NCAA president Charlie Baker is calling for a ban on college player props after weeks of betting controversies across the world of sports.
"Sports betting issues are on the rise across the country with prop bets continuing to threaten the integrity of competition and leading to student-athletes and professional athletes getting harassed," Baker said in a statement Wednesday. "The NCAA has been working with states to deal with these threats and many are responding by banning college prop bets."
The most recent of the issues Baker referenced involved Toronto Raptors center Jontay Porter, who's being investigated by the NBA for betting irregularities on his player props.
An MLB investigation around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter, which allegedly involves wagers made in an illegal betting ring in Southern California, has also put a spotlight on the potential for scandals involving athletes and sports betting.
Temple University, which was flagged for unusual sports betting activity after a game against UAB earlier this month, has been monitored by gambling watchdog U.S. Integrity for a while, according to reporting by Sports Illustrated.
The next day, news surfaced that Loyola Maryland self-reported a gambling violation by a member of its staff who was later removed from the program. While the exact nature of those violations has not yet surfaced, they add to a growing list of betting-related issues to hit the NCAA over the past year.
Former Alabama baseball coach Brad Bohannon was fired for providing inside information last summer about an injury to a bettor in another state who attempted to make a $100,000 bet. That was followed by reports of athletes at Iowa and Iowa State across various sports committing gambling violations. A criminal investigation into some of those athletes was dismissed earlier this month.
There has also been increased scrutiny on the interaction between fans and players, and Cleveland Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff has spoken out recently about being harassed by gamblers who got his phone number and made threats toward him and his family.
Indiana Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton also spoke about being reduced to potential winnings by social media users.
"To half the world, I'm just helping them make money on DraftKings or whatever," Haliburton said. "I'm a prop."
The NCAA is making it clear that it wants to limit opportunities for rules to be exploited in the college game.
North Carolina, which just officially launched legal online sports betting in March, allows bettors to wager on player props, and 11 other states allow wagering on player props for college teams in some fashion.
However, Ohio, Maryland and Vermont have banned player props for college sports this year, and the NCAA says it will ask more states to join the fray.
"The NCAA is drawing the line on sports betting to protect student-athletes and to protect the integrity of the game — issues across the country these last several days show there is more work to be done," Baker said.
