South Dakota State is favored to win the FCS championship at +140 on DraftKings on October 14, 2026, ahead of Montana State and Youngstown State at +400 each.
These FCS championship odds are DraftKings prices as ESPN lists them, read on October 14, 2026 at 21:41 UTC. The board carries 18 teams, and Montana State, at +400, is last season’s champion.
FCS championship odds for all 18 teams
| Team | Conference | Odds | Implied chance | Margin removed | FCS poll rank | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Dakota State | Missouri Valley | +140 | 41.7% | 31.4% | 1 | 5-1 |
| Montana State | Big Sky | +400 | 20.0% | 15.1% | 5 | 5-1 |
| Youngstown State | Missouri Valley | +400 | 20.0% | 15.1% | 6 | 5-2 |
| Tarleton State | United Athletic | +1000 | 9.1% | 6.9% | 2 | 6-0 |
| Stephen F. Austin | Southland | +1100 | 8.3% | 6.3% | 3 | 6-0 |
| South Dakota | Missouri Valley | +1300 | 7.1% | 5.4% | 9 | 5-2 |
| Illinois State | Missouri Valley | +1500 | 6.2% | 4.7% | 13 | 4-2 |
| Lehigh | Patriot League | +2200 | 4.3% | 3.3% | 4 | 6-0 |
| Montana | Big Sky | +2200 | 4.3% | 3.3% | 7 | 5-2 |
| Austin Peay | United Athletic | +2500 | 3.8% | 2.9% | 11 | 5-2 |
| North Dakota | Missouri Valley | +4000 | 2.4% | 1.8% | 15 | 5-2 |
| Northern Arizona | Big Sky | +9000 | 1.1% | 0.8% | 10 | 5-2 |
| Idaho State | Big Sky | +10000 | 1.0% | 0.7% | 21 | 4-2 |
| Tennessee Tech | Southern | +10000 | 1.0% | 0.7% | 14 | 5-1 |
| Harvard | Ivy League | +15000 | 0.7% | 0.5% | 17 | 4-0 |
| UC Davis | Big Sky | +15000 | 0.7% | 0.5% | 12 | 4-2 |
| Mercer | Southern | +25000 | 0.4% | 0.3% | 16 | 5-2 |
| Yale | Ivy League | +25000 | 0.4% | 0.3% | 23 | 3-1 |
A +140 price pays $140 on a $100 stake, so the bet breaks even only if South Dakota State wins the title 41.7% of the time. That is the implied chance. Add up all 18 and the board comes to 132.7%, which leaves the book 32.7 points above the 100% a fair board would total. The “margin removed” column scales every team down by that 132.7.
Counted that way, South Dakota State holds 31.4% of the title on its own, and the three shortest prices hold 61.6%. The seven teams priced shorter than +2000 hold 84.8%. Six teams are at +10000 or longer, and the board ends with Mercer and Yale at +25000 each.
Four teams on the board have not lost: Tarleton State, Stephen F. Austin and Lehigh are 6-0, and Harvard is 4-0. The favorite is not one of them. South Dakota State is 5-1. Each record is ESPN’s as of October 14.
The board against the FCS Coaches Poll
The poll is the FCS Coaches Poll of October 12, Week 7. All 18 priced teams are in it, and South Dakota State is first in both, with 23 of the first-place votes.
Below the top, the two lists part. Tarleton State is second in the poll, with the other 3 first-place votes, and fourth on the board at +1000. Stephen F. Austin is third in the poll and fifth on the board at +1100. Lehigh, fourth in the poll at 6-0, is priced at +2200, level with Montana.
The market goes the other way on Youngstown State. The Penguins are 5-2 and sixth in the poll, up from ninth, and priced level with Montana State at +400. Montana State is fifth in the poll.
Montana dropped from third to seventh in the latest poll and North Dakota from seventh to 15th. Montana is +2200 and North Dakota +4000.
Seven ranked teams have no price on the board:
| Team | FCS poll rank | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Lamar | 8 | 5-1 |
| Campbell | 18 | 5-1 |
| Colgate | 19 | 4-2 |
| Monmouth | 20 | 4-2 |
| Richmond | 22 | 5-2 |
| East Tennessee State | 24 | 5-2 |
| Northern Iowa | 25 | 3-2 |
The title board by conference
| Conference | Teams priced | Ranked in the FCS poll | Share of the title, margin removed | Shortest price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missouri Valley | 5 | 5 | 58.4% | South Dakota State +140 |
| Big Sky | 5 | 5 | 20.4% | Montana State +400 |
| United Athletic | 2 | 2 | 9.8% | Tarleton State +1000 |
| Southland | 1 | 1 | 6.3% | Stephen F. Austin +1100 |
| Patriot League | 1 | 1 | 3.3% | Lehigh +2200 |
| Southern | 2 | 2 | 1.0% | Tennessee Tech +10000 |
| Ivy League | 2 | 2 | 0.8% | Harvard +15000 |
Conference is the one ESPN lists for each team this season, and the share column adds up the margin-removed chances of its teams. The Missouri Valley’s five priced teams hold 58.4% of the title, most of it South Dakota State’s. The Big Sky has five as well and holds 20.4%, led by Montana State.
The Ivy League has two teams on the board, Harvard and Yale, with 0.8% between them. Both played in last season’s bracket.
How the FCS playoff worked last season
Last season’s bracket had 24 teams and 23 games. Sixteen teams played eight first-round games on November 29, 2025. The other eight started in the second round on December 6: Montana State, Montana, Tarleton State, Stephen F. Austin, UC Davis, Lehigh, Mercer and North Dakota State.
The quarterfinals were played on December 12 and 13 and the semifinals on December 20. All 22 games before the final were home games for one of the two teams. The final was played at a neutral site, FirstBank Stadium in Nashville.
ESPN does not list this season’s playoff games yet.
Last season’s champion: Montana State
Montana State beat Illinois State 35-34 in the final at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville on Monday, January 5, 2026, at 7:30 pm ET. In the semifinals the Bobcats beat Montana 48-23 at home in Bozeman, and Illinois State won 30-14 at Villanova.
Montana State had lost the final a season earlier: North Dakota State beat it 35-32 at Toyota Stadium in Frisco on January 6, 2025.
| Team | Odds today | Last season’s playoff |
|---|---|---|
| South Dakota State | +140 | Lost in the second round |
| Montana State | +400 | Champion |
| Youngstown State | +400 | Lost in the first round |
| Tarleton State | +1000 | Lost in the quarterfinals |
| Stephen F. Austin | +1100 | Lost in the quarterfinals |
| South Dakota | +1300 | Lost in the quarterfinals |
| Illinois State | +1500 | Lost in the final |
| Lehigh | +2200 | Lost in the second round |
| Montana | +2200 | Lost in the semifinals |
| Austin Peay | +2500 | Not in the bracket |
| North Dakota | +4000 | Lost in the second round |
| Northern Arizona | +9000 | Not in the bracket |
| Idaho State | +10000 | Not in the bracket |
| Tennessee Tech | +10000 | Lost in the first round |
| Harvard | +15000 | Lost in the first round |
| UC Davis | +15000 | Lost in the quarterfinals |
| Mercer | +25000 | Lost in the second round |
| Yale | +25000 | Lost in the second round |
Fifteen of the 18 teams on today’s board played in last season’s bracket. Austin Peay, Northern Arizona and Idaho State did not. Montana State is +400 to win it again, and Illinois State, last season’s runner-up, is +1500.
North Dakota State is not on the board. It lost to Illinois State 29-28 at home in the second round last season, and ESPN lists it this season in the Mountain West, an FBS conference.
What the price asks of a title bet
A futures bet on the championship pays over time only if the team wins more often than its price implies. For South Dakota State at +140 that means more than 41.7% of the time, and for Montana State or Youngstown State at +400, more than 20.0%. Those three add up to 81.7% before any of the other 15 teams is counted, which is the 32.7-point margin showing up at the top of the board. The stake is also tied up until the title is decided.
We make no title pick: a season-long bet is not something we have a tested method for. Our calls are on single games, where a spread can be checked against a result the same night.
The FBS title board is on our college football championship odds page, and game-by-game calls are on the college football predictions hub. Paid picks from other handicappers are on the PicksToday handicappers page.