The J-Dub Gambling Challenge 2020: Week 12 – The “High Water” Edition

When you hit the apex of a winning streak, there’s a colloquialism calling it a “high water mark.” But for every one of you whose riding high on the tides of victory, there’s somebody drowning in the deep water.” I’m not talking about the bookie paying you on Monday; nobody should ever feel sorry for a bookie. I used to be one, and I know exactly how the proverbial deck is stacked against the player. No matter what, the book always makes good.

Rather I’m talking about guys like Michigan State’s head coach Mel Tucker. His Spartans broke my dismal streak on the “Payday of the Week” play, but while I’m chasing a big winner, poor Mel is in the deep water. You see, Mel committed the mortal sin of building Colorado State into a solid program, and his reward was getting the top job in East Lansing.

The problem is nobody told him the Red Cedar River was about to crest it’s banks to flood Spartan football with a dearth of appreciable talent. The dirty little secret about Michigan State is while the school’s administration was mired in the Larry Nassar/USA Gymnastics scandal, nobody paid any attention to the fact then-head football coach Mark D’Antonio really stopped being an effective recruiter right up until the time he skulked out of town in February 2020.

In other words, Mel Tucker has proven himself to be a pretty damn good football coach, and his reward for doing so is putting out the trash fire that is Michigan State football. Ironically, the water that’s slowly rising over his head won’t help extinguish the football fire which will eventually be held to his feet.

And as a gambler is wont to do, I’m going to try to turn as much of Mel Tucker’s misfortunes into folding money as I possibly can. Hopefully, this past week’s “Payday of the Week” is the start of something big, but we all know it probably won’t, the fickly fate to f the gambling gods being what it is. So, I’m enjoying this week while I can; J-Dub Gambling Challenge bankroll netted a profit of $1,030, leaving the season total at $7,184…up from the original 5K.

Nothing personal, Coach Tucker…it’s just business.

LEGAL DISCLAIMER (mandated by our very own Small Town Pizza Lawyer):

Thanks to the Supreme Court, gambling is no longer illegal at Bushwood, sir. However, the Supreme Court can’t really help me for one over-arching reason.

Unless one of them is willing to keep Mrs. J-Dub from braining me with a cast-iron skillet if she found out how many dimes I’m dropping on college football; they are of no use to me. That means that as far as she knows, all wagers are mythical in nature and this is in no way, shape, or form a gambling advice column. In other words, if you lose your own “real” money, that’s nobody’s fault but yours, so don’t yell at me when we meet at the plasma center on Monday.

Having said that, let’s get ready to gamble…

The Standard Plays

• Syracuse at Louisville (-18.5) O/U 56.5 $50 Louisville
• Indiana at Ohio State (-20.5) O/U 66.5 $200 Indiana
• Louisiana State (-2.5) at Arkansas (O/U) 63.5 $250 Louisiana State
• UCLA at Oregon (-13.5) O/U 66.5 $200 Oregon
• Iowa (-2.5) at Penn State O/U 47 $75 Iowa, $75 Under
• Wisconsin (-7) at Northwestern O/U 44 $100 Wisconsin
• Mississippi State at Georgia (-25) O/U 44.5 $150 Over
• Michigan (-10.5) at Rutgers O/U 55 $75 Rutgers
• Oklahoma (-7) at Oklahoma State O/U 59 $100 Oklahoma
• Southern California (-3) at Utah O/U 58 $125 Utah

The Almost Always Punitive Purdue Bet

Since I live in the heart of Big Ten country, almost literally in the shadow of Ross-Ade stadium, those around me who know I’m a gambler will invariably ask me about the Boilermakers, so I might as well bet on them…

Purdue (-3) at Minnesota O/U 61.5 $50 Minnesota

The Dubsism College Football Heavyweight Champ Bet:

We went back to the very first college football game in 1869, and the premise is simple…you’re the champ until somebody beats you. The current champion is the Auburn Tigers

Tennessee at Auburn (-11.5) O/U 50.5 $150 Auburn

J-Dub’s Payday of the Week:

It’s like the game says…the idea is to hang on to your cash. That means this is the “big play” of the week; the one that should make today “Payday.”

Missouri (-7.5) at South Carolina O/U 57

$500 South Carolina

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