College Football Betting Strategy: A Step-by-Step Guide to Building Power Ratings

Professional bettor Brad Powers shares his expert tips for creating your own college football power ratings

Apr. 3, 2026 at 7:49pm

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A fragmented, cubist-style painting depicting a college football game broken down into overlapping geometric shapes and planes in vibrant colors, representing the analytical deconstruction of team strengths and weaknesses.A conceptual illustration of the analytical process behind building a college football power rating system.Notre Dame Today

Learn how to build a college football power rating from professional bettor Brad Powers. Become an "originator" with Brad's expert college football betting tips, including starting with last year's ratings, adjusting for roster changes, and using position-by-position "Up/Downs" to refine your preseason ratings.

Why it matters

Power ratings are a key part of Brad Powers' betting process, allowing him to "originate" and bet into inefficient, ill-liquid markets at open. By sharing his step-by-step approach, Brad aims to help readers develop their own power ratings and gain an edge in college football betting.

The details

Brad Powers breaks down his process for building college football power ratings, starting with last year's final ratings as a baseline. He then adjusts for roster changes like graduations, transfers, and recruiting, using resources like 247 Sports and On3 to track the movement. Powers also utilizes "Up/Downs" to rate each position group from -3 to +3, with a maximum total adjustment of 30 points. He explains how to use the final power ratings to project point spreads between teams.

  • Brad Powers has been doing weekly college football betting videos with Joe Osborne on the Covers YouTube channel for several seasons.
  • Powers is now joining the Covers team in an expanded role for the upcoming 2026 season.

The players

Brad Powers

A professional bettor who specializes in college football and has been involved in sports betting for over a decade, including hosting shows and podcasts on networks like Fox Sports Radio, ESPN Radio, and VSiN.

Joe Osborne

A host who has been working with Brad Powers on the Covers YouTube channel, covering the biggest college football games and betting opportunities each week.

Curt Cignetti

The head coach who has taken Indiana from being perennial doormats to National Champions in just two years, though Powers notes this is the exception rather than the rule.

Bill Connelly

An ESPN analyst whose SP+ ratings are a respected public power rating that Powers suggests using as a starting point.

Jeff Sagarin

A long-time college football analyst whose ratings on USA Today most closely resemble the point spread of games, according to Powers.

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What they’re saying

“Stop chasing the market — and start leading it.”

— Brad Powers, Professional Bettor

“If you're starting to build a power rating or a "model," the best place to start is a final power rating from the previous season.”

— Brad Powers, Professional Bettor

“Besides my personal power ratings, which account for injuries, the Sagarin ratings most closely resemble the point spread of games.”

— Brad Powers, Professional Bettor

What’s next

Powers plans to explain the process of adjusting power ratings during the season in future content, building on the fundamentals covered in this article.

The takeaway

By sharing his step-by-step approach to building college football power ratings, Brad Powers aims to help readers become "originators" in their own betting, allowing them to identify inefficient markets and gain an edge over the sportsbooks.