Rep. Guthrie demands NCAA accountability over betting rule shift
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Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-Ky. “Ruthless” podcast He said in an exclusive interview Thursday that he would hold the NCAA responsible for the rule change regarding athletes who engage in sports betting.
Guthrie sent a letter to National Collegiate Athletic Association President Charlie Baker questioning his decision to allow student-athletes and college athletic department staff to bet on professional sports.
“The timing of the NCAA’s decision to allow student-athlete and staff participation in professional sports betting raises questions about sports betting and the integrity of sports in the NCAA,” Guthrie wrote.
While college athletes still can’t bet on college sports, Guthrie warned in a letter that there are those who believe it could be dangerous to allow college athletes to bet on professional sports, noting that even the NCAA itself has “previously expressed concern about the prevalence and potential harms of sports betting on young adults,” but starting next month, student athletes will be able to bet.
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Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., warned that America needs to be extremely careful about the new world of legalized sports betting. (Ruthless Podcast YouTube channel)
Claiming that the timing of such a rule change is concerning amid recent sports betting scandals, the letter asked numerous questions, such as: “Why is the NCAA changing its policy allowing student-athletes to bet on professional sports?”
Guthrie announced the NCAA letter Thursday, speaking on the “Ruthless” podcast.
“The integrity of the game is at stake,” the MP said. “And from what I understand about the NBA, a lot of these casinos, I think it’s people who say it’s the practices that point to this situation. Because they’ve seen these different patterns.”
Guthrie expressed concern that although the NCAA has moved to allow student-athletes to bet on professional sports, many questions remain about who makes that decision, how the decision is reached, and how oversight and control will be exercised. He emphasized that these athletes are closely connected to each other (often maintaining personal relationships as they move from college to the pros), making it particularly important to understand how such relationships and communication will be managed under this new policy.
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“Yeah, ‘Maybe he can work out his hamstring in the second quarter,'” host Michael Duncan joked, which is what a person looking to win big might suggest to a fellow athlete.
Co-host Michael Duncan joked that the athletes’ friends might pressure them to cancel the game to win a bet.
“Yeah, I’m just saying, you guys don’t know that, I hope they don’t do that, but it certainly makes the case,” the congressman warned.
Guthrie pointed out the strange ways in which unethical gambling behavior can occur; He quoted player-manager Pete Rose as arguing that he was only betting on his team to win; Guthrie noted that even he found it harmless: “‘If you bet your team to win, won’t you try harder?'”
But Guthrie noted that he has learned from sports gamblers that even this can be ethically dangerous as one strategically decides not to bet.
“So if he bets $10,000 on this game but doesn’t do anything in the next game, he knows there’s a pitcher who’s not pitching well and a player has a sore foot. You know, that’s what you don’t know,” he said. “I agree. So you can’t have athletes, especially people who communicate like they do, you know, even if a college player isn’t on a pro team, if their best friend is on a pro team and you see him betting, then you say, ‘Maybe we should bet that way.'”
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“If there’s one person I trust to investigate this, it’s you because you’re a sports fan, you’re very honest, and you actually try to find the facts, not just put your name next to the league letters in the newspaper,” host Josh Holmes said.
