NCAA working to make sensible change to betting rules

This is a sensible stance for the NCAA to take as it manages the effects of sports betting on college athletics.

Prop bets are lines produced by betting markets that require individual players to hit (or not hit) certain benchmarks for bettors to receive a payout.

For example, a player may have a prop bet on their total points scored. Bettors can take the over, believing the player will score more points than a sportsbook says, or the under, believing the player will score less.

Sports betting is legal in 40 states and the increase in its popularity has led to an uptick in players experiencing harassment.

In March 2023, ESPN's David Purdum reported that "[a]n FBI agent told ESPN that it considers threats to athletes on social media to be a 'growing issue.'"

Purdum spoke to Mark Potter, the head of delivery for Epic Risk Management – which the NCAA has worked with as it navigates the world of legalized sports betting – and he sounded the alarm on a growing issue among college athletes.

"Colleges are stressed about it and have loads of instances being abused... One college had over 200 [instances]," said Potter.

Earlier this month, The Guardian reported Baker issued a letter to college officials in which he wrote that "[r]ecent data indicates that approximately one in three high-profile athletes receive abusive messages from someone with a betting interest."

"Data also indicates 90 percent of that harassment is generated online or through social media, while the other 10 percent is occurring in person," Baker continued.

Some states, including Ohio, have already banned prop bets on college athletes. Per Action Network, four states – Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Wyoming – and the District of Columbia have no restrictions on college-based prop bets.

We're long past due for a national standard on college betting restrictions. It's time for the NCAA to do right by its student-athletes.