NCAA President calls for ban on college prop bets

The National Collegiate Athletic Association President, Charlie Baker, has appealed to US lawmakers, appearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, for a federal ban on college proposition bets.

No way around prop bets on college sports – they must go

Prop bets, as they are known among bettors, have led to higher levels of harassment against student-athletes, Baker explained, arguing that the legalization of sports gambling ought not to allow for such betting practices in the first place.

This is not the first time Baker has called for a ban on such bets – he did the same back in March, but he has been a vocal supporter of the prohibition of such bets since before PASPA was overturned in 2018.

Commenting on the issue, Baker had this to say: "We believe that when bettors can't gamble on college athletes' individual performances, they're far less likely to attempt to scrutinize, coerce or harass student-athletes."

The NCAA has flagged the increased levels of online abuse against student-athletes and has taken steps to offer help to affected students. Some states have taken even stricter measures, not waiting for a federal regulation to be put forward or take effect and have been adding abusive sports fans to their involuntary exclusion lists.

A prop bet is a type of wager where bettors will make a prediction on a certain outcome, which usually comes down to the performance of an individual player. With the advancement of sports gambling, and its jump in popularity, student-athletes have been attacked by online disgruntled bettors who have lost wagers.

Baker believes that the practices ought to be scrapped altogether through the right legislation. Presently, some 20-odd states have laws that permit college sports betting. Baker also insists that some 10% to 15% of all Division I athletes have reported that they have been the victim of abuse.

Some of the cases have been even more extreme. "Many have received death threats from bettors, and they also receive other, in-person threats and accusations directed at them while they're leaving or coming onto the field of play," Baker shared with senators.

Don’t lose the game -miss a few points attitude

There is also a lot of peer pressure that the NCAA has been able to trace back to athletes’ immediate circle. For example, said Baker, some athletes may be approached by close friends and asked to "not lose" a game per se, but maybe miss a few points here and there.

Such practices have already cost the careers of professional athletes, such as Jontay Porter, who has been issued a lifetime ban from professional basketball, at least in the NBA, although the scandal has hounded his future prospects as well.

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