Illegal Texas Sports Betting Was Sky-High for the College Football Playoff

Peter Lewisby Peter Lewis
Updated: January 3, 2024
Illegal Texas Sports Betting Was Sky-High for the College Football Playoff

It goes without saying, but illegal Texas sports betting is going to be a big-time problem for the state until the laws are changed. Each and every year, authorities are trying to reduce the amount of illegal wagers, but they are having a difficult time in doing so. It goes without saying, but it’s no surprise too that illegal Texas sports betting was sky-high for the College Football Playoff. 

On Monday night, the Texas Longhorns took on the University of Washington in the Sugar Bowl, with a trip to the National Championship Game on the line. All last week, people across the world were putting money down on the showdowns between UW and Texas, plus the other semifinal contest between Michigan and Alabama. Millions of dollars were wagered worldwide. 

For Texas, there are no legal options available for its citizens, but the hope is that the laws will change by 2025. Despite the optimism that things will be improved down the road, that doesn’t change the fact that illegal betting as a whole was pretty darn high throughout the NCAAF betting season, including the College Football Playoff semifinals. This needs to be corrected. 

In some even more bad news for the state, Texas suffered a heartbreaking loss to the Huskies on Monday night, losing 37-31. Quarterback Qwinn Ewers had a chance to win it on the final play of the game, but his toss into the end zone as time expired fell to the turf. Just like that, Texas lost and their dreams of winning the natty ended. With this, no more illegal bets on the Longhorns will be posted this season. 

Mattress Mack lost $1 million on Texas losing to Washington 

One of the biggest sports betting figures in the state is no question Mattress Mack, who is known for placing large wagers on local teams. He never hesitates to put money down on the Houston Astros, as he won big recently when the AL West powerhouse won the World Series. This time around, though, he was unlucky, as Mattress Mack lost $1 million on Texas losing to Washington. 

Prior to kickoff against the Huskies, Mack put down $1 million on the Longhorns to win the National Championship Game. Unfortunately for him, the Longhorns weren’t able to get the job done and now the Huskies will be the ones to move on to take on Michigan with the glory on the line. Mack was hopeful that the Longhorns would stun the world, but they didn’t get the job done in this case.

Now, Mack is hurting a bit thanks to this recent loss and he’s not the only one. The official numbers aren’t out yet, but around the country, plenty of money went on Texas to take down Washington. They were six-point favorites to take down Washington, but the Huskies could not be stopped on offense, with Michael Penix Jr. looking tremendous from start to finish. Now, Penix and UW are focused on taking down Michigan in the finale.

While it’s up in the air if Mack will put money down on the natty, he and others are still reeling over the loss for Texas. Now, Mack will surely shift his focus to the Major League Baseball season, as the Astros are hoping to get back to the World Series. Mack is a die-hard fan, and while he won’t be able to place legal wagers in the state on the team this year, he’ll keep on traveling to nearby areas to place wagers on his squad. The hope is he can place in-person bets sooner rather than later.

Texas remains focused on trying to get legal wagers done by 2025

With all of that said, Texas remains focused on trying to get legal wagers done by 2025. Will it happen? No one knows how things are going to play out in this case, but a sports betting bill already being pre-filed is good news. There’s a good chance we could see legal betting in full force by the start of the new year in ’25. This is what a lot of folks are hoping for, including prominent figures.

The list of course includes Jerry Jones, Mark Cuban and other pro team owners in the state. On several different occasions, both Jones and Cuban have spoken about how badly they want to see legal sports betting brought in as soon as possible. With Jones in particular, he knows about the potential there is for numbers to be through the roof if kiosks make their way to AT&T Stadium for Dallas Cowboys games. NFL betting would 100 percent post impressive stats.

As for Cuban, he is hoping to bring a resort-type casino to the Dallas region and he wants sports betting to be a possibility for people once they visit there too. Cuban wants Texas to compete with states like Florida in terms of tourist destinations, but he knows the Lone Star State is quite behind. Adding sports betting to the mix could help Texas in its efforts to catch up to other states.

Peter Lewis

Peter Lewis Jr. comes from Mississippi where he and his family spend their days discussing college football, baseball and basketball. He's written sports journalism for years after studying journalism at a local university. Over time, Peter has cultivated extensive knowledge covering sports betting legislation across the country. He closely tracks the latest regulatory developments and provides key insights into their impacts. Peter also offers sharp MLB betting analysis, leveraging stats and trends to identify value on matchups.

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