Ohio State began Friday as a consensus 6-point favorite over Texas in the Capital One Cotton Bowl, a margin that was much larger than expected.

Sportsbooks had Ohio State listed as just a 1.5-point favorite over Texas in early lines released last week before the semifinals were scheduled. But after the Longhorns got past Arizona State in overtime and the Buckeyes beat Oregon in the quarterfinals, oddsmakers knew they had to adjust the odds in the Cotton Bowl (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

“Texas just isn’t impressing us and Ohio State looks like a runaway freight train now,” John Murray, a veteran Las Vegas bookmaker at Westgate SuperBook, told ESPN this week.

Caesars Sportsbook opened with Ohio State as a 5.5-point favorite over Texas after the semifinal game was completed and immediately responded to Buckeyes bettors, although the odds at some sportsbooks were four points higher than in previous days.

The Buckeyes made the playoffs after a surprising upset loss to Michigan in the final week of the regular season. Ohio State was a 20.5-point favorite over the Wolverines. According to ESPN Research, since 1998, in the BCS/College Football Playoff era, only two teams – Florida in 2008 and Clemson in 2016 – have lost as favorites by more than 20 points in the regular season and recovered to win the national championship . The Buckeyes and Notre Dame have a chance to make this list this year.

The Fighting Irish, who lost to Northern Illinois earlier in the season as 28.5-point favorites, defeated Penn State in the Capital One Orange Bowl on Thursday to advance to the championship game. Notre Dame will face the winner of Texas-Ohio State on Jan. 20 in Atlanta.

The betting public that has been invested in Ohio State all season is clearly behind the Buckeyes against Texas on Friday. About 72% of the bets — and 82% of the money wagered — on the Cotton Bowl on ESPN BET as of Friday morning were on Ohio State. At BetMGM, the Buckeyes account for 28.2% of national championship odds bets, more than Texas and Notre Dame combined.

Sportsbooks have the Buckeyes listed as about 8-point favorites over Notre Dame in a potential showdown in the championship game. Texas is a 3-point favorite over Notre Dame in the early going.