For mayors and governors, along with owners of breweries, doughnut shops, it’s on -- with numerous friendly wagers in the works for this Sunday’s Super Bowl.
It’s Brunswick stew vs. clam chowder. It’s one spinning ride against another.
It’s Kane's Donuts against Atlanta's Sublime Doughnut.
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker placed a low-stakes wager on the outcome of Sunday's Super Bowl matchup between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots.
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Baker offered Koffee Kup’s lucky cupcakes and Legal Sea Foods clam chowder for his wager. Deal countered with Brunswick Stew from Fresh Air BBQ and chocolate-covered blueberries from Byne Blueberry.
Here’s some of the fun, in some cases wacky wagers:
Sweet bet:
Sports trash talk is one thing, but when doughnuts get involved, things start getting real. Maria Delios, who owns Kane's Doughnuts in Boston, fired the first shot in an Instagram video by betting Atlanta's Sublime Doughnuts a dozen of their "Go Pats" doughnuts that the New England Patriots would defeat the Atlanta Falcons in next week's Super Bowl.
Not one to take smack talk lying down, Sublime Doughnuts owner Kamal Grant posted his own video (while sporting a colorful T-shirt tribute to his love of doughuts), telling Delios that he “looks forward to eating your doughnuts, because I know the Atlanta Falcons will destroy the Patriots in the Super Bowl,” and offering up a dozen of Sublime’s Falcons-themed doughnuts “in the small case that they lose.”
A beer throwdown for the ages
The founders of Atlanta’s Scofflaw Brewing Company and Shipyard Brewing Company, which is based in Portland, Maine, are each so confident that their respective team will win in this weekend’s Super Bowl that they’re wagering a pretty hefty prize (as far as these things go).
The losing brewery will have to brew a special batch of beer from a recipe chosen by the winning brewery. The beer recipe must include indigenous ingredients from the winner's state, and will be named by the winning brewery. On tapping day, the losing brewery must fly the winning football team's flag for one week or until the beer is gone, whichever comes first. The losing team will also send a case of its beer to the winner.
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Super Bowl bet: Mayor in Hall County gets in on action
The mayor of Flowery Branch, where the Atlanta Falcons' headquarters and training complex is located, also got into the action, the Gainesville Times reported. Mike Miller has made a wager with David Feldman, the chairman of the governing board of Foxborough, Mass., where the New England Patriots play their home games. Miller has bet a case of Big Red gum, courtesy of the Wrigley's plant in the Hall County city, coffee from Common Grounds, cookies from Calliope Sweets, and treats from Liberty Candy Company, according to the report.
Reached by email Tuesday, Feldman said Miller "will be eating well with New England lobsters, clam chowder and spring rolls, if the Falcons come out on top. Feldman said he'd also throw in cupcakes and coffee, and pajamas so Miller can sleep well after his feast," according to the Gainesville Times.
Six Flags New England and Six Flags Over Georgia are run by the same company, but this weekend's Super Bowl makes the two rivals.
If the Patriots win, the Georgia park will temporarily rename its 24-story spinning swing ride the Patriots SkyScreamer and serve New England clam chowder when it opens for the season, according to the Associated Press. Should the Falcons win, the Massachusetts park will rename its similar ride the Falcons SkyScreamer and serve Georgia peach pie.
A look at Super Bowl odds: anthem, Lady Gaga’s hair, Ryan vs. soccer game
AJC’s sports columnist Jeff Schulz writes there is “gambling, there is entertainment and then there is a degenerate level of gambling that some might consider a form of entertainment, unless of course your next mortgage payment depends on whether you nailed the right color of the Gatorade.”
Here he writes about some of his favorite Super Bowl props that are posted with online oddsmaker Bovada or in some Las Vegas casinos. (Odds of the more mainstream variety have New England favored by three points over the Falcons, with the over/under set at 58.5 points.)
- Over/under for the length of the national anthem, sung by Luke Bryan: 2 minutes, 9 seconds.
- Luke Bryan's pants: Blue jeans (1-2) is a favorite over any other pants or shorts (3-2).
- Over/under on how many times "Trump" will be said during the broadcast: 1.5.
[ RELATED: 6 more bets you can place on the broadcast ]
Super Bowl 2017: 5 bets that favor Falcons
The Falcons have reached the end zone on their opening drive in eight straight games. One of the odds in Falcons’ favor suggest Julio Jones (9/2) or Devonta Freeman (5/1) put six up on the board first -- even if the Falcons opt to defer as they have most often this season when wining the coin toss.