MADISON – University of Wisconsin athletic department officials recently reiterated the importance of educating student-athletes about the risks of violating NCAA rules when betting on sports.
Investigations are ongoing in Iowa and the State of Iowa. More than two dozen athletes in five Iowa sports are under investigation and more than a dozen in three sports in the state of Iowa.
Alabama baseball coach Brad Bohannon was recently fired for his alleged involvement in sports gambling around the time he was leading a series against LSU.
Patrick Herb, UW’s director of communications and branding, and Justin Doherty, senior associate athletic director for external communications, jointly responded to the Journal Sentinel’s inquiry and said they were not aware of any incidents involving UW student-athletes.
“No instances of prohibited play involving UW student-athletes have been brought to the attention of our compliance staff,” they wrote in an email.
“Regular UW Athletics staff and student-athlete education around gaming includes our Compliance Department which maintains consistent communication with student-athletes and staff regarding the prohibited nature of sports betting.”
Members of the UW compliance staff raise the topic with athletes and coaches during season-opening team meetings.
They also cover the topic before each football season, with a focus on fantasy sports.
They bring up the subject before every Super Bowl.
They address the topic ahead of the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments.
The NCAA website clearly states the rules of the organization against sports games of chance:
“The NCAA is committed to protecting the well-being of student-athletes and the integrity of competition. NCAA sports betting rules do not permit student-athletes or sports employees to bet on any NCAA-sponsored sport at any level, including collegiate and/or professional, or share information for sports betting purposes.
“Types of sports betting that violate NCAA rules include, but are not limited to, fantasy leagues, March Madness brackets, Super Bowl squares, Calcuttas, sports pools, online sports betting, apps sports betting, parlay and prop betting, live in-game betting. betting and single-match sports betting.
A Calcutta is an open auction held in conjunction with a golf tournament, horse race, or similar competition with several participants.
“We are still evaluating our strategy for educating our student-athletes and staff on various NCAA, Big Ten and/or University regulations,” Herb and Doherty wrote. “In addition to regular educational communication (several times a year), real-time examples like recently reported gaming allegations provide an additional opportunity to educate.
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