How Boise State ruined my dreams of turning a free sports bet into more than $1,000
I hate Boise State.
Blue is an ugly color for a football field. Broncos are grotesque creatures. The 2007 Fiesta Bowl is the most overrated game in college football history. Kellen Moore is the worst offensive coordinator in the NFL. Idaho potatoes make me want to puke.
No criticism is out of bounds. Why?
Because the Broncos cost me $1,187.13 on Saturday when they played like a FCS team and lost to Oregon State 34-17. Sports betting became legal in the state of Kansas last week, and I celebrated the occasion by trying to turn promotional free bets (from Bet MGM, Draft Kings and Fan Duel) into large piles of cash.
I did pretty well for myself and finished the weekend about $250 richer than I started. Turns out, playing with house money is as fun as the expression makes it sound.
But I missed out on a much bigger payday when Boise State screwed up the last part of a six-leg college football parlay I made on Saturday. The first five picks of my parlay all hit. The Broncos and Beavers were the final game of the day. If Boise State could win, or lose by less than a field goal (+2.5), the silly $25 free bet I made was going to net me a huge profit.
Alas, my dreams were dashed before halftime. Boise State turned the ball over five times, missed two field goals and never really had a chance. The Broncos did give my bet a glimmer of hope when they crawled to within 10 points, 27-17, midway through the fourth quarter, but it was just a tease.
It might not qualify as a bad beat, but it was most definitely a painful game to stay up past midnight watching.
Too bad, because up until that game everything was coming up Millhouse for yours truly. The first two legs of my parlay hit in dramatic fashion. I picked the under of 54.5 in the Georgia/Oregon game and the Bulldogs came up with some clutch stops in the fourth quarter to win 49-3. I went with the over of 62 in UTSA/Houston, and I won despite only 48 points being scored in regulation. Triple-overtime to the rescue!
Then Notre Dame (+17) played hard against Ohio State and covered. USC (-32.5) kicked it into high gear and walloped Rice. Next up: Texas (-37.5) steamrolled Louisiana-Monroe.
The stars were aligning. Even against 47.4-to-1 odds, I let myself believe I could win. I was only one game away, for crying out loud.
It was at about this point that I texted a friend and told him I was going streaking through town like Will Ferrell’s character in Old School if Boise State finished off the bet.
Instead, here I am several days later fully clothed and cursing everything that has to do with the Broncos.
That’s the downside to parlay bets. Even when you get five of your six picks right, you still lose.
For the record, I’m not actually going to hold a grudge (at least for too long) against Boise State. I lived in Idaho for three years and have enjoyed all my visits to its capital city. Also, the beauty of playing with house money is that when you lose you aren’t out anything, other than the thought of what might have been.
I’m ready to get back on the saddle and try another college football parlay this weekend. I can’t let my remaining free bets go to waste. Or maybe I will stick to more traditional wagers.
None of my big winners have been long shots thus far. I was extremely confident that Nevada (+120 money line) would beat Texas State and the Wolf Pack came through for me, winning 38-14 after I placed a pair of free $50 bets on them in different betting apps. Oklahoma (-30.5) also covered for me against UTEP on a $25 free bet.
Have I mentioned how beautiful Norman and Reno are this time of year?
I made the mistake of betting against Alabama to cover a spread, and that cost me $15 in free bets. Illinois also spurned me when it coughed up a late lead against Indiana. I thought North Texas might beat SMU and it lost by a million. Wish I could have that one back.
It was far from a perfect week. Luckily, Draft Kings and Fan Duel both gave users some gifts. They let you bet up to $50 on over/under bets that paid if K-State scored a single point against South Dakota. Same if Notre Dame at Ohio State and West Virginia at Pittsburgh didn’t end in shutouts. Thanks for the $150.
I wish bets were always that easy.
Two other fun bets I made were of the futures variety.
I put a free $50 bet on the Kansas City Chiefs’ playoff odds. My favorite one was to win the Super Bowl in hopes it will pay me $500 by the end of the season. There are actually quite a few interesting bets you can make involving the Chiefs, or any other NFL team. I plan on looking into those more this week as the pro games begin.
For grins and giggles, I also put $25 down on the Kansas Jayhawks to win more than 2.5 games this season. I’m feeling pretty good about that bet, and my prediction that they won’t finish last in the Big 12, after watching them beat Tennessee Tech 56-10 last week.
Did you know Kansas has covered the spread in four straight games?
Wish I could go back and include KU on my six-leg parlay instead of the Broncos. They are dead to me.
This story was originally published September 7, 2022 at 10:10 AM.