SOURCE: Chicago Sun-Times

Have you ever wondered who puts the odds on this week's Bears game? C'mon, the Bears as three-point favorites against the Cowboys?

As director for race and sports books at Station Casinos in Las Vegas, Oak Forest native Jason McCormick is one of the brains behind those numbers.

The 32-year-old is one of only a handful of people who set the odds for all major sporting events, and he is one of the youngest people to hold the position.

"I take it in stride, and I'm very career-driven and want to continue to grow in the casino industry," McCormick said. "I'm privileged to be in the position that I'm in."

Nevada is the only state where sports gambling is legal, and McCormick estimates there are about 20 people who set the various betting lines.

He regularly logs 70 to 80 hours per week during football season.

"Much to my wife's chagrin," said McCormick, who has two sons, ages 2 and 7.

He often brings his work home - though not in the way that most people do - watching games and recordings of games after leaving the office.

McCormick's book recently grew larger when Station Casinos announced it would be the first to capitalize on the popularity of fantasy football by offering a betting line on players' projected fantasy statistics.

It's no surprise, he said, he wound up in a sports-related career, considering he grew up in family of sports fanatics.

"As a child, it was church in the morning, and then, get ready for a Bears game," McCormick said.

He also remembers attending White Sox openers with his dad and listening to his relatives and their friends picking drafts for fantasy baseball leagues afterward. (Though, much to his father's disappointment, McCormick became a die-hard Cubs fan.)

While growing up in the Southland, he spent as much time on the field as he did in the stands, playing a wide range of sports.

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