For the first time ever, the Super Bowl is being held in a state where sports betting is legal — and at a stadium with its own sportsbook, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes.

Why it matters: The milestone game at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, represents America's — and the NFL's — vastly evolved stance on gambling.

State(s) of play: Arizona is one of 33 states (plus Washington, D.C.) with a live, legal sports betting market. It ranks 10th in total handle (wagers accepted) among all states since PASPA was overturned in 2018, per Legal Sports Report.

The top 10:

1. New Jersey ($33.7B)
2. Nevada ($29.5B)
3. Pennsylvania ($18.9B)
4. Illinois ($17.6B)
5. New York ($16.7B)
6. Indiana ($10.5B)
7. Colorado ($10.2B)
8. Michigan ($8.9B)
9. Virginia ($8.1B)
10. Arizona ($7.2B)

The intrigue: 50.4 million U.S. adults are expected to wager $16 billion on Super Bowl LVII, per the American Gaming Association. Both figures are roughly double last year's record tally.

• Some of those bets will be placed at the BetMGM Sportsbook on the State Farm Stadium grounds.
• It's one of 11 in-venue sportsbooks across the country and the first (of two) at an NFL stadium.

The big picture: The NFL has come a long way from being the league that once banned players from appearing at an offseason fantasy football event in Las Vegas.

• Its reservations were rooted in a fear of match-fixing, but once PASPA was overturned and the nationwide attitude began to change, the NFL embraced betting as much as any league.
• In 2021 alone, the NFL inked agreements with Caesars Entertainment, DraftKings and FanDuel to be its official sports betting partners, plus additional deals with BetMGM, FOX Bet, PointsBet and WynnBet.

And frankly, the league should be thrilled by the sea change: 34% of fans say the expansion of legal sports betting has made games more exciting.

What we're watching: There's no one-size-fits-all approach to legal sports betting markets. Here's a brief snapshot of some differences nationwide, courtesy of our Axios Local coverage:

• Arkansas legalized in-person sports betting back in 2018, but only began taking mobile wagers last March, per Axios NW Arkansas.
• In Washington, gambling is limited to those on the premises of a tribal casino — a restriction some are pushing to change, per Axios Seattle.
• North Carolina also only allows sports betting at tribal casinos, but lawmakers are expected to push for the legalization of mobile wagering soon, per Axios Raleigh.

The NBA trade deadline officially passed at 3pm ET on Thursday, following a flurry of moves that involved almost the entire league.

State of play: Every team made a trade this week except the Wizards, Cavaliers and Bulls. Between Wednesday and Thursday afternoon, a whopping 12 trades were agreed upon.

• Do you believe in second chances? NBA general managers certainly do. 11 players are heading back to a former employer.
• New Suns star Kevin Durant is averaging 29.7 points, the third-highest average ever for a player changing teams midseason, trailing only Wilt Chamberlain in 1964-65 and Allen Iverson in 2006-07.

Go deeper:

• Winners and losers (SI)
• Durant blows the ceiling off the Suns' system (The Ringer)

Patrick Mahomes was named MVP on Thursday night, becoming the 10th player to win the award multiple times, Jeff writes.

• The Chiefs QB earned 48 of 50 first-place votes, with Jalen Hurts and Josh Allen picking up the other two.
• On Sunday, the 27-year-old can become the 11th player in NFL history — and first since Kurt Warner in 1999 — to win MVP and the Super Bowl in the same season.

The rest: 17 other awards were handed out at Thursday's NFL Honors, including in six other major categories:

• Offensive POY: Justin Jefferson (WR, Vikings)
• Defensive POY: Nick Bosa (EDGE, 49ers)
• Offensive ROY: Garrett Wilson (WR, Jets)
• Defensive ROY: Sauce Gardner (CB, Jets)
• Comeback POY: Geno Smith (QB, Seahawks)
• Coach of the Year: Brian Daboll (Giants)

Fun fact: Wilson and Gardner became just the third teammates to sweep the rookie awards, joining RB Mel Farr and CB Lem Barney (1967 Lions) and RB Alvin Kamara and CB Marshon Lattimore (2017 Saints).

Plus: The 2023 Hall of Fame class was also announced, with five modern-era players earning induction alongside three players and a coach from the Seniors Committee (last played/coached 25+ years ago).

• Modern era: Ronde Barber CB; Darrelle Revis, CB; DeMarcus Ware, LB; Zach Thomas, LB; Joe Thomas, T
• Seniors: Joe Klecko, DT; Chuck Howley, LB; Ken Riley, CB; Don Coryell, coach

🏀 Record sale: A signed, game-worn Kobe Bryant jersey from his 2007-08 MVP season sold Thursday for $5.8 million, the second-most expensive basketball jersey ever sold (Michael Jordan: $10.1 million).

🏈 Former players sue NFL: 10 retired NFL players have sued the league's disability plan, accusing it of "wrongfully and arbitrarily" denying benefits to players, and having financial motivations for doing so.

🍿 Trailer release: The first trailer for "Air," Ben Affleck and Matt Damon's movie about Nike's pursuit of Michael Jordan, just dropped. The film releases April 5.

⚾️ Darvish gets paid: The Padres signed Yu Darvish to a six-year, $108 million extension on Thursday, locking in the ace through 2028, when he'll be 42.

💵 Melo's money moves: Carmelo Anthony is co-launching a $750 million sports-focused private equity fund — emphasizing "meaningful" minority investments — alongside Isos Capital, per Sportico ($).

Looking for some pre-Super Bowl entertainment? Women's college hoops has you covered.

The intrigue: No. 1 South Carolina (24-0) hosts No. 3 LSU (23-0) on Sunday afternoon in a battle between the only remaining undefeated teams in men's or women's college basketball.

Wild stat: Not only are there no other zero-loss teams left; the Indiana women (22-1) are the only one-loss team left. All 721 other D-I programs (363 men, 358 women) have at least two losses.

Players to watch:

• South Carolina senior Aliyah Boston is the reigning Player of the Year and is averaging a double-double (13.5 pts, 10.0 reb) for the third straight season.
• LSU sophomore Angel Reese ranks fifth nationally in points (23.5) and second in rebounds (15.8). She's recorded a double-double in every single game.

The big picture: The Gamecocks and Tigers are vying to become just the fifth women's D-I program to ever record a perfect season.

• UConn (6x): 1994-95, 2001-02, 2008-09, 2009-10, 2013-14, 2015-16
• Baylor: 2011-12 (led by current LSU head coach Kim Mulkey)
• Tennessee: 1997-98
• Texas: 1985-86

George Toma, aka. "The Sodfather," knows more about grass than perhaps anyone other than Cheech and Chong, Jeff writes.

The big picture: Toma, 94, has helped prepare the playing surface for all 57 Super Bowls. The operation has grown slightly bigger over the years.

• Super Bowl I (1967): Toma's five-man crew got five days and $500 to prepare the field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, per NYT.
• Super Bowl LVII (2023): A 30-person crew installed the field at State Farm Stadium two weeks ago. The sod had been growing at a nearby farm for the past 18 months, and the total cost was around $750,000.

Between the lines: State Farm Stadium's natural grass sits on a movable tray that gets rolled outside each day to receive sunlight. Las Vegas' Allegiant Stadium is the only other U.S. venue with that capability.

• Toma says it's the second-best field he's ever seen, trailing only Super Bowl XLI at Hard Rock Stadium (Miami) in 2007.
• "It rained the whole day, and there wasn't a divot taken out of that field," Toma recalled. "This one right here, it was grown here locally by West Coast Turf. And I believe this is the second best grass we've had."

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — No. 2 Indiana beat No. 5 Iowa, 87-78, on Thursday in front of a record crowd. It was the Big Ten's first regular-season AP top-5 women's basketball matchup in 30 years.

SCOTTSDALE — The 16th hole at the Phoenix Open was a sight to behold on Thursday. One of best backdrops and atmospheres in all of golf.

MECCA, Saudi Arabia — Cristiano Ronaldo scored every goal in Al Nassr's 4-0 rout of Al Wehda — his first four-goal game since 2019.

Super Bowl LVII is Sunday evening (6:30pm ET, Fox) in Arizona, with the Chiefs seeking their third title and the Eagles their second.

• Betting lines: Spread: PHI -1.5 | O/U: 50.5 | Money: PHI -122, KC +104
• State of play: The public is all-in on the Eagles: 73% of bets placed at Caesars Sportsbook as of Monday were on Philly to cover the spread.

More to watch:

• 🏀 NBA: Cavaliers at Pelicans (Fri. 10pm, ESPN); 76ers at Nets (Sat. 6pm, NBA); Lakers at Warriors (Sat. 8:30pm, ABC); Grizzlies at Celtics (Sun. 2pm, ABC)
• 🏀 NCAAW: No. 3 LSU at No. 1 South Carolina (Sun. 2pm, ESPN) ... Game of the year in women's college basketball.
• 🏒 NHL: Kraken at Rangers (7pm, NHL); Lightning at Stars (Sat. 1pm, ABC); Capitals at Bruins (Sat. 3:30pm, ABC)
• 🏀 NCAAM: No. 3 Alabama at Auburn (Sat. 2pm, ESPN); No. 14 Baylor at No. 17 TCU (Sat. 4pm, ESPN2); Duke at No. 8 Virginia (Sat. 4pm, ESPN)
• ⛳️ PGA: Phoenix Open (Fri-Sun, Golf/CBS/ESPN+)
• ⚾️ Caribbean Series: Dominican Republic vs. Venezuela (Fri. 6:30pm, ESPN+) … Championship game.
• ⚽️ European soccer: Arsenal vs. Brentford (Sat. 10am, Peacock); Lazio vs. Atalanta (Sat. 2:45pm, Paramount+)
• 🥊 UFC 284: Alexander Volkanovski vs. Islam Makhachev (Sat. 10pm, ESPN+ PPV) … Lightweight title bout.

The last time the Super Bowl wasn't the most-watched U.S. TV broadcast of the year was in 1983.

• Question: Which TV program beat the Super Bowl that year?
• Hint: Long-running sitcom on CBS.

Answer at the bottom.

Oklahoma and Texas will leave the Big 12 for the SEC after the 2023-24 season, a year earlier than previously announced.

Details: The two schools will pay the Big 12 a total of $100 million to leave early, a portion of which will go to Fox to compensate for seven lost Texas and Oklahoma football games.