If Georgia upsets Alabama in Saturday’s SEC title game, the Bulldogs will clinch the fourth spot in the College Football Playoff. If not, barring an upset, Oklahoma or Ohio State will claim the final berth.
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Todd Dewey
Todd Dewey covers sports betting for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
tdewey@reviewjournal.com … @tdewey33 on Twitter. 702-383-0354
JT Daniels’ TD pass with 48 seconds left for the Trojans made it 24-17 and caused more than $2 million in wagers on Notre Dame to swing from bettors to the books.
Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky is doubtful after suffering a shoulder injury in Sunday night’s 25-20 win over Minnesota and Chase Daniel is expected to start.
It was that type of NFL Sunday for the betting public, which saw underdogs go 6-3-2 ATS with four outright upsets.
Notre Dame, No. 3 in the College Football Playoff rankings, is a 10½-point favorite over No. 12 Syracuse on Saturday at Yankee Stadium in the week’s marquee matchup.
Underdogs were 7-4-1 ATS on Sunday with outright upsets by the Titans, Browns, Bills, Redskins and Cowboys.
Paul Stone has a stunning 45-15-3 record against the spread (75 percent) to lead the Golden Nugget’s $1,000-entry Ultimate Football Challenge.
The unlikely ending resulted in a swing of more than $1 million in favor of bettors at Las Vegas sports books: mid six figures at MGM Resorts and William Hill, six figures at the Westgate and just shy of six figures at Caesars Entertainment.
Dubbed by some in the media as the Duffel Bag Bettor or Duffel Bag Boy, the unidentified gambler won well into six figures last weekend on an unlikely cover by Central Florida.
Technically, Ravens bettors didn’t suffer a bad beat in Sunday’s 24-23 loss to the Saints. That’s because even if Baltimore had tied the game in the final seconds, there was no guarantee it would’ve won and/or covered as a 2½- or 3-point favorite.
Two weeks before the first College Football Playoff rankings are released, let’s take a look at four matchups of teams in the AP Top 25 poll, which is often at odds with Las Vegas power ratings.
Countless other bettors also lost on Chicago and the Rams in the day’s two biggest decisions for Las Vegas sports books.
ESPN anchor Scott Van Pelt was interviewed for the keynote chat on the future of legalized, regulated sports betting in the U.S. on Wednesday at the Global Gaming Expo at the Sands and Expo Convention Center.
Home underdogs are 16-6 ATS, including 4-0 ATS on Sunday with three outright upsets.
Nurmagomedov (26-0-0), a Russian grappler, is a minus 160 favorite over McGregor, the popular plus 140 underdog from Ireland.