New Jersey State Senator Kristin Corrado has sponsored legislation in the form of S3080, which would ban college player proposition wagers from appearing on the state’s retail and mobile sportsbooks.
Let’s go through the details behind this potential ban and how it may affect the online sportsbooks industry.
Growing Trend
New Jersey prohibits betting on the money line, point spread or props involving any in-state college game. However, Senator Kristin Corrado believes player props on any college athlete should be prohibited, which is why she introduced a bill earlier this month that would make that a reality at all sportsbooks operating in the Garden State.
“This legislation was designed to prohibit bettors in New Jersey from placing player-specific prop-bets on college sporting events,” Corrado said. “I introduced this legislation to protect student-athletes from unwarranted harassment and to safeguard the integrity of collegiate athletics in an environment where sports gambling has become so readily available.”
Betting on Talent
Player props are a type of bet that hinges on the performance of a specific player. They take the form of a bettor wagering over or under a specified total of points scored, assists, rushing yards, passing yards, etc. for an individual player.
These wagers are quite common in professional sports for athletes getting paid to play but controversy has been brewing about collegiate athletes being singled out on betting menus across the nation. The college athletes are not getting paid by the schools and many fear they could be the object of harassment if they fail to perform up to expectations.
There is also a greater possibility of corruption at the college level as those athletes can be more accessible and vulnerable to nefarious actions by bad actors. It is for these and other reasons that states across the nation are raising the issue of banning college player props.
A Call to Action
New Jersey is hardly the first state to call for a college player prop ban. It has been a growing trend since NCAA Commissioner, Charlie Baker, announced earlier this year that he would be contacting legislators in all states that currently allow college player props.
“Sports betting issues are on the rise across the country with prop bets continuing to threaten the integrity of competition and leading to student-athletes and professional athletes getting harassed. The NCAA has been working with states to deal with these threats and many are responding by banning college props bets,” Baker said in a statement.
“This week we will be contacting officials across the country in states that still allow these bets and ask them to join Ohio, Vermont, Maryland, and many others and remove college prop bets from all betting markets. The NCAA is drawing the line on sports betting to protect student-athletes and to protect the integrity of the game — issues across the country these last several days show there is more work to be done.”
Building Momentum
Baker’s call to action resonated with Senator Corrado, saying, “Part of my inspiration for introducing the bill came from reading Charlie Baker’s comments on this topic and his reasons advocating for this ban. We are planning to have a discussion with NCAA officials regarding this legislation.”
Still, New Jersey is only the latest state to join a groundswell of support for Baker’s plea. Louisiana was proactive in banning college player props and they will be banned from retail and mobile sportsbooks as of August 1, 2024.
Louisiana Gaming Control Board Chairman Ronnie Johns issued a statement that said, “Our staff began to work on this weeks ago, well ahead of the NCAA’s call for action on college proposition bets. It is the intention of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board to protect the integrity of sports betting as well as the safety and integrity of college athletes. We feel that this order accomplishes that goal.”
Ohio is another state that has already banned the controversial proposition bets, which took effect on March 1st. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine was very much in favor of the ban and issued a statement addressing the state’s course of action.
“The Ohio Casino Control Commission took quick action to protect student-athletes from unnecessary and potentially harmful threats,” DeWine said. “Amending rules to focus bets on the team and away from individual athlete will improve the marketplace in Ohio and properly focus betting attention on the teams and away from individual student athletes.”
