On Friday nights in the fall for more than a decade, football bettors would crowd a small, smoky sportsbook on the Strip to see two handicappers go head to head in a $10,000 winner-take-all contest. The contestants’ names were lit up outside on the marquee, adding an element of prestige to being a part of the Stardust Invitational.
The contest concluded after the 2005 season — the Stardust closed on Nov. 1, 2006 and its two hotel towers were imploded in March 2007 — and it has been missed.
So it’s time to bring back memories of an old friend. In a tip of the cap to the Stardust Invitational, Circa owner Derek Stevens is putting up his money and putting his support behind a new VSIN-produced event, the Circa Friday Football Invitational.
The theme is the same, but the contest format is slightly different and improved. While there are still 16 handicappers in a bracket, all contestants are involved each week in a season-long competition, as opposed to the Stardust format that pitted only two handicappers a week in a head-to-head elimination duel. Stevens has boosted the prize money to $25,000.
The 16-handicapper field is officially set. Here are the contest details:
Sixteen handicappers compete — with no entry fee required — in a season-long contest with $25,000 in prizes awarded.
When: Friday, September 9 through Friday, January, 6, 2023 (18 weeks)
Where: VSIN studio at the Circa sportsbook
Contest plays: Five plays, college and NFL sides and totals (no props, team totals, first-half plays etc.) with one designated as the Best Bet (BB).
STANDINGS
BOBBY “BUCKETS” BRUBECK
Kansas State + 3.5
Duke + 10
Arizona State + 2.5
Mississippi State-Alabama Under 61
(BB) Texas A&M-South Carolina Under 45
Record (points): 16-14 (16)
Best Bets: 3-3 (3)
CHUCK EDEL
Georgia Southern-Old Dominion Over 66
Syracuse-Clemson Under 49.5
UCLA-Oregon Over 70.5
Jaguars -3
(BB) Indiana-Rutgers Over 48
Record (points): 19-11 (19)
Best Bets: 2-4 (2)
BRIAN EDWARDS
Texas A&M-South Carolina Over 45
Oklahoma State + 6
LSU -1.5
Missouri -14
(BB) Giants + 3
Record (points): 11-19 (11)
Best Bets: 3-3 (3)
CHRIS “THE BEAR” FALLICA
UL Monroe + 6.5
South Carolina + 3
Arizona State + 2.5
Texas Tech -6
(BB) Broncos + 1
Record (points): 18-12 (18)
Best Bets: 5-1 (5)
STEVE FEZZIK
James Madison -11.5
New Mexico State + 21.5
Texas-Oklahoma State Under 60.5
Cincinnati-SMU Under 60
(BB) Kansas State-TCU Under 54.5
Record (points): 14-15-1 (14.5)
Best Bets: 4-1-1 (4.5)
JOEY “TUNES” FORTUNA
UCF-East Carolina Over 63
Texas -6
Vanderbilt-Missouri Under 50
Northwestern + 14
(BB) Duke-Miami Over 57
Record (points): 14-16 (14)
Best Bets: 3-3 (3)
DOUG KEZIRIAN
Wake Forest -20
Colorado-Oregon State Under 48.5
UCLA-Oregon Over 70.5
LSU -1.5
(BB) Hawaii-Colorado State Under 46.5
Record (points): 16-14 (16)
Best Bets: 3-3 (3)
MARC LAWRENCE
Kansas State + 3.5
Marshall + 11.5
UCLA + 6.5
49ers + 2
(BB) Lions + 7
Record (points): 17-11-2 (18)
Best Bets: 5-1 (5)
RANDY MCKAY
Kansas State + 3.5
Kansas State-TCU Under 54.5
Texas -6
Texans-Raiders Under 45.5
(BB) Minnesota-Penn State Over 43
Record (points): 17-11-2 (18)
Best Bets: 4-2 (4)
MIKE NORTH
Tulane -7
Wisconsin -2
Texans + 7
Bears + 8
(BB) Texas -6
Record (points): 12-17-1 (12.5)
Best Bets: 2-4 (2)
ERIN RYNNING
Indiana-Rutgers Over 48
Colorado-Oregon State Under 48.5
Lions-Cowboys Over 49
Steelers-Dolphins Over 45.5
(BB) Giants-Jaguars Over 43
Record (points): 14-15-1 (14.5)
Best Bets: 1-4-1 (1.5)
DAN SALEY
Kansas State + 3.5
Missouri -14
Texas-El Paso + 4
Giants + 3
(BB) Buffalo + 7.5
Record (points): 12-16-2 (13)
Best Bets: 2-4 (2)
JAMES SALINAS
Titans -2.5
Falcons + 6.5
Browns + 6.5
Steelers + 7.5
(BB) UCLA + 6.5
Record (points): 18-11-1 (18.5)
Best Bets: 2-4 (2)
PAUL STONE
Indiana-Rutgers Under 48
UTSA -10
Oklahoma State + 6
LSU -1.5
(BB) California + 7.5
Record (points): 14-15-1 (14.5)
Best Bets: 2-4 (2)