NCAA Push to Remove College Player Prop Bets

NCAA President Charlie Baker has stressed he would like to see sportsbooks across the US stop offering prop bets on college players. While a number of states have enacted prohibitions, others have not.  Offshore sportsbooks, social media bookies and local PPH bookmakers are likely to continue offering college player prop bets.  There is also the possibility that some Daily Fantasy Sports sites will do the same. What's been "good" for the past couple of years is suddenly "bad" just because the NCAA and some regulators say it is might not be enough to get all sportsbooks and DFS sites to comply, though the DFS sites mostly operate from within the US as opposed to offshore sportsbooks licensed in other jurisdictions.

Likely to Happen This Year

Baker spoke on the topic during a sit-down with “CBS Evening News” that aired hours before the opening game of the First Four of March Madness began on Tuesday.  

The NCAA head said the biggest concern he had heard from college athletes is over prop betting and the toxic atmosphere it has created inside venues.

A Serious Problem

In March of last year, North Carolina basketball player Armando Bacot revealed that he received dozens of messages that criticized him for his perceived poor performance in a tournament game against Michigan State. According to Bacot, the messages frequently mentioned his inability to record enough rebounds for bettors to win props.

“Individuals who harass athletes, amateur or professional, over a sports bet should not be tolerated,” Joe Maloney, senior vice president of strategic communications for the American Gaming Association, told ESPN.

“Importantly, the legal sports wagering market is providing the transparency critical to discuss solutions to reducing player harassment for the first time — an opportunity illegal market actors do not provide. We look forward to continuing our dialogue with the NCAA, professional leagues, and other stakeholders on the universal shared goal of reducing athlete harassment.”

An NCAA study found that 1 in 3 student-athletes received abusive messages from those with a betting interest; 80% of the abuse was directed at March Madness men's and women's student-athletes, with women's basketball student-athletes receiving approximately three times more threats than men's basketball student.

Current Status of College Player Props

Here’s a list of states where prop betting on college basketball is permitted without any restrictions:

• Arkansas

• Kansas

• Kentucky

• Michigan

• Nevada

• North Carolina

• North Dakota

• Wyoming

These states allow college player prop bets, but with restrictions:

• Connecticut: No prop bets are allowed on Connecticut college teams.

• Delaware: No prop bets are allowed on Delaware college teams.

• Illinois: No prop bets on Illinois teams.

• Indiana: Only pre-game prop bets are allowed – no live betting props.

• Iowa: No prop bets on Iowa teams.

• Montana: College player prop bets are allowed in retail-only state.

• Nebraska: No prop bets on Nebraska college teams.

• New Jersey: No prop bets are allowed on New Jersey teams.

• New Hampshire: No prop bets are allowed on New Hampshire state events.

• New Mexico: College player props are allowed in the retail-only state.

• North Dakota: Must be on tribal land, but free rein once there. 

• Rhode Island: No prop bets on Rhode Island teams.

• Washington: College player props are allowed on out-of-state teams only.

• Washington D.C.: No prop bets on teams based in D.C.

• Wisconsin: College player props are allowed on out-of-state teams only.

Here is a list of states where college basketball player prop betting is prohibited:

• Arizona

• Colorado

• Florida

• Louisiana

• Maine

• Maryland

• Massachusetts

• Mississippi

• New York

• Ohio

• Oregon

• Pennsylvania

• South Dakota

• Tennessee

• Vermont

• Virginia

• West Virginia

Louisiana, Ohio, Vermont and Maryland are now added to the list over the last 12 months, mainly a result of pressure from the NCAA.