Are colleges teaching athletes enough about gambling laws?
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Paula Lavigne
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Paula Lavigne
ESPN Investigative Reporter
- Data analyst and reporter for ESPN’s Enterprise and Investigative Unit.
- Winner, 2014 Alfred I. duPont Columbia University Award; finalist, 2012 IRE broadcast award; winner, 2011 Gannett Foundation Award for Innovation in Watchdog Journalism; Emmy nominated, 2009.
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Shwetha Surendran
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Shwetha Surendran
ESPN
- Shwetha Surendran is writer in ESPN’s investigative and enterprise unit.
THE SPREAD OF sports betting poses new legal risks for college athletes in states where gambling is allowed, but an ESPN analysis has found that most university athletic departments in those states typically don’t address the new legal pitfalls.
Using public records requested by the Student Press Law Center, ESPN reviewed sports-betting policies at 24 Power 5 public universities in states that had mobile sports betting by the end of 2023 and found that only four schools had policies that explicitly warn student-athletes of potential legal consequences.
While college athletes have long faced losing NCAA eligibility for betting on sports, the legal risks are new since the advent of legalized betting six years ago. State laws now often subject athletes to greater punishment — and may even criminalize — wagering by athletes.
It isn’t clear if the universities address the potential legal consequences at in-person sessions with athletes because 21 of the 24 schools contacted by ESPN declined to comment or did not respond to multiple emails asking about their educational efforts around gambling.
The apparent lack of information in policies could leave athletes unaware that engaging in the same betting activity as their non-athlete fellow students could leave them in a legal bind. A 2023 NCAA survey of 18- to 22-year-olds found that 58% have participated in at least one sports betting activity. Six percent said they had lost more than $500 on sports betting in a single day.
University of South Dakota football player Clayton Denker, a member of the school’s student-athlete advisory committee, said the athletic department emphasized the ban on sports gambling at the beginning of the school year and stressed that violations could bring “severe consequences” and a loss of eligibility.
However, Denker said, he had no idea that betting while a college athlete could be a felony in South Dakota.
“They should lead with that,” Denker told ESPN. “If [athletes] were to understand this affects the rest of my life, not just my sport, then I think they would take it more seriously.”
The issue of regulatory and criminal consequences has become more prominent in the past two years as athletes and coaches — to whom the ban and new laws also apply — from at least five schools in three states have been criminally charged.
“It seems to me to make sense that student-athletes are educated on their various state laws,” said Mark Hicks, the NCAA’s managing director of enforcement. He added that the job is better left to individual schools than to the NCAA, although the organization would support more consistency. “As much as we can advocate for consistent practices across state lines, that’s really helpful.”
A “majority” of the responsibility for educating athletes about state law does fall on the school, said John Carns, the senior associate athletic director for compliance at the University of Louisville.
“Student-athletes are only thinking about, probably their eligibility, but there are other legal consequences to it that they’re going to fall into,” he said. “And that’s not a great way to start your adult life.”
Any criminal conviction could have long-term repercussions for student-athletes, said Julie Sommer, executive director of The Drake Group, a nonprofit that advocates for reform in college sports. A conviction would possibly have to be disclosed to future employers or graduate schools and could affect future opportunities, such as taking the bar exam, she said.
“The penalties are really severe for college athletes, [such as] loss of scholarship,” Sommer said. “And the breaking of state and federal laws, that’s something that follows them for the rest of their lives.”
IN THE 38 states with legalized sports betting, all but two specifically restrict athletes from betting on sports, according to research compiled for this story by Legal Sports Report. Six states — Kentucky, New Jersey, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia — have “clear criminal penalties” when an athlete or other prohibited person places a bet, according to the research.
Among those states, the definition of crime varies.
In Tennessee, it’s a misdemeanor for any NCAA athlete to bet on sports. Virginia’s rule is specific to bets on “any event in a league in which such a person participates.” In South Dakota, it is a felony for athletes to bet on events in which they or their teams are participating.
Some of the Iowa State and University of Iowa athletes arrested in a state police investigation last year were reported to have bet on their own teams, as did New England Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte, according to police. Boutte was charged earlier this year with felony computer fraud and misdemeanor underage gambling while a player at LSU.
In Kentucky, it is not only illegal for athletes to bet on events in which they participate, but it is also a misdemeanor for “spouses and close family members” to wager on those events.
Kentucky men’s basketball player Brennan Canada, a member of his school’s student-athlete advisory committee, said athletic department officials told athletes at the beginning of the year that gambling violates NCAA rules and state law. But he said he was not aware of the additional provision about family. When informed by ESPN, Canada laughed and said, “I’m an only child.”
The number of NCAA investigations into prohibited and underage betting has almost doubled each year: 15 in 2021, 30 in 2022, 50 in 2023. This year’s numbers follow a similar trend, according to Hicks. At least a third of college students nationwide are under the standard legal betting age of 21, according to federal education data, and athletes are more susceptible to charges of underage gambling because they are often under greater scrutiny and subject to more reporting requirements.
Legal experts have said that athletes — in part because they know they’re not supposed to be betting — are more likely to use someone else’s account or identity to access betting apps, which could make them subject to other fraud and identity crimes.
Former Iowa State running back Jirehl Brock faced records tampering charges last year after he allegedly used a betting app under someone else’s name. The charge, an aggravated misdemeanor, was later dropped. Brock admitted to placing the bets and said it was such a common activity it just seemed acceptable. He and a few other athletes arrested in Iowa said they didn’t grasp the possible criminal consequences.
“That’s how it plays out, it’s kind of a video game on your phone that you can possibly win money with,” Brock said.
ESPN’S REVIEW OF college sports betting policies comes from documents obtained by the Student Press Law Center, which sent records requests to 27 major-conference public universities in states that allowed mobile sports wagering as of the end of 2023. The SPLC requested copies of policies pertaining to sports wagering, agreements for integrity monitoring services and reports on proven or possible suspicious behavior or violations.
Michigan and Central Florida said they had “no responsive records,” including to the request for a copy of “any policy related to sports betting for student athletes.” UCF noted there was “no separate and distinct policy — other than following NCAA rules.” Michigan’s chief compliance officer did not respond to multiple emails and calls asking for clarification. Kansas State did not respond to the request, which was sent out in December. Ohio State and Arizona never produced records, and Oregon officials noted they needed more time to process the records.
The records provided showed that written policies vary greatly across schools. Some athletic departments borrow excerpts directly from a sports wagering booklet called “Don’t Bet On It” by the National Endowment for Financial Education and the NCAA. Others list the gambling rules under subsections like “Athletic Department rules and expectations for student-athletes,” and some create school-specific policies that lean heavily on the NCAA regulations. At Rutgers, gambling is listed under “social expectations” alongside several other bullet points on drugs, alcohol, social media, hazing and sexual misconduct. Rutgers said this was a standard team rules template used by coaches.
Some schools like Virginia Tech note that disciplinary actions for sports wagering violations can also come from “local, state, and/or federal prosecution.”
Derek Gwinn, the executive associate AD who oversees compliance for Virginia Tech, said that presentations to student-athletes often include examples of high-profile cases, such as the Iowa investigation. Gwinn said that as sports betting spreads, the education provided to the athletes has been “enhanced” to include repercussions for them and their eligibility.
“We emphasized the importance because it was so readily available to them now through mobile applications and things like that,” he said. “So, we just [say] ignore all the influence, and the commercials that you see constantly, and all the ads in your Twitter feeds, and things like that. So, just remember that it’s still prohibited, per NCAA rules.”
Gwinn said student-athletes occasionally ask which sports they are allowed to bet on, but the school’s message is clear: “Avoid it entirely.”
A senior Iowa athletic department official told ESPN they also focus on preventing sports wagering rather than emphasizing the penalties. The official said athletes receive NCAA compliance training at the start of the year and receive reminders around major events such as the Super Bowl and March Madness.
Virginia Tech is also one of only four schools, according to records, that have had direct agreements with monitoring companies such as U.S. Integrity since January 2019. Sixteen schools said that they have no direct contracts with any integrity monitors, and four referenced monitoring contracts at the conference level.
Monitoring agreements can include education and consulting services. LSU’s agreement with U.S. Integrity in 2023 gave “LSU Athletics staff and athletes education on inappropriate involvement in sports betting.”
Gwinn said that Virginia Tech’s integrity monitor provides perspective on how gambling incidents occur, a sense of wagering activity on Hokies games, and additional protection for student-athletes from social media harassment.
Sommer, the Seattle sports attorney, said athletes benefit when their schools receive direct information. “The more preventative and monitoring measures you take, the greater the chance of success and catching the bad actors, reducing the harms [for] the college athletes and the student population as well the integrity of the game.”
Clint Hangebrauck, the NCAA’s managing director of enterprise risk management, said while schools do a good job of informing athletic staff and athletes about the rules, the recent high-profile cases have prompted compliance staffs to think about better ways to educate. He cited the NCAA’s partnership with international advocacy group EPIC Risk Management, which brings in former problem gamblers to speak with athletes and staff.
“I do think there’s certainly an interest in growing what that looks like because it has become so prevalent in our society,” he said. “Student-athletes are coming into college, and many have engaged in betting in some form or fashion and so it’s entrenched. It’s an ongoing conversation on how best do we educate. I would imagine it’s going to get more and more robust as we go along.”
Denker, the South Dakota football player, said sharing examples of other violations, especially criminal cases, would help athletes.
“Our athletic department makes sure that they cover every topic at the beginning of the year,” he said. “I think that there hasn’t been enough of a crackdown or enforcement across the NCAA for this to be at the forefront of policies.”
ESPN Senior writer Adam Rittenberg, ESPN researcher John Mastroberardino and Student Press Law Center legal fellow Ellen Goodrich contributed to this story.
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Chris Low, ESPN Senior Writer
Tennessee‘s Nico Iamaleava has been cleared medically to play Saturday against Georgia and is set to return as the Vols’ starting quarterback, sources told ESPN.
Iamaleava, a redshirt freshman, missed the second half of the 33-14 win over Mississippi State last week after suffering a blow to the head. He was listed as questionable earlier this week on the SEC availability report but has been removed in the latest report.
Iamaleava practiced this week, including team periods, and there was optimism among the staff that he was trending in the right direction and would be able to play. But the final call was made by medical personnel. Iamaleava was examined by doctors for what sources told ESPN were concussion-like symptoms after leaving the Mississippi State game. He did not return to the sideline for the second half.
Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said on Monday that he felt like Iamaleava would be in “great shape for Saturday” and noted that Iamaleava was with the team earlier Monday morning for meetings and team activities. The Vols’ first full-scale practice was Tuesday.
Iamaleava was having his most productive outing against an SEC team this season before leaving the game against Mississippi State. He completed 8 of 13 passes for 174 yards, no interceptions and a pair of touchdowns as Tennessee built a 20-7 halftime lead. In Iamaleava’s previous five SEC games, he had accounted for three touchdowns and turned it over five times. He was also sacked 15 times in those five games.
Redshirt senior Gaston Moore filled in for Iamaleava in the second half last week and finished 5-of-8 for 38 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
Getting Iamaleava back for the Georgia game is big news for Tennessee, which is right in the middle of the SEC championship race and College Football Playoff picture.
Receiver Dont’e Thornton (hand) has also been given the green light to play for Tennessee after earlier being listed as questionable.
Week 12 is here as we take a look at an SEC matchup that has College Football Playoff implications, learn about three of the nation’s top passers who all played under the same coach and see what’s going on in the Big 12.
No. 7 Tennessee will visit Sanford Stadium as it takes on conference opponent No. 12 Georgia on Saturday night. With so much at stake, what can each team improve on ahead of this SEC showdown?
The Big 12 has six teams in the hunt for a spot in the conference title game. With the final CFP rankings coming out in less than a month, what scenario looks most realistic for the conference in terms of how many of its teams could make the 12-team field?
Our college football experts preview big games and storylines ahead of the Week 12 slate.
Jump to a section:
Tennessee-Georgia | The coach behind three top QB passers
What’s going on in the Big 12 | Quotes of the Week
What has each team done well in conference play? What improvements can be made?
It has been a historic (and dominant) season for Tennessee’s defense, which has yet to give up more than 19 points in any of its nine games. Against SEC competition, the Volunteers lead the conference in scoring defense, giving up 16.7 points per game, and also lead the way in third-down defense and red zone defense. In other words, they’ve given up very little of anything on defense and are buoyed by a line that’s both talented and deep. Tennessee plays a ton of players up front and has been especially good at forcing key turnovers. In 23 trips inside its own 20-yard line, the Vols have forced six turnovers.
The reality is that Tennessee has played to its defense for much of this season out of necessity. The offense has lacked consistency and struggled to generate explosive plays, particularly in the passing game. It’s not all on redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava, either. Iamaleava has thrown only five touchdown passes in six SEC games, and the Vols are tied for 10th with an average of 7.5 yards per completion. Iamaleava, who sustained a head injury in a win over Mississippi State last week, has been the victim of poor pass protection at times, and his receivers have dropped some costly passes. Iamaleava has also been shaky when it comes to overthrowing receivers and occasionally holding onto the ball too long.
The bright spot on offense for Tennessee has been running back Dylan Sampson, who has a school-record 20 rushing touchdowns. He has been a constant for the Vols on offense and has an SEC-leading 772 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns in conference play. As good as he has been, the Vols are probably going to need more from their passing game to win in Athens. — Chris Low
The Bulldogs didn’t do much of anything well in last week’s 28-10 loss at Ole Miss, which was the first time in a long time that Kirby Smart’s team was manhandled on the lines of scrimmage.
The good news for Georgia: It’s heading home to Sanford Stadium for the first time in more than a month. Georgia hasn’t dropped back-to-back games in the regular season since 2016, Smart’s first season, and it has bounced back after each of its past eight losses. The Bulldogs have won seven of their past eight games against the Volunteers.
For all of quarterback Carson Beck‘s turnovers, Georgia’s problems on offense probably start up front. The offensive line hasn’t done a good job of protecting him, and the Bulldogs’ lack of a potent running game has prevented them from effectively utilizing play-action passes. Their banged-up offensive line is going to face another formidable defensive front Saturday. Georgia has 27 dropped passes, fourth most in the FBS, according to TruMedia, so its receivers need to become more reliable as well. — Mark Schlabach
The coach behind three of college football’s top passers
Miami‘s Cam Ward, Washington State‘s John Mateer and North Texas‘ Chandler Morris are three of the top five quarterbacks in total offense this season in FBS. All three have the same head coach to thank for where they are today.
North Texas coach Eric Morris coached Ward at Incarnate Word and Washington State, recruited Mateer to the Cougars and signed Morris out of the transfer portal this offseason. All three hailed from Texas and are putting up big numbers this season. Morris, a Mike Leach disciple, knows what he’s looking for when it comes to QBs.
For each one, the journey was different. Ward was a zero-star recruit out of West Columbia, Texas, played in a wing-T offense and had no scholarship offers. But he showed up to Incarnate Word’s camp in 2019 and impressed with his quick release and accuracy. Morris saw appealing traits, too, in Ward’s multisport talents.
“He was such a good basketball player,” Morris said. “He was a bigger guy who could really handle the ball and move with ease. He had a twitch and quickness about him that was almost Mahomes-esque, where he’s not fast but you see him get out of the pocket and scramble and he’s nifty on his feet. He saw the floor great and shot the basketball great.
“It might be easier at an FCS school to take that risk, but it was something we were really confident in.”
Ward came in with extreme confidence, telling coaches he’d win the starting job over their returning all-conference player (and he did). He followed Morris to Pullman, Washington, out of loyalty to the coach who believed in him. Now he’s playing on a big stage, chasing a College Football Playoff bid and a Heisman Trophy with the No. 9 Hurricanes.
“It’s been fun to watch him flourish and get rewarded for being patient all these years,” Morris said.
When Morris left UIW to become Washington State’s offensive coordinator in 2022, he brought Ward but needed another QB. On his first recruiting trip in Texas, he stopped by to check out Mateer. The two-star recruit had a prolific senior season at Little Elm High School but was committed to Central Arkansas. Morris didn’t understand what FBS programs were missing and convinced Mateer to flip.
After two seasons behind Ward, Mateer has emerged as one of the top dual-threat QBs in college football with 2,332 passing yards, 805 rushing yards (excluding sacks) and 33 total TDs.
“I think the sky’s the limit,” Ward said. “He’s just so dang hard to tackle in the open field. Just a kid that loves ball and was under-recruited. The tide’s turned and he ends up being a big-time ballplayer.”
Chandler Morris was not an under-the-radar talent, but he’s having his best season yet at North Texas. He began his career at Oklahoma, won the starting job at TCU in 2022, sustained a knee injury in its season opener and then watched Max Duggan lead the Horned Frogs to the national title game.
Morris had a six-game stint as TCU’s starter last season before injuring the same knee. At UNT, he’s leading the nation’s No. 3 passing offense with 3,244 total yards and 30 TDs. Like Ward and Mateer, he processes information quickly, makes plays with his feet and throws outside the pocket with accuracy. If you ask Eric Morris, those traits are a must in today’s game. When paired with his version of Air Raid ball, you get big-time results.
“It’s been fun to see him get his swagger back,” Morris said.
Eric Morris points to Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Jayden Daniels. The QBs thriving at the highest level are becoming unstoppable by creating plays out of the pocket. And so are his guys.
“Everybody obviously watches Cam and the magic he makes,” Morris said, “but I think all three of ’em can make plays when it’s not a perfect play call. There are a bunch of really good pure passers nowadays, but that’s what sets them all apart.” — Max Olson
What’s going on in the Big 12?
Two-thirds of the way through the Big 12 schedule, six teams are still in the hunt for a title-game appearance: BYU (6-0), Colorado (5-1), Arizona State, Iowa State, Kansas State and West Virginia, all of which are 4-2. There are too many variables to discuss all the scenarios, but the conference has a straightforward tiebreaker policy.
It’s possible to come up with scenarios in which the Big 12 could get two bids, one bid or shut out altogether.
For the Big 12 to get two bids, BYU probably would have to finish 12-0, then lose a close game in the championship to a two-loss team (Colorado, Iowa State or Kansas State). A 12-1 BYU team would get consideration, but it would become a question of how far it would fall and what else happens around the country.
The most likely scenario is the Big 12 will get one team in: whichever one wins the conference title game. If BYU wins out, it will have a bye, but if it slips up even once — or if another team wins the title — Boise State might be in position to get a first-round bye, assuming the Broncos win out.
The doomsday scenario in the Big 12 is if the conference champion has two or three losses and Army and Boise State win out. If that’s the case, there is a good possibility both of those schools would be ranked ahead of the Big 12 champion and the Big 12 would be left out. — Kyle Bonagura
Quotes of the Week
“They’re stubborn, man. They’re physical. He is an elite runner. The runs they run are sometimes nontraditional. They run some runs that other people don’t run because of the space in the box. He’s very patient. He hits small creases. He’s hard to tackle. How many touchdowns has he got in the SEC? Twenty-something? That’s crazy. In the SEC? The SEC is the hardest league in the world to run the ball in on because they’ve got the most size defensive lineman, and he continues to do it at a crazy pace to me.” — Kirby Smart on Volunteers tailback Dylan Sampson.
“I never try to take a step back. I try to take a step up. I’m always putting my head out the window. I’m trying to see around the corner, not trying to see straight ahead. It’s normalcy for everybody to see what’s in front of them. I’m trying to see around the corner. That’s the relationship I have with the Lord, to help me see around the corner so I can help navigate these young men as well as the women that’s attached to our program to a better way and a better life. So I don’t get caught up in the ‘You go, boys!’ or the ‘You ain’t nothing.’ You know, if I would’ve listened to you guys earlier, I’ve gotta listen to you now. So I might as well just put some headphones on and block you out. Notice I don’t have a sponsor for headphones, but that would’ve been a good placement for a sponsor.” — Deion Sanders when asked if he takes time to step back and appreciate the magnitude of Colorado’s turnaround.
“I hope anyone who has ambitions about playing in the National Football League, let’s see what you’ve got against Clemson. Let’s see you play your best game here. If you weren’t focused for Virginia, which I can’t imagine you weren’t — and I’m not saying anybody was not focused — but if they didn’t get your focus, I imagine Clemson will get your focus when you put the tape on.” — Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi on whether playing Clemson gets the attention of his players.
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