Messmaker totaled 80 wins during the month of October.

Bryan Messmaker had a good October.

Not only did his beloved New York Yankees make it to the World Series, Messmaker also woke up on Halloween morning with a one-game lead over the competition in the Streak for the Cash monthly contest.

"I was the definition of nervous," said Messmaker, "to the point that I switched games on the television because I couldn't stand to watch Kansas lose to Texas Tech."

He picked that game wrong, but it was his only loss of the day. He picked four other matchups correctly to finish October with 80 wins, one more than the runner-up. Also in the hunt, but falling just short with 78 wins, was September winner Sven Westine. Messmaker, who goes by the member name "Yankeesfan237", was ecstatic to win the $2,500 prize. He plans on putting about half of it in the bank, and spending the rest on friends, family, and some sports apparel for himself.

As a working college student, he can use the extra cash. Messmaker lives in Granger, Iowa and attends a local community college where he is majoring in marketing. When he's not in class, Messmaker is employed as a manager at a Granger golf course. He says that baseball is his favorite sport to watch, but golf is his favorite to play. He's still looking for his first hole-in-one, although he did come within a few inches earlier this year.

Asked how he won the contest, Messmaker's answer was simple:

"When I wake up in the morning, the first thing that I'll watch is Sportscenter with Josh Elliott and Hannah Storm. That gets me caught up with any and all sports news that I may have missed from the night before. I also visit ESPN.com I would say at least 10 times a day. I have to make my picks for SFTC, so I have to login; I also look for any breaking news that may be circulating."

He had some encouraging words for his competition.

"I would also tell anyone playing SFTC in hopes of winning the monthly prize, not to give up! Even if you find yourself six games back of the leader with 7-10 days to go, don't stop picking. You may catch on fire while the leaders may stumble. You never know what will happen, just stay optimistic and have fun."

Congratulations to Bryan for his winning performance! Oh yeah, what did he do after he clinched victory?

"I called a lot of people, and then went back to rooting on the Yankees in Game 3."