‘Don’t pass out’: Nebraska man who stopped to buy salad wins $1M in Mega Millions

LINCOLN, Neb. — A Nebraska man who stopped at a store to buy a salad got more than a healthy lunch

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Brant Edgington, of Fremont, won $1 million playing Mega Millions from the Nebraska Lottery last month, according to a news release from lottery officials.

Edgington, who bought a quick-pick ticket at a Baker’s supermarket for the March 22 drawing, matched five numbers -- 3-8-31-35-44 -- but did not win the Mega Ball of 16.

He confessed that he was not intending to buy a ticket at the supermarket.

“I don’t play all that often,” Edgington said in a statement. “As a single parent, bologna is more important, financially.”

He had stopped into the store to buy a premade salad for lunch the next day, and while waiting on line decided to spend a few dollars on Mega Millions tickets.

A week later, Edgington returned to the store to see what he might have won. He was having difficulty with the lottery’s Check-a-Ticket scanner and asked a clerk to check it for him, lottery officials said.

“They disappeared for a minute,” he said. “Then a different lady came up with her and they just stared at me. She told me, ‘Don’t pass out when I tell you this.’”

Edgington managed to stay on his feet and went to Lincoln to the state lottery offices on April 5 to collect his prize.

Edgington said he normally only plays lottery games sporadically and when it rises to lofty numbers. This time, he cashed in big time.

According to lottery officials, the odds of winning $1 million playing Mega Millions are 1 in 12,607,306.

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