The National Collegiate Athletic Association launched its first-ever NCAA betting e-learning program for student-athletes, the governing body announced Tuesday.
The NCAA betting education course for student-athletes covers problem gambling’s harms and the sports wagering’s risks regarding integrity.
An NCAA spokesperson told LSR that the course will be “integrated into the education provided to all student-athletes through their NCAA Eligibility Center account in the coming weeks. It is immediately available to all campuses to use as part of their ongoing student-athlete education.” The spokesperson declined to comment on how the course compares to previous student-athlete education efforts.
“This is the first sports wagering module the NCAA has produced, and it serves as an additional, virtual educational tool to supplement the on-campus education that EPIC Risk Management is providing to campuses across the country,” the NCAA spokesperson added.
Contents of NCAA betting course
The education course, taken by LSR, starts and ends by asking student-athletes whether they agree or disagree with the following statements:
- Sports wagering is a serious threat to the integrity (or honesty) of NCAA competition.
- Student-athletes who sports wager may be in danger of developing a gambling addiction.
- I have a clear understanding of the NCAA’s rules on sports wagering.
- I know how to deal with being harassed on social media.
It also features checkpoints at which the user must answer questions testing their knowledge of the preceding section.
NFL player featured in video
It features a short video with NFL linebacker Zaire Franklin, who played collegiately at Syracuse University before moving onto the professional level with the Indianapolis Colts.
“Don’t let betting get in the way of what you’re trying to accomplish,” Franklin said.
Other course highlights
The course provides definitions of match fixing, spot fixing, insider info and betting on your own team. It also deals with recognizing problem gambling behavior, and gives athletes advice on reporting harassment via social media.
A couple key pieces of info from the slides:
- Research shows that college students in general have up to two to three times higher risk of developing a problem gambling addiction than adults older than college age.
- Avoid participating in any form of sports wagering or fantasy sports (altogether.)
Increase in NCAA betting probes
The NCAA has been dealing with an uptick of sports betting investigations this year. There is currently an ongoing betting investigation into student-athletes at Iowa University and Iowa State University.
The University of Alabama fired baseball coach Brad Bohannon amid an ongoing sports wagering probe.
NCAA betting policies for players who wager on games not involving their own team could change, the governing body said earlier this month.
