“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall,” according to Proverbs. And after running my mouth about being a better handicapper than a chimp last week (the math would say I still am, by the way), and mentally tallying my wins on two separate bets well before the 4th quarter this weekend, well, I’m here to tell you it’s no lie. There may have been gambling weekends with more big leads pissed away (not to mention crazy backdoor covers), but I can’t remember one.
The BTJ system posted a couple of moneyline dog wins out of four weeknight bets to give me a 1.25 unit head start rolling into Saturday. And after picking up West Virginia at +495, Syracuse at +325, and Temple at +195, I looked primed to cash Baylor at +310 and go into Sunday with about a 2.5 unit head of steam. I’m pretty sure I turned the channel over to Oregon State for most of the second half, assuming the deed was done. And though I’ve been told it’s physically impossible, I can’t help but feel that show of disrespect played some role in the Sooners making the greatest comeback in program history and winning one for the bookie.
Not to be outdone, my very own Denver Broncos, surely knowing that I had an entire unit at +400 riding on their defeat of Kirk and the Cousinettes, proceeded to take a 20-0 score into halftime and then clock manage, game manage and just generally Fangio themselves right out of the W in the second half. This marked not only the first time a Kirk Cousins led offense looked passable against a top defense, but also the first time that my 4 year old has physically consoled me after a sports loss. Gambling is great empathy training, it turns out.
The net-net of all that is that I dropped 1.67 units on the week, so, while still in the Chimp Zone at -3.65% on the year, I’m getting further from beating the juice. Not so for Bucky, who had an incredible 6-1 this week, riding a slate of six favorites and Texas Tech to pick up 5.42 units. That puts him at -1.09% on the year and so close to being the only one of us in the black since he was in week 1.
And now for this week’s picks:
Bucky’s NCAAF Picks:
| Team | Opponent | Bet | Odds | Site | Units Wagered |
| Minnesota | Northwestern | -13.5 | -109 | GTBets.eu | 1 |
| Memphis | South Florida | -14.5 | -109 | GTBets.eu | 1 |
| Wake Forest | Duke | -7 | -114 | GTBets.eu | 1 |
| Penn State | Ohio State | 18.5 | -105 | Betonline.ag | 1 |
Bucky’s NFL Picks:
| Team | Opponent | Spread | Odds | Site | Units Wagered |
| Falcons | Buccaneers | -4 | -114 | GTBets.eu | 1 |
| Saints | Panthers | -9.5 | -109 | GTBets.eu | 1 |
| Bills | Broncos | -4 | -108 | BetOnline.ag | 1 |
My NCAAF Picks:
| Team | Opponent | Bet | Odds | Site | Units Wagered |
| BC | Notre Dame | ML | 760 | GTBets.eu | 0.5 |
| TCU | Oklahoma | ML | 720 | GTBets.eu | 0.5 |
| Penn State | Ohio State | ML | 710 | GTBets.eu | 0.5 |
| UConn | E Carolina | ML | 475 | GTBets.eu | 0.5 |
| Nevada | Fresno State | ML | 475 | BetOnline.ag | 0.5 |
| UCLA | USC | ML | 460 | GTBets.eu | 0.5 |
| TAMU | Georgia | ML | 425 | GTBets.eu | 0.5 |
| Temple | Cincy | ML | 330 | BetOnline.ag | 0.5 |
| Syracuse | Louisville | ML | 300 | Betnow.eu | 0.5 |
| Colorado State | Wyoming | ML | 215 | GTBets.eu | 1 |
| Texas | Baylor | ML | 190 | GTBets.eu | 1 |
| Coastal Carolina | UL Monroe | ML | 190 | GTBets.eu | 1 |
| SMU | Navy | ML | 155 | Betnow.eu | 1 |
| Temple | Cincy | 10.5 | -109 | GTBets.eu | 1 |
My NFL Picks:
| Team | Opponent | Bet | Odds | Site | Units Wagered |
| Colts | Texans | ML | 173 | BetOnline.ag | 1 |
| Colts | Texans | 3.5 | -105 | Betnow.eu | 1 |
| Rams | Ravens | ML | 155 | Bovada | 1 |
| Redskins | Lions | ML | 170 | Mybookie.ag | 1 |
| Panthers | Saints | ML | 384 | Betnow.eu | 1 |
| Dolphins | Browns | ML | 425 | GTBets.eu | 0.5 |
That’s all for this week. Until next time, stay sharp.