Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
In late October, the NCAA announced a plan that would have allowed college athletes to gamble on professional sports games legally. Now, they’re walking that rule change back.
When it first announced the plan, the college sports governing body faced severe backlash. Pitt football coach Pat Narduzzi spoke out fervently against the change, calling gambling a “disease.”
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey went one step further, pleading with the NCAA to rethink the decision.
“This policy change represents a major step in the wrong direction,” Sankey said. “The integrity of competition is directly threatened when anyone with insider access becomes involved in gambling. Even when the wagers are placed on professional sports, the simple act of participating in gambling normalizes behavior, blurs boundaries and erodes judgment.”
Thankfully, the NCAA appears to have listened.
NCAA Rescinds Rule Change On D1 Sports Betting
On Friday afternoon, the NCAA released a memo announcing that the ban on sports betting would remain in place after a 30-day procedural period meant to re-evaluate the change.
“After a procedural 30-day period, two-thirds of Division I member schools have voted to rescind a previously approved rule change that would have allowed student-athletes and athletics department staff members to legally participate in sports betting on professional sports only,” the memo states. “Because sports betting rules are common legislation, the ban on all forms of betting — for sports in which the NCAA sponsors a championship — will remain in place for all three NCAA divisions.”
Now, some of you may ask, “why shouldn’t athletes be allowed to bet on games that they’re not involved in and don’t have inside knowledge of?”
But as we’ve seen before in the NFL, MLB, and NBA, gambling is a pervasive habit. The idea that any athlete, especially one in college, is just going to stop there seems like a pie-in-the-sky idea.
It’s probably best for all that the full ban remains in place, as Narduzzi, Sankey, and many others fervently argued.