Sports Gamblers Work on Formulas to Winning Money During Football Season

Like a well-rested bear that has sniffed out its prey, this is the time of year when the real sports gamblers come out of hibernation.

And the “bear” population continues to grow exponentially every football season, with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Since the turn of the century, betting on both college and pro sports has become a multibillion-dollar industry that has annually multiplied in total revenue since.

And the biggest cash cow is the pigskin.

Once relegated to horse racing and boxing, professional sports gamblers—affectionately known as "sharps" in Vegas lingo—have shifted their focus to the gridiron.

According to the American Gaming Association, approximately $98.9 million was wagered on the 2013 Super Bowl alone at sportsbooks across the state of Nevada, where it's officially legal. But, more and more, the act of sports gambling is pooh-poohed as the legal equivalent of jaywalking. 

Further proof? Between $60-$70 billion is illegally wagered on college football each year, according to CNBC (But, as soon as this weekend, Nevada may have another state to lawfully share the wealth). 

Add this to the relatively recent fantasy boon, and one thing has become quite apparent: Betting on pro and college football is big business. 

However, when it comes to wagering one's hard-earned income on games each week, it's the "house" that comes out on top the overwhelming amount of the time.  

But then there are the uber high-rollers like Billy Walters:

Therefore, it’s no surprise that everyone would want an edge—including a math professor.

Bill Davis, who has taught courses ranging from advanced calculus to statistics for the past two decades, decided he too no longer wanted to fall into the category of people who bet the house only to lose their shirt.  

About 10 years ago, the teacher became a student, as Davis began developing a formula for predicting the outcomes of games. After meticulous research and analysis, along with numerous conversations with front office team officials, Davis claims he was able to predict the outcome against the spread 72-95 percent of the time, depending on the availability of data.   

Since the equation was so successful, Davis began to personally invest in the outcomes of games, which led to his own successful sports gambling business.

Of course, sometimes his picks aren't so popular, as he realized when he called his shot on Boston sports radio station WEEI by picking the Miami Dolphins to cover the spread against the hometown New England Patriots—which they did. 

“Historical data is compiled and analyzed in multiple ways,” Davis said. “We put only the variables together as expressed from our former coaches and players that sit on our advisory board, who know better than anyone what actually impacts the outcome of a game, to create mathematical algorithms and regression models that can be used to predict final scores.”

It’s not about who wins or loses, but it's about the probability of the final score landing on that number within a close enough margin of error that it won’t impact the line.  From there, companies like Davis’ provide their clients with just those games that meet the winning criteria. 

However, if Davis keeps up his winning ways, his equation could wreak havoc on the Las Vegas sportsbooks (well, maybe not last week)—giving other math professors and average squares alike the “sharp” edge. 

All quotes obtained firsthand.