Alabama Favored over Georgia, Ohio State in Odds for 2022-23 CFP Championship

Alabama fell short against Georgia in the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday night, but the Crimson Tide are the favorites to win next year's national title.

ESPN's David Purdum provided the opening odds from Caesars Sportsbook for the 2022 season, which saw the Crimson Tide and the champion Bulldogs with the shortest odds. Here's a look at the top five:

• Alabama 5-2

• Georgia 9-2

• Ohio State 7-1

• Clemson 12-1

• Oklahoma 15-1

• Michigan 15-1

Alabama and Georgia were dominant in their respective runs to the national championship game, as the SEC flexed its college football muscle once again. It was a highly competitive battle for the title until the Bulldogs pulled away late in the fourth quarter en route to a 33-18 win.

Both programs continue to attract top talent too, with the Crimson Tide ranking No. 2 in 247Sports' rankings of the 2022 recruiting classes and the Dawgs at No. 3. Only Texas A&M is ahead of this year's finalists.

Meanwhile, the team outside the Alabama-Georgia group attracting the most attention to open the offseason is USC, which holds 20-1 odds, per Purdum.

The Trojans hired head coach Lincoln Riley from Oklahoma to reignite the storied but recently dormant program, and they have been linked to Sooners quarterback Caleb Williams, who entered the transfer portal following Riley's departure.

Adam Pullen, Caesars Sportsbook's assistant director of trading, told Purdum said USC's low odds despite coming off a 4-8 season shows the impact of coaching.

"Some people might say their odds are too low, even with Williams," Pullen said. "But some coaches have come in and made huge differences right away, and the sentiment is that Lincoln Riley is one of those coaches."

Meanwhile, the other teams near the top of next season's odds are the usual suspects.

It's a group that includes other former powerhouses, such as Texas and Florida (40-1), that will be looking to make pushes back toward championship contention in 2022.

That said, there's always room for a Cinderella run toward the CFP a la Cincinnati this year, but the margin for error is always thin for those outside the power conferences.

The 2022 college football season is scheduled to kick off Aug. 27.