The Betting Man: Grinding Out Victory Or Grinding To A Halt?

Any good poker player knows sometimes you just have to grind.

The same can be said in sports gambling on occasion, too, and that's what The Betting Man was faced with last week. Reeling from three bath weekends in a row, the bankroll was on the verge of going kaput.

Going back to the drawing board, I tried a small parlay and a moderate bet on New England catching three points at Indianapolis. Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett made sure the parlay went up in flames, treating Troy's defense like a bunch of 90-pound weaklings.

The Pats were gold almost from the get-go, though, and covered easily despite Coach Bill Belichick's brain, uh, you know. Hey, "you know" happens.

Regardless, that win kept The Betting Man alive for at least another week. The bankroll is still on life support, but at least it's there.

This week, it's time for more grinding. I'm coming back with another college parlay and one NFL pick. First up, the parlay.

Arkansas is an 11 ½-point favorite over Mississippi State, which seems reasonable. A general disregard for laying that kind of points, though, sent The Betting Man looking at the total, which is 60 ½.

As much as I hate betting unders - what fun is it, after all, to root for no scoring? - this seems like a pretty decent play. Yes, Arkansas might very well hang five touchdowns on the board.

But the hunch is Mississippi State doesn't have enough firepower to turn this game into a shootout. There's also the belief the Bulldogs will keep the ball on the ground as the long as the game is close, as that seems their best bet to keep it that way.

Finally, Mississippi State doesn't have a track record of high-scoring affairs this season. Through 10 games, in fact, they've combined with their opponent to break the 60-point barrier just twice.