NCAA considering lessening sports gambling penalties for athletes

The NCAA is considering yet again changing its penalties for student-athletes who engage in sports betting, potentially lessening penalties for those who bet on games not involving their own team, the organization announced Wednesday. Here’s what you need to know:

The NCAA approved a new structure in June that included losing one half-season of eligibility for betting on your own sport involving another school, then a tiered system of lesser penalties for other kinds of bets, depending on the dollar amount.
Student-athletes at Iowa and Iowa State were charged and/or suspended over the summer for various sports betting, some involving their own team but some not.
New consideration could remove any suspension penalty on a first offense for sports betting not involving one’s own team.
The NCAA said it will push for changes to existing sports betting laws, including rules to “protect student-athletes from harassment and coercion.”

Why is this happening now?

One of the first things new NCAA president Charlie Baker wanted to address upon taking the job was legalized sports betting and its impact on college sports. The NCAA conducted two surveys of college-aged people and collegiate student-athletes to get a sense of the landscape. The penalties announced in the summer were a sharp step down from previous rules, in which players could lose all eligibility for any kind of sports betting.

It was an attempt to fit penalties better to a landscape where legalized betting has spread across the country.

After several high-profile cases, notably involving student-athletes at Iowa and Iowa State, the NCAA will look at implementing lesser penalties. Among the draft concepts under consideration for athletes who place bets not involving their team:

On a first offense, no penalty of suspension, regardless of the dollar value or bets placed on other sports at a student-athlete’s school, and require education on sports wagering rules and prevention.
On a second offense, potential suspension, depending on dollar value and the bets.
On a third or subsequent offense, losing a full season of eligibility.

The Committee on Student-Athlete Reinstatement will finalize recommendations by mid-October, with a final Council Coordination Committee vote at the end of October. Notably, the guidelines potentially could be applied retroactively.

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