Bet on it: Las Vegas native Jon Denton starred at QB for UNLV before turning to handicapping

Jon Denton, 45, still holds seven UNLV passing records. He went 13-5-1 against the spread, a 71.1% cover rate. “Proud of that,” he said, “for sure.” (UNLV)

LAS VEGAS — In his first college football game, Jon Denton started at quarterback for UNLV at Tennessee, in an orange cauldron of 106,212 howling enemies, to open the 1996 season.

Those who knew the 6-2 freshman confirm his cockiness and confidence, and the born-and-bred Vegas kid also possessed exceptional street savvy. Another Vegas native said, “A pretty sharp dude.”