For mayors and governors, along with owners of breweries, doughnut shops, it’s on -- with numerous friendly wagers in the works for this Sunday’s Super Bowl.
It’s Brunswick stew vs. clam chowder. It’s one spinning ride against another.
It’s Kane's Donuts against Atlanta's Sublime Doughnut.
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker placed a low-stakes wager on the outcome of Sunday's Super Bowl matchup between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots.
Baker offered Koffee Kup’s lucky cupcakes and Legal Sea Foods clam chowder for his wager. Deal countered with Brunswick Stew from Fresh Air BBQ and chocolate-covered blueberries from Byne Blueberry.
Here’s some of the fun, in some cases wacky wagers:
Credit: Courtesy of Sublime Doughnuts
Credit: Courtesy of Sublime Doughnuts
Sweet bet:
Sports trash talk is one thing, but when doughnuts get involved, things start getting real. Maria Delios, who owns Kane's Doughnuts in Boston, fired the first shot in an Instagram video by betting Atlanta's Sublime Doughnuts a dozen of their "Go Pats" doughnuts that the New England Patriots would defeat the Atlanta Falcons in next week's Super Bowl.
Not one to take smack talk lying down, Sublime Doughnuts owner Kamal Grant posted his own video (while sporting a colorful T-shirt tribute to his love of doughuts), telling Delios that he “looks forward to eating your doughnuts, because I know the Atlanta Falcons will destroy the Patriots in the Super Bowl,” and offering up a dozen of Sublime’s Falcons-themed doughnuts “in the small case that they lose.”
A beer throwdown for the ages
The founders of Atlanta’s Scofflaw Brewing Company and Shipyard Brewing Company, which is based in Portland, Maine, are each so confident that their respective team will win in this weekend’s Super Bowl that they’re wagering a pretty hefty prize (as far as these things go).
The losing brewery will have to brew a special batch of beer from a recipe chosen by the winning brewery. The beer recipe must include indigenous ingredients from the winner's state, and will be named by the winning brewery. On tapping day, the losing brewery must fly the winning football team's flag for one week or until the beer is gone, whichever comes first. The losing team will also send a case of its beer to the winner.
Credit: Jason Getz, USA TODAY Sports
Credit: Jason Getz, USA TODAY Sports
Super Bowl bet: Mayor in Hall County Gets In On Action
The mayor of Flowery Branch, where the Atlanta Falcons' headquarters and training complex is located, also got into the action, the Gainesville Times reported. Mike Miller has made a wager with David Feldman, the chairman of the governing board of Foxborough, Mass., where the New England Patriots play their home games. Miller has bet a case of Big Red gum, courtesy of the Wrigley's plant in the Hall County city, coffee from Common Grounds, cookies from Calliope Sweets, and treats from Liberty Candy Company, according to the report.
Reached by email Tuesday, Feldman said Miller "will be eating well with New England lobsters, clam chowder and spring rolls, if the Falcons come out on top. Feldman said he'd also throw in cupcakes and coffee, and pajamas so Miller can sleep well after his feast," according to the Gainesville Times.
Six Flags New England and Six Flags Over Georgia are run by the same company, but this weekend's Super Bowl makes the two rivals.
If the Patriots win, the Georgia park will temporarily rename its 24-story spinning swing ride the Patriots SkyScreamer and serve New England clam chowder when it opens for the season, according to the Associated Press. Should the Falcons win, the Massachusetts park will rename its similar ride the Falcons SkyScreamer and serve Georgia peach pie.
A look at Super Bowl odds: anthem, Lady Gaga’s hair, Ryan vs. soccer game
AJC’s sports columnist Jeff Schulz writes there is “gambling, there is entertainment and then there is a degenerate level of gambling that some might consider a form of entertainment, unless of course your next mortgage payment depends on whether you nailed the right color of the Gatorade.”
Here he writes about some of his favorite Super Bowl props that are posted with online oddsmaker Bovada or in some Las Vegas casinos. (Odds of the more mainstream variety have New England favored by three points over the Falcons, with the over/under set at 58.5 points.)
- Over/under for the length of the national anthem, sung by Luke Bryan: 2 minutes, 9 seconds.
- Luke Bryan's pants: Blue jeans (1-2) is a favorite over any other pants or shorts (3-2).
- Over/under on how many times "Trump" will be said during the broadcast: 1.5.
Rep. John Lewis Accepts the Challenge
The talk these days on Capitol Hill is all the titan match-up between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots. It's NFC versus AFC, best offense versus best defense, South versus North—a classic American showdown. Rep. John Lewis, definitely a man willing to test the odds, accepted the challenge and bet on the Atlanta Falcons to emerge as the champions of Super Bowl LI.
“Two of my colleagues reached out to me to take a chance on the Super Bowl,” said Rep. Lewis in a press release. “I warned them it wasn’t wise to bet against Atlanta, but they insisted. They think experience will win over the rising star. I reminded them that a rising star can be blinding. They told me to check their team’s record, consult the history. That’s when I knew we had it in the bag. I’d match Atlanta’s history against the best any day. Only time will tell, but it may be time for America’s team to move South for the winter. Rise up, Falcons!”
“With four Super Bowl titles under our belt and an impressive 14-2 season this year, I have no doubts: the Patriots are going to bring another Vince Lombardi Trophy back to New England. I look forward to another year of bragging rights over Congressman Lewis and all of my colleagues who aren’t fortunate enough to be a part of Pats Nation,” said Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI) in the release. “Go Pats!”
Rep. Langevin bet Rep. Lewis a sumptuous New England lobster dinner, and Rep. Lewis bet a signed copy of a historic Life magazine featuring Atlanta’s world-class civil rights history.
When the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons go head to head on Sunday,” Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) said, “I'm confident that the Patriots will do their job," said Moulton. "So I'm very excited to welcome Congressman Lewis to Massachusetts for a Day of Service.”
Rep. Moulton bet Rep. Lewis a service day in each other’s district. If the Falcons win, Rep. Moulton will help out somewhere in Atlanta’s 5th, and if the Pats win, Rep. Lewis will travel to Massachusetts to lend a hand.
Emory’s Winship Cancer Institute doctors initiated a challenge with Boston doctors.
Winship staff challenged the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston on Facebook that If the Falcons win, the docs at Dana Farber have to wear Falcons jerseys. If the Patriots win, Winship folks will wear their colors. It's on!
Response:
A Running Wager
Atlanta Track Club and the Boston Athletic Association have agreed to a friendly agreement based on the outcome of the big game. Depending on the winner of Super Bowl LI, members of Atlanta Track Club or the B.A.A. will have to pose with the winning team’s jersey on a run around their city and post the photo on social media.
If the Falcons win, the B.A.A. High Performance team will run around Boston College’s Alumni Stadium with a jersey of Falcons quarterback and BC alum Matt Ryan. If the Patriots win, members of Atlanta Track Club Elite will have to run and pose with a Tom Brady Patriots’ jersey in front of the Georgia Dome.
In addition, the team from the losing city will have to run a certain number of miles with the jersey based on the game’s final score. If the winning team scores 35 points, then either Atlanta Track Club or the B.A.A. will cumulatively need to run 35 miles with the jersey.
“We believe our Atlanta Falcons will rise up and win the Super Bowl – so much so, we decided on a fun wager with our friends at the Boston Athletic Association,” said Rich Kenah, executive director of Atlanta Track Club in a press release.
"It's good to have a little fun with our friends from the Atlanta Track Club as we root for the Patriots to complete the Drive for Five," said B.A.A. CEO Tom Grilk in the release. "We stand as solidly with the Patriots as they have with everyone in New England who has supported the marathon. We are one community.”
Super Bowl 2017: 5 bets that favor Falcons
The Falcons have reached the end zone on their opening drive in eight straight games. One of the odds in Falcons’ favor suggest Julio Jones (9/2) or Devonta Freeman (5/1) put six up on the board first -- even if the Falcons opt to defer as they have most often this season when wining the coin toss.
