Sankey implores NCAA to axe ruling allowing pro-sports betting

The SEC has asked the NCAA to rescind a pending rule change that will allow athletes and athletic department staffers to bet on professional sports starting Nov. 1, according to a copy of a memo obtained by ESPN.

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey sent a letter to NCAA President Charlie Baker on October 25, stating that at a conference on October 13, “the message from our presidents and chancellors was clear and united: This policy change represents a major step in the wrong direction.”

Last week, the NCAA Division I cabinet approved a rule change allowing betting on professional sports, and the Division II and III governing councils also approved it, allowing it to take effect Saturday. NCAA athletes are still prohibited from betting on college sports and sharing college sports information with bettors. Betting sites are also not allowed to advertise or sponsor NCAA championships.

“On behalf of our universities, I write to urge the NCAA Division I Board of Directors to rescind this change and reaffirm the association’s commitment to maintaining strict national standards that keep collegiate participants separated from sports betting activities at all levels,” Sankey wrote. “If there are legal or practical concerns about the previous policy, these should be addressed through careful refinement – ​​not the complete removal of the safeguards that have long supported the integrity of the games and the well-being of those who participate in them.”

If the rule goes into effect, it would mark a change in a long-standing policy that has become difficult to enforce with the increase in legal sports betting in the United States. The NCAA has faced an increase in alleged betting violations by players in recent years. In September, the NCAA announced that a Fresno State men’s basketball player manipulated his own performance for gambling purposes and conspired with two other players in a prop betting scheme. The NCAA is investigating 13 additional players from six schools regarding potential game violations related to integrity issues.

On October 22, when the NCAA announced adoption of the new proposal, it stated that approval of the rule change “does not constitute an endorsement of sports betting, particularly for student-athletes.”

“Our action reflects alignment across divisions while maintaining the principles that guide college sports,” Roberta Page, director of athletics at Slippery Rock and chair of the Division II Management Council, said in the NCAA press release. “This change recognizes the realities of today’s athletic environment without compromising our commitment to protecting the integrity of collegiate competition or the well-being of student-athletes.”

Sankey wrote that “the integrity of competition is directly threatened when anyone with privileged access becomes involved in gambling.” He also said the SEC was “also concerned about the vulnerability of our student-athletes.”

“The SEC presidents and chancellors believe that the NCAA should reinstate its prior policy – ​​or a modified policy – ​​communicating a ban on play for student-athletes and athletic personnel, regardless of the divisional level of their sport,” Sankey wrote. “While developing and implementing policy at the campus or conference level may be considered, NCAA policy has long been an expression of our collective integrity, and its removal sends the wrong signal at a time when the gaming industry is expanding its reach and influence.”

ESPN’s Pete Thamel contributed to this report.