Forget all the arguing over which team is more deserving of this or that. Forget the BCS standings. Forget the debate over how Oregon's offense would do against Notre Dame's defense and whether or not Kansas State's schedule has been tougher than the Ducks'.

What matters most in the world of sports prognostication is where Las Vegas is willing to place its money. Right now, the desert town where the only prevalence of green comes in the form of cash loves the Ducks to win the BCS National Championship.

According to

, the Ducks, second in the BCS, are favored to win it all. They also would be favored in matchups against third-place Notre Dame or first-place Kansas State. But UO would not be favored over fourth-place Alabama, which shows that the Crimson Tide would still be expected to be a heavy public favorite.

Here are the current futures betting odds on each team if a bet were placed today:

Oregon 6-5 (you bet $100 to win $120)

Kansas State 7-5 (you bet $100 to win $140)

Alabama 6-1 (you bet $100 to win $600)

Notre Dame 6-1 (you bet $100 to win $600

Essentially, the books are saying that the Ducks and Wildcats have the inside track to reach the title game and that Notre Dame and Alabama need plenty of help.

What's more interesting, however, are the early betting lines on potential title game matchups.

Oregon is listed at -3 vs. Kansas State (winning an Oregon wager would require the Ducks to win by four points or more).

Oregon is -7 vs. Notre Dame

However, the lines say that should one-loss Alabama face the Ducks, it would be a -3 favorite.

The book also lists Alabama as a -7 favorite over Kansas State and - 9.5 over Notre Dame.

Kansas State is listed at -3 vs. Notre Dame in a possible BCS title game matchup.

What does all of this mean? Very little in the grand scheme of things. These odds all could change against on Sunday.

But it does show that while people in the four corners of the college football world that matter most right now all believe their team would win the national title against any of the other three teams in contention, Vegas still likes Alabama but the Ducks would be the favorite against the two teams most likely to meet them in the championship game.

Links:

Issues and Answers: Chip Kelly

.

Oregon's battered defense braces for

.

Fentress and Jude talk DAT at DB, Stanford and injuries.

.

Canzano: Ducks acting like a team that knows

.

UO basketball team get commitment from

.

Backup QB Bryan Bennett also

.

Defensive line and secondary should

.

Barner moving up

.

DAT as a lock-down corner

.

Electric atmosphere anticipated at Oregon

.

--Aaron Fentress

Follow @AaronJFentress