🌅 Dawn of a New (Ryan) Day

Hi BettrNation family! It's a whole new dawn 🌅 in the football universe, and not just because the calendar recently flipped over to 2025. Coach Ryan Day at Ohio State must feel like a new man today, as he is now one win away from (at least partially) redeeming himself from the Michigan debacle earlier this season (and the 3 seasons before that 😏). Now, his Buckeyes are prepping for a showdown with the Fighting Irish 🍀 for the National Championship. Who knew the Fighting Irish had it in 'em, especially after that NIU loss in South Bend!?

For this weekend, the NFL playoffs have finally arrived! Wild Card weekend is here, and it's do-or-die time for some teams and players. (Can Lamar Jackson finally have an MVP-type performance in the playoffs? 🙏) While some teams are gearing up for glory, others are already dusting off their "Help Wanted" signs for a new head coach, including a number of teams that fired first-year head coaches (sorry, Jerrod Mayo!).

But hey, it's not just pigskin 🏈 season! The hardwood 🏀 is heating up too. Several NBA teams are starting to hit their stride, and college basketball is serving up some seriously entertaining contests.

Here’s to hoping your teams (and bets) show up better than the Texas defense did right before halftime in last night’s game against Ohio State 🫠 Most importantly, remember:

Don’t Gamble. Bet Bettr!

@espn

TREVEYON HENDERSON WOW 😳 #ohiostate #cfbpostseason #cfp #cfb

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VALUE PICKS
💎 Find the hidden GEMS in the market 💎

We scour the marketplace to save you time and money! Most experts and platforms (i.e., >75% of the surveyed experts/platforms) are aligned on the following opportunities for this weekend. Consider incorporating these insights into your betting gameplan for this weekend before the lines (i.e., prices) change!

For more daily Value Picks, join our Skool community! See the “Get Involved” section below!

ESPN ANALYTICS
The Worldwide Leader in Sports (Betting) 🤑

We crunched the numbers on ESPN Analytics’ forecasts for NFL Wild Card and wanted to flag the following +EV plays based on ESPN Analytics!

• LAC v. HOU - HOU Spread - EV: 11%

• BAL v. PIT - PIT Spread - EV: 28%

• BUF v. DEN - DEN Spread - EV: 40%

• PHI v. GB - GB Spread - EV: 44%

For more ESPN +EV Picks, join our Skool community! See the “Get Involved” section below!

NEWS
📰 Stay Informed 📰

Like in traditional investing, dumb money often loses out to informed and strategic decision-making. Make sure you stay up-to-date on the latest news and insights that may impact your analysis! Click on the below links for some of the most relevant - and helpful - insights and analysis ahead of this weekend:

• CFP: Ohio State Favored Heavily in Championship (Sports Illustrated)

• Best NFL Player Props (Covers)

• Best Picks: NFL Wild Card Weekend (NFL.com)

• NFL Wild Card Predictions (Action Network)

• NFL Expert Picks: Wild Card (ESPN)

• NBA Expert Picks (CBS Sports)

PERFORMANCE-ENHANCING PLATFORMS
💪 Improve Your Betting Game 💪

Last week, we highlighted RotoWire Fantasy, a leader in prop betting and all things fantasy sports. This week, we wanted to flag Bookies Plus, a FREE resource offered by RotoWire that includes a number of benefits.

We caught up with Adam “The ATM” Thompson from bookies.com. Adam is a senior handicapper and has hit 58% of his posted bets this year:

What brought you to this industry? I placed my first wager back in 1994 when I was in college, so sports betting as been part of my life for 30 years. I worked mostly in newspapers and didn’t get officially involved in it from a professional level until I joined Covers.com as a freelancer in addition to a full-time job as a sports editor of a major newspaper, then became the second-ever full-time handicapper for SportsLine & CBSSports.com. I’ve been at Bookies.com for five years. 

What advice would you give to a new sports bettor? Budget. Find a bankroll strategy that fits for you and don’t veer sharply from it. Don’t chase lost money with more money. If you double-up on a wager because you lost your last wager, it probably won’t work out. Sports betting can be a fun form of entertainment, it makes any game more interesting, and that’s how it should be approached. The goal should be to earn “dinner out” money, not “new car” money.  

Best sports betting tip? Study matchups over trends. How does a pitcher fare against the hitters in his lineup specifically? How do receivers/corners and O-line/D-line compare? Is one NBA team monsters on the glass, one doesn’t get back in transition, etc.  Trends are fun – The Magic are 12-4 ATS on Wednesdays against Western Conference opponents – but they’re just trends. Trends break.

What is your favorite bet to place? I’m boring in that I prefer the basic against-the-spread for football and basketball and moneyline for baseball. When studying games I will often find a player to back on a prop, especially in the NFL.  My goal is to hit 2-of-3 every night, or 3-of-5 every night; in other words, make a profit. If I can brag a little, that happens often. That strategy also keeps me from throwing money at parlays.

TRIVIA
⚔️ Clash of the Titans

The CFP National Championship has been set, and it pits two titans of the college football world against each other to battle it out for the natty on January 20th. These two teams - Ohio State and Notre Dame - are among the most respected and renowned programs in college football. Given the rich history of both of these schools, it made us wonder: can you name the last time that Notre Dame won a national championship and the last time that Ohio State won a national championship? Bonus points if you can name the head coaches of both schools when they won their respective championships.

EDUCATION
 🚫 STOP Destructive Betting Practices

This week, we continue to learn from our friends at OddsJam! In this short video, the OddsJam team discusses why most beginners fail to succeed at sports betting. Be sure to sharpen your skills and watch this video:

GET INVOLVED
🗣️ Want to Bet Bettr More Often?

RESPONSIBLE BETTING
🧑‍⚕️Prioritize Your (Betting) Health

At BettrNation, we are serious about empowering you on your betting journey, which includes not just helping you identify valuable opportunities but also by helping you develop good (responsible) betting practices and serving as an accountability partner for you.

We encourage you to take this FREE assessment from our partner, Birches Health, which will help give you some tips on responsible betting behaviors and will help give you feedback on your betting journey/practices!

TRIVIA ANSWER

The last time Notre Dame won a National Championship was 1988, under coach Lou Holtz, who led the team to a 12-0 season and a win in the Fiesta Bowl. That means it's been 37 years since the Fighting Irish's last national title.

Ohio State’s last National Championship was in 2014 under Coach Urban Meyer. Too bad Coach Meyer couldn’t bring a championship to Jacksonville when he was leading the Jags 😑