We’ve all heard the saying: “Every dog has its day.”
Well, sometimes every underdog has its day, too.
A Hard Rock Bet customer found that out over the weekend and turned $250 into more than $30,000.
On the flip side, a BetMGM customer made a $1.8 million donation to the house on the Oregon–Penn State game.
More on those bets, along with other major wagers and notable plays in NFL and college football betting this past weekend.
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Dog Pile
Underdogs were barking in college football on Saturday, and one bettor had the foresight to string five of them together in a $250 moneyline parlay at Hard Rock Bet:
- Illinois +200 vs. USC
- Cincinnati +165 vs. Kansas
- Wagner +130 vs. Norfolk State
- Alabama +115 vs. Georgia
- Oregon +150 vs. Penn State
Yes, the bettor went off the grid a bit by taking an FCS team in Wagner. But value is where you find it, people.
Relatively speaking, those five teams were modest underdogs. No long shots among them.
Still, it’s not easy to hit any five-leg parlay, let alone one featuring three road teams, with two of them playing in extremely hostile territory: Alabama and Oregon, playing at Georgia and at Penn State, respectively.
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Illinois, the biggest underdog in that batch, blew all of a 14-point second-half lead vs. visiting USC. But the Fighting Illini got a final-second field goal to win 34-32.
Cincinnati got a last-minute touchdown at Kansas to win 37-34. Wagner topped Norfolk State 18-13. Then the two highest-profile ‘dogs won outright on the road.
Alabama took out Georgia 24-21, and Oregon won a double-overtime thriller at Penn State 30-24.
Add those all up, and you’ve got odds of +9728, or just more than 97/1. Plus, the bettor utilized a 25% profit boost offer. So that $250 became a hefty $30,650.59.
Seven Figures Flushed
While the aforementioned parlay cashed out with Oregon’s win, a BetMGM customer at Borgata Sports — a BetMGM sportsbook in Atlantic City — waived goodbye to a whopping $1.8 million.
The bettor went all in on Penn State moneyline -175. This meant that the Nittany Lions, who were playing at home among their white-out-frenzied fans, just had to win the game — regardless of margin.
It looked pretty bleak when Penn State trailed 17-3 with 12:25 remaining. But the Nittany Lions gave the bettor hope by scoring the final 14 points of regulation, including a TD with 30 seconds left to tie it at 17 and force overtime.
Both teams traded touchdowns in the first OT, and Oregon got a TD on its drive to open the second OT. Then on the next play, Penn State QB Drew Allar threw an interception.
Game over. Ouch.
Wherefore Art Thou, Romeo?
If you were looking for Green Bay Packers wideout Romeo Doubs on Sunday night, a good place to start was the end zone.
Doubs had three touchdowns in the most thrilling tie you’ll ever see, with the Packers and Dallas Cowboys playing to a 40-40 overtime draw.
Doubs caught two short TD passes from Jordan Love in the first half, then ran it in from 18 yards out for a fourth-quarter touchdown.
At FanDuel Sportsbook, Doubs was +10000 (that’s 100/1 in easier-to-read terms) to score three touchdowns. FanDuel didn’t note if anybody actually wagered on that prop.
But if you had tossed a hundred bucks on it, you’d be sitting on a $10,000 profit.
Sack Man Fever
Also in that Sunday night Packers-Cowboys duel, a FanDuel customer ponied up a modest $10 on a seven-leg parlay:
It took all four quarters and half of overtime, but the final leg hit when star edge rusher Micah Parsons, who was traded from Dallas to Green Bay a month ago, tripped up Dak Prescott from behind for a sack.
At odds of +21780, or about 218/1, the bettor’s 10 bucks became $2,178. That’s some pretty good ROI.
Big Bucks Blocked
There were four NFL games in Sunday’s late window, the 4:05 p.m. and 4:25 p.m. ET kickoffs. A FanDuel customer got on all eight teams in those games, by way of one interesting market: each team to score at least two touchdowns and at least two field goals.
The $50 bet had odds of +40000 (400/1). Both teams got there in the Colts–Rams/Jaguars–49ers/Ravens–Chiefs games. And the Bears did so against the Raiders.
So it was down to Las Vegas, which drove into position for a game-winning field goal — its second field goal of the game — in the final seconds.
Alas, the kick was blocked, giving Chicago a 25-24 victory. And ruining that ticket, just one successful kick away from cashing out for $20,000.
Here’s Hoping You Had It
It’s not all about cashing tickets for five or six figures. Turning a tenner into, say, a couple of hundred dollars is a great feeling, too. Heck, that aforementioned Doubs three-TD wager would’ve turned $10 into $1,000.
In Thursday’s Seahawks vs. Cardinals matchup, FanDuel Sportsbook had Seattle tight end AJ Barner +2200 to score the first touchdown. But score it he did.
If you put $10 on that prop bet, then you profited $220. I’ll take that all day, every day.
And Giants rookie QB Jaxson Dart, making his first NFL start, was +1500 to score the game’s first TD, with New York hosting the Los Angeles Chargers. Less than six minutes into the game, Dart ran it in from 15 yards out.
Ten bucks on that prop would’ve netted $150 in profit.
I Like Big Bets And I Cannot Lie
As that nearly $2 million Penn State wager showed, big money was flying on college football Week 5 odds and NFL Week 4 odds. The biggest NFL play to come across the ticker: $276,000 on Rams -5.5 vs. Colts, at Caesars Sports.
It was quite a sweat for that bettor, with the Rams down 20-13 and 8:58 remaining in the fourth quarter. But L.A. put up two touchdowns, the second with 1:22 remaining, to scratch out a 27-20 win and cover the 5.5-point spread.
The bettor in turn pocketed a massive $250,909.09 profit, for a total payout of $526,909.09.
DraftKings Sportsbook took two huge NFL bets: $250,000 on Lions moneyline -575 vs. the Browns, and $247,365 on Cowboys +7 (-115) vs. the Packers.
Take a second look at that Cowboys bet. 24/7/365. Clever, right?
As noted above, Dallas beat the spread in a 40-40 tie. So the customer profited $224,877.27 (total payout $472,242.27).
The Detroit bettor laying that -575 price didn’t get nearly as nice a payout from the Lions’ 34-10 victory. Still, the wager netted $43,478.26 (total payout $293,478.26).
Other major wagers from the weekend:
- $273,000 Raiders -2 vs. Bears (Caesars). As mentioned above, Las Vegas lost 25-24 on a final-second blocked field goal. Another big donation to the house.
- $218,000 Patriots -5.5 vs. Panthers (Caesars). This bet easily cashed in New England’s 42-13 rout, profiting $191,182 (total payout $416,182).
- $165,000 Alabama +3 vs. Georgia (DraftKings). ‘Bama won 24-21, and the bettor profited $150,000 (total payout $315,000).
- $120,000 Seahawks moneyline -120 vs. Cardinals (Caesars). Seattle won 23-20 on a final-second field goal. So the bettor pocketed $100,000 profit (total payout $220,000).
- $100,000 Steelers +2.5 vs. Vikings (Caesars). Short underdog Pittsburgh won outright 24-21. The bettor profited $90,909.09 (total payout $190,909.09).
And finally, even for a team as bad as the New Orleans Saints, there’s a tipping point. The Buffalo Bills were 14.5-point home favorites Sunday.
Saints +14.5 was enough for a Caesars customer to put up $100,000. The bettor was rewarded when New Orleans was actually in it late, down 21-19 in the fourth quarter and only lost by a dozen, 31-19.
So the bettor bagged $90,909.09 in profit (total payout $190,909.09).
Always keep in mind that these high-rollers have the means to withstand a big loss. As regular everyday Joes and Janes, we all need to keep it reasonable. Never bet more than you can afford to lose.
Patrick Everson is a sports betting analyst for FOX Sports and senior reporter for VegasInsider.com. He is a distinguished journalist in the national sports betting space. He’s based in Las Vegas, where he enjoys golfing in 110-degree heat. Follow him on Twitter: @PatrickE_Vegas.
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