Tennessee student worker used a gambling app, an NCAA report found out

• The NCAA has found a second student worker at UT who had used Kalshi to place a bet
• The student said they did not know the policy on prediction markets, nor that it violated sports betting rules set out by the NCAA
• Another student worker was already fired last year after they placed a trade on a Vols volleyball game on Kalshi

The NCAA has found out another violation at the University of Tennessee tied to a student worker placing "a bet" through "a sports gambling app".

Student fesses up about using Kalshi to place a bet at friend’s request

While the violation does not point to a larger pattern and is limited to a one-off accident, the association was able to flag it and bring it to the university’s attention nevertheless, part of the NCAA’s broader effort to crack down on prohibited gambling within the college athletics body.

Based on the NCAA findings, a student worker with the university’s sports information department used a prediction market platform, Kalshi, to place a Super Bowl trade. While Kalshi is not a sports betting platform per se, the NCAA still treats it as such in the context of college athletes, staff, or other relevant parties placing a transaction.

Upon further investigation by the University of Tennessee, investigators were able to conclude that the student had placed the trade on behalf of someone else. The friend had asked the student to sign up so that he - the friend - could get a $25 referral fee.

The friend also paid the student $40, who registered an account, placed the bet, and later deleted the app, never using the $22 he had left over after placing the Super Bowl bet.

Regardless, the NCAA has found that this trade still fell under the association’s rule regarding gambling by athletic department staff members or employees engaged with a university’s athletics program or body in any capacity.

The student confirmed for investigators that he had indeed placed the trade but also pointed out that he was not aware that prediction markets would qualify the same way as sports betting. There is an ongoing debate around the issue with no definitive answer.

There is precedent as to why prediction market trades are prohibited for athletics insiders

The University of Tennessee responded by offering further training to the student worker and did not suspend or fire them, as the transgression did not involve a university game. The case also serves to illustrate that there is still a gap in understanding as to what products and forms of contests are accessible to people related, in any capacity, to a university or a college’s athletics program.

However, there has already been a case such as this once before. In November, a student worker was fired by the university after it transpired that they had placed a trade on a Vols game using Kalshi.

For all intents and purposes, the NCAA will continue to treat trades placed by athletics insiders on prediction market platforms as a form of wagering activity.

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