On Wednesday, October 8, 2025, the NCAA Division I administrative committee adopted a new proposal, which if adopted would bring a major change to long standing rules in the organization.
This proposal centers around sports betting, which has always been illegal for NCAA athletes to participate in. It has only gotten more difficult to keep track of the potential activities of players since more states have allowed online sports betting. This leads to the new proposal, which centers around allowing NCAA athletes to place wagers on professional sports.
According to Josh Whitman, the athletic director at the University of Illinois and the chair of the administrative committee, this proposal seeks to “reduce restrictions on student-athletes in this area to better align with their campus peers” and “allow the NCAA, the conferences and the member schools to focus on protecting the integrity of college games.”
The National Council on Problem Gambling put out a statement the same day supporting this new proposal, “The National Council on Problem Gambling supports the NCAA’s effort to modernize its student-athlete sports betting policy to reduce stigma around seeking help for gambling problems. Strict prohibitions on legal activities often have the unintended consequence of driving gambling behavior underground and discouraging student-athletes from reaching out for help if they develop a gambling problem.”
The adoption of this proposal does not mean that a rule change has taken place in the NCAA; this new rule must be adopted by the NCAA Divisions II and III. If adopted by DII and DIII the new rule would go into effect on Saturday, November 1. Student-athletes are to be reminded that any sports wagering is still prohibited by the NCAA at this time. Participation in sports wagering by NCAA student-athletes will result in an immediate and total loss of eligibility.
The Bagpipe does not condone gambling of any form even if it is legal. If you or anyone you know is struggling with a gambling addiction visit www.ncpgambling.org for resources.