A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a piece sharing my thoughts about legalized sports betting coming to Ohio. In anticipation of Super Bowl Sunday, we thought it would be fun to share some gambling stories from some of our contributors and friends. Enjoy!
And remember: Winners Play and Players Win! Good luck! (Suckers.) - Colin
Jeremy Porter - My relationship with gambling started while on tour in 1991 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. We'd driven from Detroit to Philly to open for noise-masters Tar and The Unsane at the Kyhyber Pass Pub, but only on the condition that we tell people our band name was Cum Dumpster, and not our real name, Chutes & Ladders. Apparently the Detroit-based Dumpsters had bailed on the show and the promoter wanted to save face so that was the deal. Anyhow, not sure I'd make that trade today, but that's a different story I guess.
The next day we drove the 45 minutes to AC so I could see the ocean, any ocean, for the first time, and our other guitar player, Bill, walked us into Trump's casino (except our 16 year old bassist who had to wait outside) where he promptly lost $25 on Black Jack before we headed back to Philly to see The Replacements open for Elvis Costello that night. I may have dropped a couple bucks in a slot machine that day, not sure, but I was certainly taken by the lights and sounds of the casino, and the excitement and terror of money disintegrating into smog before my eyes. Fast Forward 3 years and my band SlugBug was touring the midwest, routing around, across, and back again over the Mississippi river with riverboat casino stops in Dubuque, Iowa and Saint Louis, Missouri. This is where I really got the heart-palpitations around the prospect of losing $5 or winning $7.50 based on the next face card. My brother in arms, our bassist Hardo, and I left the band at the roach-infested Motel 6 and took the van to the Casino Queen, later immortalized in a Wilco song, perched beneath that giant arch, where we did ok, from what I remember. Good times.
Online sports gambling became legal in Michigan 2 years ago, just in time for me to lose my ass to Patrick Mahomes in Super Bowl LV, a rich tradition that lives on in my MGM app to this day. I'm borderline terrible at betting on pro football, the likes of Mahomes and Brady losing when I need the win, and winning when I need them to lose. College football and especially basketball, a sport I am much less interested in, are safer bets for me, if only I cared more about the games. It's a habit but not at the expense of groceries or car payments. I'll bet often, but in relatively low amounts, and justify it by remembering that time I won $1200 on a final four pool I didn't even know I was in, so overall I'm up, right? Leaning KC this year, but I might get more mileage out of a few scratch-offs. For a prop I’ll jump on the over for the length of the national anthem, and I’ll probably do a side parlay somehow involving the O/U.
Nick Jezierny - Hi Colin, here are two quick sports gambling stories:
When I lived in El Paso, Texas, and worked at the newspaper, it was about a mile or so across the border into Juarez. One of the first things you hit when you crossed was a sports book. One of my coworkers went over all the time so I would give him bets and he’d place them for me.
I gave him a three-team parlay of Sun Belt football games (it was 2001 and the first year the Sun Belt was a Division I conference). I was covering New Mexico State’s team, which was in the Sun Belt, and considered myself an expert. My coworker mistakenly placed the bets for the team’s I didn’t want, and all three won that way. In other words, I should have gone 0-for-3 and went 3-0 and won a very small amount.
Another one:
I’m covering Boise State basketball and they are a 12-point underdog to a very good Nevada team that went to the Sweet 16 that year (2004). Boise State had beaten the Wolf Pack earlier that season, so I knew the Broncos were in trouble in Reno that night. I usually didn’t gamble on games I was covering, but I did on this one. Sure enough, Nevada is winning 89-78 and Boise State’s Coby Karl (NBA coach George’s son) misses a 3 and the Wolf Pack rebound and can run out the clock. The coaches are shaking hands, no one is playing defense. The crowd isn’t celebrating as heartily as normal because I’m guessing most of the 7,000 in the stands that night thought what I did: Nevada is going to cover. Oh well, that’s what I get for breaking my rule.
But right before the buzzer sounds, Nevada forward Kevinn (yes two Ns) Pinkney nonchalantly throws up a 3-pointer from the corner and it swishes. Final: Nevada 92, Boise State 78. Spread covered, and the crowd goes wild. Pinkney went 2-for-8 from 3 that season. I’m pretty sure I lost whatever I won later that night/morning playing Pai Gow at the Eldorado or Silver Legacy hotels.
Ricki C. / The Low Point of My Gambling Days - In 1990, here was my entire existence: I had just broken up with a long-time girlfriend and taken a nighttime job as a roadie for Willie Phoenix & the True Soul Rockers. I also worked a 40-hour a week day-job at the now-defunct Service Merchandise, working in the warehouse and unloading trucks. It was hard, physical labor and weekends when Willie had gigs (which was MOST weekends) I would leave SMC-042 at 5 pm and be at a rock & roll club by 7 pm, work the show until 2 am, load-out, stow the gear back at the rehearsal space and get home around 4 am.
I’d sleep ‘til noon on Saturday, then start all over again at 7 pm.
Most Sundays I didn’t even get dressed. I’d grab Dunkin’ Donuts and White Castle coffee from their drive-thru’s, smoke a joint around 12:45 pm, then settle in to watch NFL football all afternoon and evening. Part of the reason I was so intent on the NFL was that I was betting on the games via spot-cards that were dropped off at Service by a driver for one of our delivery companies. (Said delivery company shall remain nameless; but they came every day and drove brown trucks.)
One Sunday evening I had six games in hand and all I needed was the Denver Broncos to miss a field goal to win $350 (which represented two weeks’ take-home pay at my day job). There were 37 seconds left on the clock, I was pacing up & down in my apartment and finally I snapped; I GOT DOWN ON MNY KNEES in my living-room and PRAYED for the Broncos kicker to miss the field goal. I swore I’d go to church the next Sunday (lapsed Catholic boy that I was I hadn’t been to Mass since the 1970’s) and put $20 in the collection plate.
The kick went up, and – in the words of The Dead Schembechlers – went wide left. Did I go to St. Matthias the next Sunday?
You bet your ass I did.
BIG $ - Pencil Storm Browns beat writer. Follow @northcoastposse
As most gamblers know the bad beats stick out (and accumulate more) than the wins. However, a certain January night in 1998 will always be fondly entrenched in my memory. I was a student at OSU and was visiting another state school (that will remain nameless). Lets say that I had over-extended myself cash-wise on the visit and was on the verge of heading back to campus penniless. The Sunday I was supposed to leave happened to be the Super Bowl Sunday that Elway played the vaunted Favre-led Packers. Super Bowl Sunday is a great day to “socialize “ and Monday classes are optional so I decided to stay another night. I had earlier referenced my wild fiscal irresponsibility that visit and as I tried to push the negative thoughts out for one more day, I caught wind of a fraternity dude on campus who was accepting wagers. Having had John Elway destroy my Cleveland childhood, I knew he was capable of anything. Therefore, I proceeded to somehow talk this dude into taking a sizable wager on credit, as he wasn’t getting a lot of pro-Bronco bets. Fast forward to the storied helicopter spin QB run and my Sunday scaries had been washed away. I returned to Columbus flush until my next dalliance in willful fiscal dereliction. (I also cashed a win on a prop bet based on one of the fights during the MTV-celebrity-claymation-death-matches at halftime.)
As far as bad beats go, there are sooooo many that I’ll just recount the most recent. Trying to ride out the LeBron scoring record i was going heavy on his per game scoring over props. Last Saturday, while I had him at 27.5, I had to sit and watch him brick free-throw after 4th quarter free-throw while sitting at 27 points. He missed five. I only needed one to cash. Brutal.
Super bowl props to watch:
KC over 1.5 field goals
Hurts over .5 ints
AJ Brown anytime TD
Pacheco over 19.5 receiving yards
Good luck, positive vibes only
David Martin - My greatest sports gambling moment was an NCAA men's tournament: In 2012, I finished first in a pool with about 100 entries. Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville and Ohio State made the Final Four that year. (The Buckeyes were led by Jared Sullinger, DeShean Thomas, William Buford and Aaron Craft.) The final rounds of the tournament were satisfying to watch: Every outcome was good for my bracket. (Kentucky beat Kansas in the championship game.) I shared 50 percent of the winnings with my dad, who had paid my entrance fee. (The pool is run by a former work colleague of his.)
Speaking of my dad, we were in Las Vegas during the NCAA tournament more than 30 years ago. We were watching Ohio State play at the Barbary Coast or some other casino on the Strip that no longer exists. We wanted the Buckeyes to win, of course, while the gamblers were rooting for their bets on the point spread. As I recall, OSU was winning but the score was close. In the game’s final minutes, the Buckeyes’ opponent went into fouling mode. My dad and I still laugh about the way the bettors reacted whenever a whistle sent Perry Carter, who was not a great foul shooter, to the free-throw line. “Hands of stone,” one of them muttered.
Super Bowl pick: Is there a prop bet on roughing the passer penalties? If there is, I'd play it. Chris Jones, the Chiefs' defensive lineman, is a great player who tends to land on top of quarterbacks when he tackles them. He got penalized for it in October, and I was looking for a flag when he sacked Joe Burrow at the end of the AFC Championship game.
Otherwise, I’d probably bet the under (which has inched up during the week) and/or an alternative point spread, like Eagles -7 or Chiefs -6. I have a feeling the game is not going to be settled by a field goal or less.
Brian Phillips / Host CD92.9 Morning Show - My God. The Super Bowl prop market is truly overwhelming. You can bet on anything, including the length of the National Anthem. Listen, I'm not bothering with the novelty wagers. There's too much going on in the actual game. Here's a few I'm eyeing.
Since I'm leaning the Eagles at the -1.5 I want to correlate where I can. To that end a Philadelphia win would become much more likely if Patrick Mahomes throws at least one pick. I like the over 0.5 at -110.
My gut tells me the Eagles are going to lean on Miles Sanders. With two blowout playoff wins and how their season came together the NFC Champions were able to limit his work load. Jalen Hurts is not 100% and I don't see a lot of designed runs for him. A big Sanders game correlates with an Eagles win as well. I'm betting the over which is hovering around 61.5. The one I'm looking at is -115, but I'll shop for better. I'm going to throw down a few bucks on Sanders as MVP at +2200 as well. One other thought: Superbowl 57 marks the end of Sanders' rookie contract. A big game in the biggest of games will make him a lot of money I would imagine.
Kenneth Gainwell has seen his usage soar. His rushing total of over 19.5 seems attainable at -110. It seems like both he and Boston Scott get looks near the goal line. Again with my thought that Hurts is still hurting you can bet Gainwell any time TD at +260 or so and Scott at +350.
I certainly expect the Chiefs to keep it close anyway. The market expects Travis Kelce to score so the price isn't good there. Why can't Mahomes manage to push one in?!? +375 is a good investment on that prop.
Jerick McKinnon has not been good on the ground. I expect Isiah Pacheco to get the bulk of the work. Over 47.5 rushing yards seems do-able.
Would I be surprised by a Chiefs win? Nope. This one is going to be close. Sure Mahomes in a victory is the odds on MVP favorite, but if you're looking beyond that you're not crazy. Cooper Kupp won last year. Julian Edelman a few years back. A KC win may well come with a huge game from Travis Kelce. You might as well bet on him scoring two or more touchdowns while you're at it at +500. You can get the tight end for MVP at around +1200.