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Not only are we 58 days away from Iowa State's season opener against UNI, but we're close enough that preseason magazines are no longer flying off the shelves and Vegas itself has started paying attention to the season. And nothing makes a man happier than seeing that Bovada just released their odds to win the Big 12 Conference in 2016.
The Favorites
Unsurprisingly defending conference champion Oklahoma leads the way at 2/3 odds. With the return of Baker Mayfield at quarterback it's easy money to pick the Sooners to repeat as conference champions.
The Middle of the Pack
Somehow Baylor and Texas come in with close odds (8/1 for the Bears, 17/2 for the Longhorns), which is less of a belief in Texas and more of a testament to how little respect that Baylor is getting without Art Briles. Ahead of the two schools are Oklahoma State and TCU, both of which have questions to answers such as, "Can the Cowboys run the ball?" and "Who replaces Trevone Boykin at quarterback for the Horned Frogs?"
The Rest
You could make an argument to put West Virginia in the middle of the pack, but after that things are murky for the rest of the conference with Iowa State only beating out Kansas in odds (100/1 to 250/1). Suffice to say Vegas knows something we all knew long ago: Iowa State is definitely probably not going to win the Big 12 in 2016.
The Payouts
Just for fun, here's what a $10 bet nets you for each school if they were to win the conference. As you can see, if you feel confident in anyone but Oklahoma winning the conference you can do some hedging and come out ahead.
Team | Odds | Bet | Payout |
Oklahoma | 2/3 | $ 10 | $ 6.67 |
Oklahoma State | 5/1 | $ 10 | $ 50.00 |
TCU | 5/1 | $ 10 | $ 50.00 |
Baylor | 8/1 | $ 10 | $ 80.00 |
Texas | 17/2 | $ 10 | $ 85.00 |
West Virginia | 12/1 | $ 10 | $ 120.00 |
Kansas State | 33/1 | $ 10 | $ 330.00 |
Texas Tech | 33/1 | $ 10 | $ 330.00 |
Iowa State | 100/1 | $ 10 | $ 1,000.00 |
Kansas | 250/1 | $ 10 | $ 2,500.00 |