Replacement refs' mistake won man $725,000

The NFL's regular officials weren't the only ones who got rich because of the replacement refs. An Ontario man won more than $725,000 from a $5 bet when officials botched the last-second call in last month's Monday night game between the Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers.

Gino DiFelice placed the small wager as part of a Canadian lottery game in which players pick the results of every NFL game for a given weekend. He was 14-for-14 entering the Monday night game and had picked the Seahawks to upset the Packers. When Golden Tate was erroneously awarded a touchdown on Russell Wilson's Hail Mary pass, DiFelice had his perfect entry.

"Every week I do a ticket with my picks, and then I ask my kids [ages 10 and 12] who they like," he told reporters. "The winner was the ticket my daughter consulted me on. The funniest part is, the ticket I made all of the picks myself, I only got four right."

If the replacements had ruled M.D. Jennings intercepted the Russell Wilson pass, DiFelice would have tied for the weekly victory with five other players and would have split the pot. His solo victory ended up giving him the third-biggest haul in the lottery's history.

"When the play was under review I couldn't believe what was happening," he said. "When the call was made, I went nuts. I ripped open the envelope to show them. They couldn't believe it."