Desperation Play Leads To Brutal Beat For College Football Bettors

We are only two days into 2023, but the college football world already has a strong candidate for “bad beat of the year.”

The Mississippi State Bulldogs and Illinois Fighting Illini took part in the 2023 Reliaquest Bowl on Monday, marking one of the final few games of the 2022 college football season. Mississippi State took a 13-10 lead with just four seconds remaining in regulation, resulting in a push as they entered the game as 3-point favorites over Illinois. So in the end, everything turned out to be a wash for those who tried to make the relatively meaningless bowl game a tad more interesting.

Right?

Wrong.

After a touchback, the Fighting Illini had no choice but to play the game schoolyard style and lateral in hopes for a miracle win. Things started off promising, but ended in disaster for most bettors.

One of the final laterals was picked off by the Bulldogs and returned for a touchdown, pushing the difference to nine and muddying the waters for everyone. You can see the play here.

According to BetMGM Sportsbook, 64% of the total bets and 88% of the handle on this matchup was placed on the side of Illinois. That means the final play not only ruined a push, but swung things in favor of the sportsbooks.

As things have shifted into a new year, it looks as though the same bad beats are still coming for us all.