March Madness 2026: Biggest college basketball futures wagers still alive

The calendar is about to flip to March, which means that college basketball conference tournaments and March Madness are right around the corner. Last year, all four No. 1 seeds reached the Final Four, culminating in the Florida Gators winning the title 65-63 over the Houston Cougars.

Both of those teams will be back in the tournament again this year, but it’s the No. 3-ranked Michigan Wolverines (+375 at BetMGM) that are the current favorites to cut down the nets. The Wolverines (26-2) had been ranked No. 1 before losing 68-63 to the Duke Blue Devils on Saturday. Duke is now the nation’s top-ranked team, and second favorite at BetMGM at +425. The second-ranked Arizona Wildcats (+450) and fifth-ranked Houston Cougars (+950) are the only other teams with single-digit odds.

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Houston is the biggest liability to win the NCAA championship at BetMGM, thanks in large part to a $50,000 wager on the Cougars at +900 odds.

There will be plenty of large wagers between now and Selection Sunday, but here are the biggest reported futures wagers at legal sportbooks:

Biggest NCAA championship futures bets (by liability)

1. $1,000 on Miami (OH) RedHawks to win NCAA title at 500-1 odds (Caesars)

Bet wins $500,000

2. $50,000 on Houston Cougars to win NCAA title at +900 odds (BetMGM)

Bet wins $450,000

3. ~$59,025 on Duke Blue Devils to win NCAA title at +700 odds (DraftKings)

Bet wins ~$413,175

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  • Bet was $80,740 Canadian Dollars on Duke

4. $25,000 on Houston to win NCAA title at 11-1 odds (BetMGM)

Bet wins $275,000

T-5. $50,000 on Arizona Wildcats to win NCAA title at +450 odds (BetMGM)

Bet wins $225,000

T-5. $25,000 on UConn Huskies to win NCAA title at +900 odds (BetMGM)

Bet wins $225,000

7. $10,000 on Houston to win NCAA title at 14-1 odds (DraftKings)

Bet wins $140,000

8. $10,000 on UConn to win NCAA title at 10-1 odds (DraftKings)

Bet wins $100,000

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