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Famed Sports Bettor Puts $1.5 Million on TCU in College Football Title Game

Photo: Harry How

The TCU Horned Frogs might not reside in Houston, but hometown legend Mattress Mack is backing them in the College Football Playoff National Championship.

Jim McIngvale, a furniture salesman from Houston, is known for placing larger-than-life wagers on his hometown teams — and he's expanding his radius to include the underdog of the CFP. Mattress Mack just put a whopping $1.5 million on the Horned Frogs to beat Georgia in the National Championship this weekend, WFAA reports. If they can beat the reigning champs, McIngvale would net $5.55 million.

Mattress Mack's winnings don't go right into his bank account, though! The whole point of McIngvale's wagers is to give back to the customers who shop at his Gallery Furniture location. Here's what he told a local news station back in November:

"I make these bets because we do promotions at the furniture store. Like if the Astros win the World Series you get your money back. I won $75 million on that bet, gave back $73 million to the customers and the other $2 million was expenses. It enables us to run these great promotions. People love them especially with local teams like the Houston Astros and Houston Cougars. We’re having fun with these sports promotions, they work very well and it makes us relevant as a furniture store."

In December, Mattress Mack doubled down and bet $1 million on the Houston Cougars to win the NCAA Tournament. A month before, he placed a $500,000 wager on the Coogs.

As far as the national championship game goes, Georgia is a 12.5 favorite to beat TCU as of Wednesday (January 4). The Bulldogs are favored -450 to win outright, while TCU sits at +350, per BetMGM. The Bulldogs and Horned Frogs are scheduled to face off in the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday, January 9 at 6:30 p.m. CT on ESPN.

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