Mega Millions jackpot draws small crowds in West Tennessee

JACKSON, Tenn. — Friday could be someone’s luckiest day ever, but they have to hit the $540 million Mega Millions jackpot. But does the hype here in West Tennessee match the payout?

Someone who’s not excited about the Mega Millions is Lacy Harper. “I’m not big on putting my money out there for the lottery and stuff,” she said.

That’s not the first response like that from folks in the area.

“The odds are just too great,” West Tennessean Gloria Carver said. “I mean, I know someone’s going to win, but very seldom do you ever hear of anyone around these parts.”

Unlike other areas of the country where lines wrap around city blocks to buy tickets, in west Tennessee, not so much. Some people simply say they think the lottery is a waste of money.

“I’ll never win. I know I won’t. So to even take that chance, it’s like, what, one in a million,” community member Delmar White said.

To be more accurate, it’s actually more like one in 254 million.

Someone else not excited about the Mega Millions is Louis Jones. “I just feel like working too hard for your money, if you can’t win, it’s no point of spending your money on the lottery,” he said.

You will always have a few who think luck will be on their side.

“I woke up this morning and something said, ‘Jimmy, go buy you a lottery ticket. You’re going to win,’ and so I did,” Mega Millions player Jimmy Cruse said. “So now I have to go back to work and figure out how I’m going to spend my money when I win tonight.”

And Earle Mann, another Mega Millions hopeful, said, “Hopefully I’ll have some luck winning because I never won anything in my life, and hopefully this will be my lucky day.”