The first Super Bowl you can legally bet on in Arizona is just days away. Super Bowl 56 is poised to see more bets than any sporting event in history. Many folks will be putting their money down on the actual game between the Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Rams. However, this is also the first time Arizonans can take advantage of some wacky Super Bowl prop bets.
Exotic Super Bowl props or novelty props have been a favorite for football fans for a long time. They have even been referenced in some of our favorite TV shows. It is how we learned that Barney Stinson, played by Neil Patrick Harris, in the How I Met Your Mother series doesn’t have the best gambling luck.
Now it’s time for the people of Arizona to try their luck. And there are some pretty far-out options. PlayAZ takes a look at the five wackiest props bets at Arizona sportsbooks.
5. Super Bowl coin toss
Betting on the opening coin toss is a very popular prop you can find at almost every sportsbook in Arizona.
The most common way to bet the Super Bowl coin toss is simply picking, head or tails? You can also bet on which team will win the coin toss. Furthermore, you can bet if the team that calls heads or tails makes the correct call.
There isn’t much research you can do for this prop pick. As we all know, it is a 50/50 proposition. However, history would suggest otherwise. Throughout the previous 55 coin tosses in the Super Bowl, the coin has come up tails 29 times; that’s 53% of the time.
Tails never fails. Unless you are Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills, that’s another story.
Side note: Isn’t it curious that most sportsbooks refer to “the” coin toss? It may be important to note that these bets refer to the coin toss before the game begins. If there is overtime, like we saw in Super Bowl LIII, your bet does not transfer to the coin toss that kicks off the extra period.
4. Length of National Anthem
The singing of the National Anthem at the Super Bowl is one of the pop culture highlights related to the event. Musical legends Gladys Knight, Alicia Keys and Aretha Franklin have all taken their turn belting out The Star-Spangled Banner before the game.
And, of course, people like to gamble on it.
Grammy-nominated country music singer Mickey Guyton will perform the anthem at Super Bowl LVI. The most popular way to wager on the singing of the anthem is its length. The time used for betting purposes begins when the singer starts to sing, not when the music begins. The timing of the anthem ends when the singer is finished singing the word “brave,” no matter how long they hold that note.
You may need to search through several AZ sportsbooks to find this prop. As of Friday, none of Arizona’s online betting operators have odds on the national anthem.
However, other sites list the over/under on Guyton’s performance at 106 seconds (1:46). If you want to try your luck, you may want to take a look for the bet on the day of the Super Bowl. The last nine Super Bowl national anthem performances have gone over the number.
3. Halftime show props
Like the national anthem, Arizona sports bettors may need to check the day of the game for any bets on this year’s halftime show. This year’s show will be a real Hollywood production featuring hip-hop legends Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar.
Some halftime show prop bets include how many songs will be played and whether there will be a wardrobe malfunction. There are a few more Dr. Dre and friends-specific bets on the board as well.
A popular option will be the first song we hear during the halftime show. My money would be on California Love, as I mentioned in our “Perfect Super Bowl Playlist” story. But hits like The Next Episode and Family Affair are clear contenders.
Some books even have odds on what color will Eminem’s hair be. You can bet brown/black, white/blond or any other color. Recently, The Real Slim Shady has been seen with darker hair. It’s a different look from his earlier days when he would dye his hair blond. There is a chance he could throw it back and bring back the blond look.
2. Any kick to hit the uprights
This is an interesting prop bet to me; it seems pretty straightforward.
According to DraftKings Sportsbook Arizona, the odds that no kick will hit the uprights are at -550. While the ‘Yes’ odds are at +400.
The oddsmakers think that there’s significantly more chance of a kick not hitting the uprights. This makes sense, given that Rams kicker Matt Gay and Bengals kicker Evan McPherson are both pretty solid.
However, the reason this prop fascinates me is because of the variable. This bet qualifies for any kick, including field goals and extra points. It is not uncommon for missed extra points to hit the uprights. Also, I wonder if the crossbar on the field goal post factors into this bet. We’ve seen several long field goals nail the solid horizontal bar. We saw it during the regular season when Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker hit the crossbar when he nailed a record-setting 66-yard field goal to beat the Detroit Lions.
1. Coach Gatorade color odds
By far, the wackiest Super Bowl props you can place money on is what color the Gatorade the winning coach will have dumped on him be. This has been available for people to bet on for some time. However, it is such an unusual thing to wager on.
The colors have varied throughout the years, with no particular pattern coming out ahead. Since 2001, Orange has been the color of liquid poured on the winning coach five times, the most of any color. However, that is tied with the number of times that no Gatorade was dumped on the coach. Last year, Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians was doused in blue Gatorade when his team won the Super Bowl.
This year, clear/water color is the betting favorite on most AZ sportsbooks.
Some might lean toward the Gatorade reflecting the team’s primary colors. The Bengals could stick with their signature orange. Meanwhile, the Rams could pick blue or yellow. No matter what, the fun moment typically shared with the winning team could create some audible groans at your local Super Bowl party.
