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
WEEK 13 SELECTIONS
BOBBY “BUCKETS” BRUBECK
Ohio +3
Jets +3
Jaguars -1
Raiders -1
(BB) Titans +4.5
Record (points): 28-30-2 (29)
Best Bets: 4-8 (4)
CHUCK EDELL
Kansas State +2
Kansas State-TCU Under 61.5
Toledo -3
Coastal Carolina +8.5
(BB) Fresno State-Boise State Over 54.5
Record (points): 36-24 (36)
Best Bets: 5-7 (5)
BRIAN EDWARDS
Fresno State +3
LSU +17.5
Vikings -3
Lions +1
(BB) TCU -2
Record (points): 27-33 (27)
Best Bets: 6-6 (6)
CHRIS “THE BEAR” FALLICA
Fresno State +3
Jets +3
Jaguars -1
49ers -4
(BB) Georgia -17.5
Record (points): 35-25 (35)
Best Bets: 9-3 (9)
X-STEVE FEZZIK (second eliminated)
Record (points): 21-28-1 (21.5)
Best Bets: 6-3-1 (6.5)
JOEY “TUNES” FORTUNA
Kansas State +2
LSU-Georgia Over 51.5
Purdue-Michigan Over 52
Rams +7
(BB) Browns -7
Record (points): 32-28 (32)
Best Bets: 6-6 (6)
DOUG KEZIRIAN
Toledo -3
LSU +17.5
Purdue +17
Packers-Bears Over 44.5
(BB) Browns-Texans Under 47
Record (points): 36-22-2 (37)
Best Bets: 6-4-2 (7)
MARC LAWRENCE
LSU +17.5
Purdue +17
Titans +4.5
Giants +2
(BB) Kansas State +2
Record (points): 31-27-2 (32)
Best Bets: 7-5 (7)
RANDY MCKAY
Kansas State-TCU Under 62
Purdue +17
Montana State -5
Jets-Vikings Over 44.5
(BB) Richmond +17
Record (points): 32-26-2 (33)
Best Bets: 7-5 (7)
X-MIKE NORTH (first eliminated)
Record (points): 16-26-3 (17.5)
Best Bets: 3-6 (3)
X-ERIN RYNNING (third eliminated)
Record (points): 24-30-1 (24.5)
Best Bets: 3-7-1 (3.5)
DAN SALEY
Ohio +3
Fresno State +3
Purdue +17
Titans +4.5
(BB) Central Florida +4
Record (points): 30-28-2 (31)
Best Bets: 5-7 (5)
JAMES SALINAS
LSU +17.5
North Carolina +7.5
Jets +3
Dolphins +4
(BB) Lions +1
Record (points): 34-23-3 (35.5)
Best Bets: 6-6 (6)
PAUL STONE
Fresno State +3
LSU +17.5
North Carolina +7.5
Purdue +17
(BB) TCU -2
Record (points): 33-26-1 (33.5)
Best Bets: 5-7 (5)
JEFF WHITELAW
LSU-Georgia Over 51.5
Bears +3.5
Packers-Bears Over 44.5
Colts +10.5
(BB) 49ers -4
Record (points): 34-23-3 (35.5)
Best Bets: 7-3-2 (8)
X-CRIS ZENIUK (fourth eliminated)
Record (points): 26-32-2 (27)
Best Bets: 4-8 (4)
MIKE PALM
Kansas State-TCU Over 61.5
Purdue +17
Lions -1
Saints +3.5
(BB) Jets +3
Record (points): 33-25-2 (34)
Best Bets: 8-4 (8)
MATT YOUMANS
LSU +17.5
North Carolina +7.5
Steelers pick
Titans +4.5
(BB) Purdue +17
Record (points): 31-28-1 (31.5)
Best Bets: 7-5 (7)