Ohio State Buckeyes’ J.T. Barrett is a snake in the grass

In J.T. Barrett’s hometown of Wichita Falls, Texas, officials just issued a rattlesnake alert. That type of message never helps to promote tourism.

But that’s where Ohio State coach Urban Meyer found Barrett four years ago. A dual-threat quarterback, Barrett’s senior season ended early because of a knee injury, and when he got to campus, he had to compete for playing time with Braxton Miller and Cardale Jones.

Now, Barrett is slithering in the weeds, quietly positioned as the second choice to win the Heisman Trophy and hoping to strike down No. 1 Alabama in the near future.

The Buckeyes have the best shot to bite the Crimson Tide in the four-team College Football Playoff mainly because of Barrett’s playmaking ability and Meyer’s game-planning genius.

“I have got a lot of respect for Ohio State,” Golden Nugget sports book director Tony Miller said. “I like Meyer. He’s a great coach, right up there with Nick Saban.”

Miller and Aaron Kessler, the Nugget’s book manager, opened lines Thursday on 15 potential national championship game matchups. Alabama is a 7-point favorite over Ohio State, and Saban’s Tide are laying 7½ to Clemson, 8 to Louisville, 8½ to Michigan and 12 to Washington.

The betting limit at the Nugget is $2,000 per side, and only the matchup that occurs in the championship game Jan. 9 will be considered action. Texas A&M is 6-0 but not offered in any matchup, and that’s for good reason.

The Aggies are 18-point underdogs at Alabama on Saturday, when the Buckeyes are 19½-point favorites at Penn State. It’s doubtful this will be a weekend that shakes up the playoff picture at the top. Still, there are some possible speed bumps in front of Saban and Meyer.

Alabama’s tricky spot is at Louisiana State on Nov. 5. Ohio State hosts Michigan — in a major revenge spot for Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh — on Nov. 26.

LSU has revamped its offense since Ed Orgeron was named interim coach to replace the fired Les Miles in late September. Orgeron is a folksy, cajun-type character who has been embraced in Louisiana, and he has one shot to keep the job beyond this season. He must beat Alabama, and that’s always a long shot.

“That’s the game to watch in a couple weeks,” said The Gold Sheet handicapper Bruce Marshall, who’s siding with LSU as a 6-point favorite over Mississippi on Saturday. “Orgeron is perfect for that situation because he’s a motivator and he’s blustery.”

Marshall is not running to the betting window to take the points with Penn State, which has the Big Ten’s best running back (Saquon Barkley) and a coach (James Franklin) on a hot seat.

“If Penn State gets ripped a couple more times,” Marshall said, “Franklin might be out of there.”

Barrett, who was Meyer’s first quarterback recruit at Ohio State, was the main reason the Buckeyes survived an overtime test at Wisconsin a week ago. He has a decent chance to cash at 6-1 odds to win the Heisman, and he’s the snake in the grass most capable of putting a scare into Saban.

CLOSING NUMBERS

Two tough-luck losses last week, when I went an embarrassing 1-5, dropped my record below .500 for the first time. UNLV was my lone winner, so I’ll stick with what worked. He’s no Barrett, but Rebels quarterback Dalton Sneed is as tough as a rattler.

At 19-20-1 for the season, here are five guesses — three in Big Ten games — for Saturday (home team in CAPS):

NORTHWESTERN (-1½) over Indiana; IOWA (+4) over Wisconsin; LSU (-6) over Mississippi; PENN STATE (+19½) over Ohio State; UNLV (-2½) over Colorado State.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports betting columnist Matt Youmans can be reached at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. He co-hosts “The Las Vegas Sportsline” weekdays at 2 p.m. on ESPN Radio (1100 AM). Follow on Twitter: @mattyoumans247