Add The New York Post on Google Dave Portnoy’s first college football bet of the season could hardly have gone worse.
The Barstool Sports founder backed Rutgers as a 29.5-point favorite against UMass in their season opener on Thursday, calling it potentially his “strongest play of the year” before the Scarlet Knights delivered a complete Week 1 dud.
“I made my 1st bet of college football season and it may be my strongest play of the year. Rutgers -29.5 to beat UMass by 40 plus,” Portnoy wrote on X before kickoff.
Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano takes his team out on the field before their 37-21 upset loss to UMASS on Sept. 3, 2026, in Piscataway, N.J. USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect 0-1 https://t.co/0PiUdIzu21
It didn’t take long for Portnoy to declare the wager dead as UMass jumped all over Rutgers, eventually taking a 24-7 lead into halftime.
The Minutemen entered the night riding a 16-game losing streak after going 0-12 last season and had not defeated an FBS opponent since 2023.
UMass completed the massive upset with a 37-21 victory, winning outright comfortably despite entering as a 29.5-point underdog.
The miracle win is the biggest outright upset in five years, according to Action Network.
“Not only do I think Rutgers football should be kicked out of the Big 10 I think the football program should be disbanded,” he later wrote on the platform.
