Let's handle our business.
Here's today's A2 column from some round-headed fellow, and for our new visitors looking for an answer to the question posed on A2 in this morning's fish-wrapper, welcome. All of those are real prop bets available on various online sites except "Which will be higher, Tiger Woods' first-round score at the Masters or Cam Akers' rushing total?"
This week's Rushmores
Rushmore of drinks named after a person. We decided to do two, since I was not clear and brands like Dr. Pepper and Jack Daniel's are people we suppose. Add Mr. Pibb to the list because I don't want anyone thinking we're uppity and favor folks with a title. Also, Jose Cuervo, although he's no friend of mine. As for the others, the Arnold Palmer is far left, followed by the Shirley Temple, the Rob Roy and a Tom Collins.
Rushmore of iconic TV moments for musicians. Wow, Ed Sullivan landed two with Elvis and the Beatles. Loved the suggestion of Sinead O'Connor ripping the Pope's photo on SNL, which all but ended her career in a lot of ways, but the final two in my mind are Super Bowl-related. I think the wardrobe malfunction during halftime is there and Whitney's amazing lip-synched National Anthem is too.
Rushmore of Mary. Well, Jesus' momma is far left, right? And there's Merry Christmas. And Proud Mary (concur Tina's version is tops) and "There's Something About Mary" with all apologies to Mary Tyler Moore, Mary Todd Lincoln, Mary Lou Retton and a slew of others.
Rushmore of the best movies of the 1970s. Wow, this one became difficult. "Star Wars" and "Godfather" are no-doubters. If we are not going to separate, and after doing some research we learned that "Road House" was 1988 not '78, the final two spots are "Animal House" and probably "Taxi Driver." And that's with full apologies to a slew of Jack Nicholson movies in that decade that were great, "Blazing Saddles" of course, and my favorite big-screen Western of all-time, "The Outlaw Josey Wales."
You still have time to enter the props contest. Put your entry in the comments or email them to me at jgreeson@timesfreepress.com.
As for the props, well, let's get to it, and today I've added my picks (in parentheses).
- Heads or tails? (Heads)
- Color of the Gatorade used to douse the winning coach? (Blue)
- National Anthem, over/under 102 seconds. (Under, this one feels so low, it's like Vegas knows something)
- Who scores the first TD? (OBJ)
- Who scores the last TD? (Ja'Marr Chase)
- Which player will have the most receiving yards? (OBJ)
- Who wins the MVP? (Aaron Donald)
- Tie-breaker: Combined total yards gained in the Super Bowl, and remember "The Price is Right" rules apply, meaning that if you guess 856, and there are 855 yards gained, you would lose to someone who entered 1 yard. (749)
Who's with me?
To the bag, and we have lots of Super Bowl chatter as you would expect.
From Double H
A 24-person suite at SoFi is only going for $907K. Do your 23 guests have their bags packed?
HH -
Yeah, you know how well newspaper folks get paid. I think I can scrape that together from the couch cushions and from the ashtray in my 2004 Tahoe.
Wowser that's a chunk of change and is only doable by the super-, Super-, SUPER-wealthy.
But the Super Bowl has become super pricey. I think we all knew the commercials were $7 million for 30 seconds. (And they sold out like wildfire.)
Here are some of the prices I found for the Super experience:
The cheapest ticket I could find was a single in the upper deck overlooking the corner of the end zone for $4,898. And that's down close to a grand over the last 36 hours or so.
The average ticket price is around $8,700.
The Midas Repair Shop in Inglewood is offering parking for Sunday at the tidy price of $1,500.
From Brian
I'm going to a Super Bowl party and wanted to have some random facts to throw out and I immediately thought of you.
Help a guy look smart.
Brian -
Well, the price stuff above is always good. The TV numbers - expected more than 100 million viewers - and almost all of the top-10 most-watched shows in U.S. history are Super Bowls. (It's nine of the top 10, with the final "M.A.S.H." episode clocking in at No. 9, and 28 of the top 30.)
That said, the single-day event that was most-watched around the world was the 2.5 billion who watched Michael Jackson's memorial service in July of 2009.
You can find player details - like the fact that if you want a local rooting interest, the Bengals have Vonn Bell of Ridgeland High School in North Georgia and kicker Evan McPherson, who is from Fort Payne, Ala. - just about anywhere and they can be as obscure as you want.
Here is one more for everyone. You can register to win a free DiGiorno's here. But in this pizza 'pi' giveaway, after registering, the frozen pizza maker will select 1,500 winners to get a "pi" if the score is 3-14 (get it) at any point of the game.
And if any player finishes with exactly 314 passing yards, there are more than 3.14 turnovers, or if any scoring drive lasts exactly 3:14, one lucky winner will win 267 DiGiorno's pizzas.
From Larry
Jay, who are you rooting for Sunday?
Larry -
In truth, I want a score-fest that is entertaining.
I want the commercials to be funny and not overly political.
I want to not notice the officials.
I want the halftime show to be free of issues that cause us consternation come Monday.
I want the best team Sunday to win. I want the former SEC QB throwing to the former LSU star wideout to prevail.
I want my wings to be spicy - they will be - and my CoColas cold.
Mostly, I want my parlays to pay and my picks to be sweet.
With that, give me the Rams and lay the 4 and I think the game goes under. So there you go, and as Vader will tell you, that assuredly means Bengals win outright and there will be 60-plus points scored.
So it goes.
(In truth, I think it would be a cool story for Matt Stafford to win it all, but I also think this could be a Brady-like springboard for Joe Burrow and Cincy. Gang, with all that cap space and the simple fact of having Joe Cool behind center for the next decade, the Bengals are going to be a) an attractive free-agent destination, and b) a handful for the foreseeable future.)
From Pat
Any last-minute betting tips?
Pat -
Sure. Have fun with it. And stay within your means. Set a limit, especially if you are kicking back a few CoColas because the availability of in-game betting can get away from you in a heartbeat friends.
As for picks. I think you can still get plus money on non-touchback on the opening kickoff, and that's my favorite bet on the board.
I also like non-QB MVP at plus-250 (bet $100, win $250) and whatever the first-quarter under is because I think both sides are going to be jacked and nervous at the same time. (Cincinnati has failed to score an opening possession TD in something like 16 of their 20 games this season, and each team is in the middle of the pack in first-quarter scoring average.)
I also like Odell Beckham to score the first TD at plus-900, Rams over 3.5 sacks, and how about this flyer.
Bengals kicker Evan McPherson at +13000 to win the MVP?
From anonymous
I've used a "neighborhood" entertainment broker for years. I'm sure you do as well, or did at one point. So what's going to happen to - Johnny in Opelika we'll call him - when every state legalizes it? Because while Johnny is an EXCELLENT auto mechanic, he really likes that extra walking-around money. I know you know one of those guys - maybe on the Plains, maybe not - that doesn't come across as your stereotypical entertainment broker if you see him at the grocery store but secretly has quite the book of business. Do you think there is a long game for them anymore or will my generation (I'm 32) phase them out with the online/legal options?
Second question: Which online/legal platform do you prefer? It seems like FanDuel is paying anyone with a microphone to promote.
Anonymous -
This is a great question and I'm surprised there has not been more done on folks like Johnny in Opelika.
For the most part they are going to be phased out, with some exceptions because older folks are a) set in their ways, and b) not overly interested in the online ways.
And in truth, the secrecy - be it from having stuff online or even from family members - and the cash aspect of dealing with Johnny in Opelika still will fill a void for some.
But by and large, the corner bookie will be as commonplace as an afternoon newspaper sooner rather than later.
The number I saw is that 32 states - plus D.C. - have legalized sports gambling and 16 more have legislation in the system for the upcoming session.
I don't really have a favorite of the online options, but know this gang. If you are a new player and looking to dabble this Sunday, shop around and you can find a slew of offers that will allow you to turn $10 or $20 into several hundred worths of free bets.
Great question, Anonymous. (And for about 18 months on The Plains, I was Johnny in Opelika, so yeah, they are not always Jimmy "Two Times" who goes and "Gets, the papers, gets the papers.")
From JoeDon
JG -
So many gambling levels this weekend, so I was wondering: What are your favorite gambling movies? In a related question, what are your favorite "big payoff" movie scenes (not necessarily a gambling plot to the entire movie)?
Gambling movies for me are: "Casino Royale," "Maverick," "The Gambler" and "Rain Man."
Best "Big Payoffs": "Casino Royale," "Focus," "The Parent Trap" and "Vegas Vacation."
Let it ride!
JoeDon -
Great question. And one I spent way too long on.
In fact, it's funny you have "Let it Ride" as your tagline because that is a criminally underrated Richard Dreyfus movie about horse racing that may back both lists.
I'm going to have to think about this one for a bit, and I'm running short on the clock.
Let's reconvene around lunch? Deal? Deal.
Have a great weekend friends.