Gambler bets on Fresno State to win national title. Here’s how big payout would be

How strong is your faith in Fresno State this upcoming college football season?

Enough to put some money behind it?

One person apparently believes in the Bulldogs so much that they’ve placed a $400 bet on Fresno State to win the national championship, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

And if this gambler were to hit this long shot wager, the payout would be so big, they could afford to buy five brand new, fully loaded Ford F-150 trucks — and still have some extra change for gas.

See, the odds of Fresno State winning the national title are 1,000 to 1.

So that person’s $400 bet would become $400,000 if the Bulldogs were to somehow turn wishful thinking into reality.

Do the Bulldogs really have a shot at a national title?

Depends on how much red Kool-Aid you’re drinking.

First and foremost, Fresno State, which sits a few spots outside both the Associated Press Top 25 preseason ranking and the AFCA Coaches Poll, would have to go undefeated.

And that would require winning on the road against USC and Boise State.

It’d also mean Fresno State would have to win all of its games that it’s favored, and that’s often been a challenge in itself over the years (most recently occurred last season when then-No. 18 Fresno State was upset at Hawaii).

But even an undefeated regular season might not be enough.

Many of Fresno State’s nonconference opponents likely would have to have great seasons, too, to validate the Bulldogs’ quality of victories.

Then those currently ranked ahead of Fresno State would likely have to lose enough to give the Bulldogs a chance to climb up the rankings.

And this is all just so Fresno State can possibly get selected as one of the four teams that get to compete for the national championship in the College Football Playoff.

Those four College Football Playoff teams are chosen by a 13-member selection committee.

Think an undefeated Fresno State gets picked ahead of traditional football powers like Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia and Notre Dame if all of those teams are 10-2?

To some, it’s debatable.

Others, it’s a no-brainer that the bigger name programs still get in ahead of a Fresno State program that’s a member of the Group of Five conferences and not part of the Power Five conferences.

But it was just last season that a program from the Group of Five (that’d be Cincinnati) reached the four-team College Football Playoff. So it’s not impossible.

What happened next to Cincinnati in the College Football Playoff, though, could theoretically dissuade committee members from allowing another Group of Five program back into the playoff. Cincinnati wasn’t able to put up much of a fight during the CFP semifinals and lost 27-6 to eventual national runner-up Alabama.

Could the Fresno State Bulldogs fare better than last season’s Cincinnati squad?

Because even if Fresno State were to go undefeated and somehow to get into the College Football Playoff, the Bulldogs would then have to beat two teams in the CFP to capture a national championship.

And then, and only then, could a $400 bet on Fresno State turn into $400,000.

Or for someone who’s willing to wager even more on the Bulldogs and get the same 1000-to-1 odds, a $1,000 bet on Fresno State could turn into $1 million.

By the way, there are no legal options for sports betting in California.

So you’d have to place that bet outside of the state.

Or take that amount you’re willing to wager on Fresno State and donate it to a local charity and simply cheer on the Bulldogs without financial incentives tied to their outcome.

This story was originally published August 25, 2022 at 7:41 AM.