Props to You!

To be perfectly honest, I'm not much of a football fan. Actually, I'm not much for watching a sporting event of ANY kind though I will watch baseball occasionally or the local college hoops team (since I work for them). Otherwise? meh!

While the upcoming Super Bowl will garner millions upon millions of viewers, even some just in it for the clever commercials, I will not be among those glued to the set. I'll probably be out trying to clear the remains of the upcoming winter storm from the driveway and working on the second of my winter sculptures. There IS one thing that fascinates me about the Super Bowl...really, about ANY major sporting event: the number and type of prop bets on which one can lay a wager in Vegas. 

These bets are totally unrelated to the outcome of the game and focus on the minutiae surrounding it, like, "Will the coin flip end up heads or tails?" A person who so wishes can place a bet on almost any facet of the event, and there will be a betting line in Vegas. Want proof? Here are some of the prop bets for this year's Big Game:

1. Will any player from either the Ravens or the 49ers be arrested this week? (odds are 5/1)

2. Will either of the Harbaugh parents be seen on television wearing clothing with a team logo? (bet on "no.")

3. What will be the duration of the pre-game handshake/hug between the coaching brothers? (over/under at 7.5 seconds)

4. If Ray Lewis is interviewed after the game, how many times will he use the word "God" or "Lord"?

5. Will the television ratings be higher in San Francisco or in Baltimore?

6. Who will President Obama pick? (vote for an on-the-fence-response!)

7. What will be the highest numbers of tweets in any given minute of the broadcast? (over/under is 15,000. really)

8. What color will the Gatorade be that gets splashed on the winning coach? (odds favor water, yellow, or orange. Not so good for green, red, or blue)

9. How long will it take Alicia Keys to sing the National Anthem? (over/under 2:15)  What are the odds she will omit or forget at least one word?

10 Beyonce gets the most prop bets I could find.

a. Will Jay-Z appear on stage with her at half time?

b. Will her hair be curly or straight at the beginning of her performance?

c. What color top will she be wearing at the beginning of the performance? (don't bet on green)

d. Will there be anything like a "wardrobe malfunction"?

While I think all of this is incredibly entertaining, I cannot place a bet on any of them. Employed by the athletics department of an NCAA institution, I would lose my job if discovered doing such a thing. really.

Enjoy the game, the commercials, and all the gut-bomb food you'll eat. I'll be outside and willing to read about it on Monday when everyone else skips work.