(KMDL-FM) Tonight, around 10 o'clock, high school football games will wrap up, and fans will head home across Louisiana. Also, at that time, the Mega Millions multi-state lottery will hold its Friday drawing, and, just like in Friday night football, we're leaning on the metrics to predict whether we'll get a winner.
In football, there are all kinds of statistics you can look at when it comes to making a prediction. In lottery games like Mega Millions and Powerball, you don't really have the luxury of expanded statistics. But some historical perspectives might help you choose the winning numbers for your "life-changing" jackpot.
READ MORE: Map Pinpoints Where Lottery Winners Live in Louisiana
READ MORE: Most Commonly Chosen Winning Lottery Numbers in Louisiana
For example, in the articles above, you can read about which numbers are most often drawn as winners. Or you can see where most of the winning tickets sold in Louisiana are sold. I will give you a hint on that last one; don't read too much into it unless you understand where people live in Louisiana.
But there is one statistic that I have very seldom seen reported. It's probably because the math is a bit flaky even for me, who loves flaky math when it comes to the lottery. Instead of focusing on what single numbers show up regularly in winning drawings, we decided to take another tack to predict when Mega Millions or Powerball would pay off.
Here is some historical perspective for you to consider: the last time a Mega Millions jackpot was won was June 27th of this year. How many drawings have taken place in the Mega Millions game since that winner was drawn?
I didn't expect you to know; I actually had to look it up myself. When they draw tonight, it will be the 38th drawing since the game has produced a jackpot winner. This breaks a Mega Millions record for the largest number of drawings between jackpots. The previous record was 37, and that happened in 2021 when the game gave away a jackpot prize of over $1.05 billion.
We did the math using our own data from decades of writing and researching the lottery, and based on our findings, the average number of "drawings" between jackpot wins for Mega Millions and Powerball is 39. So, based on our "math," Mega Millions should get a jackpot winner either tonight, Friday. Or, on Tuesday, when the game draws again.
So, if you were going to spend the $5 on a ticket to play Mega Millions our advice would be to spend it tonight or on Tuesday and make sure that you purchase your ticket within 50 miles of Interstate 10. That's not an opinion that is based on "previous occurrences" or mathematical probability.
By the way, the only other lottery game that is even more due to get a winner than Mega Millions is Lotto from the Louisiana Lottery. That game has a jackpot prize of over $3.5 million, and I would not be surprised if there wasn't a jackpot winner sold for that game on Saturday, in addition to a big win in Mega Millions tonight.
Please remember that even though we have loads of facts and figures that seem to make playing the lottery a "sure thing," it is far from it. Most lottery tickets wind up costing you money, so only play with what you can afford to lose. If you do have a gambling problem, get help. It's free to call 1-877-770-STOP (7867). That's our state's gambling help hotline. It's a free call, and the services they offer are offered at no cost to you or your family. Good Luck.