFL Draft, and Beck is working to cement a similar status.

In two seasons as Georgia’s starter, Beck threw for 7,426 yards, 52 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. His passing stats were down in 2024, but that was partially due to the Bulldogs leading the nation in dropped passes. Georgia’s subpar rushing attack didn’t help, either.

The elbow injury will hold Beck out of Miami’s spring practice, so his chances of winning the Heisman depend on how quickly he can jell with a new cast of receivers. The Hurricanes ranked third in passing yards per game last season, but need solid backfilling after losing their top five pass catchers to the NFL Draft or transfer portal.

Freshman WR Joshua Moore could make an immediate impact given the long list of departures in Miami’s receiving corp. Incoming transfer WR CJ Daniels will be a valuable weapon for Beck. Daniels only had 480 yards with LSU last season, but racked up 1,067 yards and 10 touchdowns at Liberty in 2023.

Six of the previous eight Heisman winners were transfers, and Beck’s odds of winning the award come with outstanding value. At +2000, a small $10 wager returns $200.

LSU to win the SEC Championship

Best odds: +1000 at bet365 Sportsbook

LSU’s disappointing 2024 campaign included losses in three of four matchups against ranked opponents and a 5-3 record in SEC play. However, a strong transfer portal class that ranks number one at 247Sports should help the Tigers bounce back next season.

Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier was expected to declare for the NFL Draft, but instead chose to stay in Baton Rouge for one more season. This allowed head coach Brian Kelly to use the transfer portal to fill holes on LSU’s roster.

The defensive line was a top priority. The Tigers surrendered the third-most points per game in the SEC and adding edge rushers Patrick Payton, Jack Pyburn and Jimari Butler will help change that. The secondary was also beefed up with DBs Tamarcus Cooley, Mansoor Delane and Ja’Keem Jackson.

LSU lost three of its best pass catchers, but backfilled with WRs Nic Anderson and Barion Brown. Anderson will be an interesting player to watch after a record-setting freshman season with Oklahoma in 2023. Injuries limited Anderson to five snaps last year, but his upside is through the roof if better health is on the horizon in 2025.

The Tigers had the SEC’s worst rushing offense a season ago, but bolstered the offensive line by acquiring a pair of guards from the transfer portal. Kelly did a phenomenal job of using the portal to address multiple areas of need. LSU is worth considering at +1000 odds to win the SEC.

Indiana over 8.5 wins

Best odds: +100 at BetMGM Sportsbook

Head coach Curt Cignetti’s first season with Indiana exceeded all expectations. The Hoosiers earned a spot in the College Football Playoff after a regular season in which their only loss was to eventual CFP champion Ohio State.

QB Kurtis Rourke’s 3,000+ yard season was a big reason for Indiana’s success, and his departure left a massive hole on the roster. In steps former Cal QB Fernando Mendoza, who threw for 3,004 yards and only six interceptions despite taking the second-most sacks in the FBS.

Mendoza is entering his redshirt junior season and has plenty of room for development with a QB-friendly coach like Cignetti. Indiana provides a much better offensive line and leading WRs Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper Jr. are returning to Bloomington in 2025. Last year, the duo combined for 1,551 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Indiana faced a relatively easy Big Ten schedule in 2024, and things will be a bit more challenging with Penn State, Oregon, Illinois and Iowa on the schedule this year. However, the Hoosiers can look forward to five matchups with teams that finished in the bottom seven of the conference standings.

Indiana will need to beat at least one of its tougher opponents to surpass eight wins. I expect the Hoosiers to get it done if Mendoza continues progressing under Cignetti.