Several Las Vegas sportsbooks have removed the betting line for the big matchup between Notre Dame and Florida State set to take place on Saturday night.
The likeliest reason for this is due to the uncertainty surrounding Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston, who is in the middle of yet another scandal.
ESPN ran a story earlier this week that indicated Florida State was investigating why so many Winston autographs were authenticated by one company. While there isn’t any evidence that Winston took payments for the autographs, it’s yet another black eye for the young quarterback and the program.
Apparently, Vegas is taking note.
As to where Florida State opened up as 13.5-point favorites, some sportsbooks have decided to scrap the betting line altogether. Westgate SuperBook vice president Jay Kornegay had this to say about why his company decided not to keep the line up (via ESPN.com).
It doesn’t make sense to keep it up right now,” said Jay Kornegay, vice president of race and sports at the Westgate SuperBook. “You’re only going to drive one-way action [to Notre Dame], so we’re taking the cautious approach and see what happens.
The real reason behind this is obvious. A ton of people would have turned to Notre Dame as 13.5-point underdogs if the line was still live. By virtue of that, multiple sportsbooks would have likely faced tremendous losses if the Seminoles decided to sit Winston.
With all this said, we can expect these companies to put the game back on the books prior to Saturday, at which point it will become clear whether Winston will play or not.
Photo: USA Today