As the college football season hits the homestretch, the number of title contenders gets whittled down: Alabama remains the favorite to take the title and Stanford, after losing Saturday for the second time this year, is off the board.
"They (the Cardinal) are out of it now," said John Avello, director of race and sports operations at Wynn Las Vegas.
But much intrigue remains. Alabama has a relatively tough test on Nov. 30 against Auburn, and if the Crimson Tide lose, that could open the way for Ohio State or Baylor to take on Florida State in the title game.
At press time Wynn had Alabama's odds to win the title at 2:3 (meaning you'd have to bet $30 to win $20). Florida State is 8:5, Ohio State is 7:1 and Oregon (which lost once, to Stanford) is 15:1. Oregon "still has an outside shot," Avello said, "but they need some help."
If Alabama and Florida State remain undefeated, they'll almost certainly face one another in the BCS Championship Game on Jan. 6. Avello said he expects Alabama would be favored by about 4 points.
The odds at MGM are slightly different: Alabama is the favorite at 5:6, Florida State is 6:5 and Baylor is 7:2, said Jay Rood, MGM's vice president of race and sports. The longer shots are Ohio State at 9:2, Oregon at 5:1 and Auburn at 6:1.
"Baylor has the best chance to break up (the expected matchup between Alabama and Florida State)," Rood said.
Setting odds for the NCAA title game can be challenging because, unlike in pro sports, top teams can be determined by computer rankings. "Something weird always happens," Rood said.
Next season, the NCAA is inaugurating a four-team playoff, giving more teams a shot to play for the title. "Those games will be outstanding from a bookmaking point of view," Rood said, expecting tremendous interest.
Though Stanford is almost surely out of BCS title contention, the Cardinal are heavy favorites in the Big Game on Saturday against Cal, which has had an abysmal season under new coach Sonny Dykes. At Wynn, Stanford is favored by 32 points.
How about the Heisman Trophy? Nevada casinos can't take bets on propositions that aren't determined on the field, but online betting sites can. Bovada.lv has Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston as the overwhelming favorite at 4:11 (meaning you'd have to bet $110 to win $40).
Next is Texas A&M signal caller, and 2012 Heisman winner, Johnny Manziel at 5:2; Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron is 13:2; and Baylor QB Bryce Petty rounds out the top four Heisman contenders at 10:1.
Michael Shapiro is a freelance writer and author of "A Sense of Place." E-mail: 96hours@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @shapirowrites
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