Betting on college football is not so much gambling as it is a science. Sure there is an element of chance; but isn't there in everything? Let me give an example. This week Wisconsin is playing Minnesota at home. The spread is -8.5. Would you take the points or lay the points? (As an aside, I should make something clear in case someone actually likes what they are about to read. Last season I was on a good run during college football's second season. One of my friends decided he was going to make the same plays I made. For the Texas/USC game I told him to take the points and the over, assuming he knew what I meant. In every bet, there is a favorite and an underdog. The favorite is always minus (-) something and the underdog is always plus (+) something; the favorite is expected to win by at least that many points. If someone tells you to take the points, it means bet on the dog, they should be able to beat the spread; lay the points means take the favorite, they should be able to cover the spread. Can you see where my friend would go wrong? I was telling him to take the underdog, Texas ,and he took USC. If only he had listened.)
So, if you know college football, you are probably thinking "I don't know BAP, Big Ten games are usually close." This is where betting becomes more of a science. Wisconsin, at 5-1 this season, is currently ranked #25 in the nation. Their only loss was to National Championship contender Michigan (Go Big Blue!). Minnesota, on the other hand, is merely 2-4 and 0-3 in Big Ten games; their wins came against Kent St. and Temple (which hasn't won a game since 2004). Wisconsin has the number 1 rated defense in the Big Ten; they are first against the pass and second against the run. Wisconsin also has one of the top offenses, including their running game. Minnesota, on the other, has the second worst defense in the Big Ten and are terrible against the run (Wisconsin's strength; P.J. Hill, Jr., you are needed at the main stage). Although Minnesota has a decent offense, they rely on the passing game, which plays into Wisconsin's defensive strength. So, to me the choice is clear, you lay the points. Wisconsin should win by more then 8.5 points. I do not feel as though I am gambling so much as hoping Wisconsin just plays its normal game. (Update: Wisconsin 48, Minnesota 12...the greatest mind of this century, I kid you not)
Why am I telling you all this? Well, it is because one time I truly did take a risk; I was truly gambling. Thankfully, it paid off. You see, the reason I call My Better Half my better half is because she is truly amazing. Had Vegas put odds on me actually winning her over, I probably would have been a heavy underdog; the spread would probably have been somewhere in the 44.5 range (aka BAP +44.5). The pre-game stats looked like this: she was a freshman in college while I was a senior, 3.5 years her elder; my previous girlfriend had done a number on my psyche and desire to be in a relationship; she had been burned by several dirtbags in the recent past; and neither of us were actually looking for love at the time. Clearly, the odds were against us.
So, I threw my risk adverse ways aside and took a chance. It is not everyday that an incredibly smart, smoking hot (if you're wondering whether your better half is smoking hot, perform the following test: have her wear a long sleeve t-shirt and a pair of flannel pajama-pants, no make-up and her hair up in a ponytail. If she still looks amazing and you are still uncontrollably attracted to her, congratulations, you have yourself a smoking hot better half...but I digress), extremely dedicated, and ovlerly passionate young woman enters your life.
We met at a Glee Club retreat in Big Bear, California. This was in late-September. It started out with just a few "deep" conversations, but I knew this girl was something special. She will tell you it was the booze talking, but I know otherwise. From there, it was occasional phone calls, she would hang out with me and my friends (mind you, my friends and I treated Senior Year less as school and more as a constant drinking game), and we would watch some movies (which, in dorms, can serve as great decoys). She introduced me to her parents during the last weekend of October, a move that caught me by surprise considering we were not even really seeing eachother at that point in time.
But I knew I had found something special. It is funny how you always find what you want when you are not even looking. I mean, this is a woman who was willing to sit outside her room on a relatively cool evening and listen to me ramble on about nothing because I was drunk. Finally, though, I got her to go on a date with me. On November 4th, I took her to a Kings game...shocking. Had the Kings won, I am pretty sure I would have been able to make it official that night. Instead, it was November 15th. And the rest, they say, is history.
Well, that was nearly four years ago; and now, I am almost sure you are wondering why I even told you all of this. But, if you are in love, and I mean truly in love, you do not have to ask; you already know. My Better Half has been in South Africa for last 20 days and today could not get here fast enough. I felt it best to relive those first two months because I want the whole world to know just how I feel. I want My Better Half to know that when I tell her I miss her like crazy, I am not saying it because I feel obligated too, but because I actually do.
Sometimes you take the points.
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