When I worked for ESPN full time, I put out a weekly article entitled the Vegas Power Ratings. I still have all the sources that I used to produce that article as it featured my plus/minus ratings which closely resemble Vegas’s numbers as well as three different casinos including the fine folks over at the Westgate Las Vegas Sportsbook @SuperBookSports. We are now four full weeks into the season and I will post these numbers weekly.
This is not the AP poll but gives you an idea of how much teams would be favored over another team if they met on a neutral field. I use these to get an idea of lines on upcoming games and it is very accurate in that respect.
Let me give you some clear examples of how these ratings differ from any poll you will see.
You will notice this week that Ohio State is rated #4 and Oregon is #10. You will say, but Oregon beat Ohio State on the road by a TD so how can Ohio State be rated higher? This is not an AP ranking but if Ohio State played Oregon again this week at a neutral site the Buckeyes who were favored by 15 at home would be favored by 5 at a neutral site this week. Northern Illinois was +19 but beat Georgia Tech on the road. If those teams met at a neutral site this week Georgia Tech would be favored by 14 points. Bowling Green just beat Minnesota on the road but if they played this week at a neutral site Minnesota would be favored by 27. This is not who has played the toughest schedule, who passes the eye test or who deserves to be rated higher than another team based on play on the field. These power ratings are which teams would be favored over other teams and by how much and the folks in Vegas are pretty smart as they have some pretty impressive casinos out there and it is not from losing money.
Here is this year’s 3rd edition of my Vegas Power Ranking for the 2021 season!
