Four weeks into gambling on college football, and I have good news and bad news. The good news is I am firmly not an addict. You people that find this fun are a mystery to me. Never once have I thought “You know what would make me like sports more? If it included homework!”. The bad news is that I am still down overall.
But look, as I have said over and over, this is about observing how my behavior changes in terms of consuming information. We’re at a point where gambling is just part of sports now. Even in states where legalization has virtually no prayer, we have seen legislators make the pitch and try to sell their colleagues. As a programmer, dismissing bettors with “I don’t get it” or “it’s just not for me” aren’t really options anymore.
Now, four weeks into consuming information, placing bets and winning upon occassion, I have noticed three things about the way I am consuming media and information. I think they are worth sharing and remembering.
1. IT’S NEVER TOO EARLY TO TALK ABOUT THE NEXT GAME
I have listened to traditional sports radio shows that make time to talk about gambling and make picks. I have listened to gambling specific shows. When I am listening on a Monday, I always have the same thought: reviews are a waste of my time. That money has already either been collected or lost. Who cares what you think about it now?
Conversley, I want to know how quickly to jump on early lines. My book of choice publishes its lines for the upcoming week of college football every Sunday at 8 pm. I don’t often make a bet that early, but I do want to get a lay of the land.
On Monday, I want to hear if the experts are seeing value where I do or if they have some stat or information that I was unaware of and could make me reconsider what my gut is telling me. As a listener, my wallet matters more than your ego as a host.
Do we think of entertainment as a service industry enough? That is what sports radio is. We want our listeners to be happy they spent time with us. Approach that goal like a waiter or bartender would. Make it your goal to meet their needs.
2. WE ALL HAVE FAVORITES
Every host’s goal should be to be his or her listeners’ “guy” – the person whose opinion they cannot wait to hear on the biggest stories. Well, I certainly have noticed that my picks are not set until I hear from my guy – ESPN’s Bill Connelly.
I have been a fan of Bill’s since he and Steven Godfrey were hosting Podcast Ain’t Played Nobody for SB Nation. I have always found his SP+ ratings to be one of the most accurate ways to determine who the best teams in the country actually are. I usually don’t start sprinkling my money around until he drops his numbers on Wednesdays.
That doesn’t extend so much to show hosts that talk gambling. I heard one show that brings a different handicapper on every week. Speaking for myself, that just doesn’t work. Pick one expert. Use your audience’s trust in you to build the audience’s trust in him or her. Decide what matters most to your show (record, personality, access, etc.) and lean into it!
3. PERSONALITY STILL MATTERS
This last one is so very important. If you don’t have a personality or a sense of humor, you’re doing this wrong. Being focused on numbers and outcomes and being entertaining do not have to be mutually exclusive. It is all in delivery.
Content is king, right? We say that in every sector of the entertainment business. Sports betting is no different. Give me a reason to think about two teams I do not know enough about. Don’t just load me up with stats. Give me some history of a particular rivalry or a team in a specific situation.
Does your pick fly in the face of what the numbers say? Tell me why. It has to be more than just “I have a feeling”. A couple of weeks ago, I heard someone (honestly, I do not remember who) say that despite what the conventional wisdom was, he was taking Texas over Oklahoma straight up. He knew Oklahoma was more talented. He knew they were favored. His reason was that he didn’t trust Lincoln Riley to make a hard decision about his quarterback because he had never had to. He expected Riley to not waiver from the idea that Spencer Rattler had a better chance of turning his luck around than Caleb Williams did of digging Oklahoma out of a hole.
It was a point I had not thought of. Oklahoma wins the Big 12 Championship so often that it is easy to forget that Lincoln Riley hasn’t been there very long and hasn’t been faced with much real adversity. I was sold and also put a little cash on the Texas moneyline.
Now, turns out that Riley was willing to make that tough call. It turns out that Caleb Williams was very well-equipped to dig Oklahoma out of a hole. The expert was wrong. I was wrong, but as someone looking at this from a content and audience behavior perspective, I consider this a win for me and him because it got me engaged in a game that I was planning to stay away from.
Overall, I am in the red around $25 for the season. That’s not too bad, right? Look at my performance last weekend. I am definitely getting better at this!
College football has always been my favorite sport and I have always treated it like our Native American brothers and sisters did the buffalo – using and enjoying all parts. Gambling has not made this a better experience for me, but it has opened my eyes to the way those that do gamble experience and consume sports talk.
That audience is growing, and so cataloging these lessons is important. I’ll do this again in another month as the sun is beginning to set on the regular season.
Demetri Ravanos is a columnist and features writer for Barrett Media. He is also the creator of The Sports Podcast Festival, and a previous host on the Chewing Clock and Media Noise podcasts. He occasionally fills in on stations across the Carolinas in addition to hosting Panthers and College Football podcasts. His radio resume includes stops at WAVH and WZEW in Mobile, AL, WBPT in Birmingham, AL and WBBB, WPTK and WDNC in Raleigh, NC.
You can find him on Twitter @DemetriRavanos or reach him by email at DemetriTheGreek@gmail.com.
