Big Ten football teams will provide game day player availability reports for conference games this fall, the conference announced Friday. The reports must be shared at least two hours prior to kickoff.
Sports bettors have long hoped college football teams and conferences would offer official injury reports. The NFL and other professional sports leagues offer standardized injury reporting, leaving bettors informed about the status of a team’s players.
Louisiana State University, an SEC team, recently announced that it would offer injury reports multiple times a week. Head coach Brian Kelly said one reason for the reports is to help reduce the desire of sports bettors to reach out to players or coaches for insider information related to injuries. Former Alabama baseball head coach Brad Bohannon was fired this spring after allegedly sharing inside information with an Ohio bettor.
The Big Ten hopes its injury reporting helps increase transparency around player availability while also reducing the desire of bettors to seek inside information.
“The well-being of our students, coaches, and staff, as well as the integrity of our competitions, are of paramount importance,” Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti said in a statement.
No other conference has announced plans to share injury reports, with the ACC and Pac-12 telling Sports Handle earlier this month they don’t plan to have injury reporting.
Fixing the issue?
LSU sharing injury updates multiple times a week offers more transparency than the Big Ten’s plan. There’s still a possibility that bettors could try to scavenge inside injury information from Big Ten programs in the days leading up to conference games.
A question facing the Big Ten is the specificity of the league’s availability reports. Will the reports give more information than just “unavailable” and “available”? If the reports turn out to be vague, bettors may still be on the hunt for intel.
“The Big Ten, in collaboration with all 14 institutions, will work to evaluate the process and accuracy of information throughout the season, refining the protocol as needed,” the press release said.
Tulane, an AAC program, will have players, coaches, and staff members sign non-disclosure agreements, which require people involved with the program to agree not to share insider information. Sports Illustrated reported that Tulane’s decision was a precautionary move intended to prevent possible infractions.
U.S. Integrity partnerships grow
In addition to offering injury reports, the Big Ten announced Friday that it’s partnering with U.S. Integrity to help educate and inform athletes about prohibited sports betting activities. U.S. Integrity is a leader in educating student-athletes and coaches about gambling rules and regulations.
“Enhanced transparency through availability reporting and partnering with U.S. Integrity strengthens our efforts to protect those who participate in our games as well as the integrity of the games themselves,” Petitti said. “I’m grateful for the collaboration of our schools, coaches, and administrators.”
The Big 12 also announced a partnership with U.S. Integrity last week, joining the SEC and the Pac-12 among other notable conferences partnered with the company.
“The Big 12 Conference is thrilled to partner with U.S. Integrity as a continuation of its commitment to sports betting compliance,” Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark said in a statement. “Given the current landscape of sports betting in our industry, it’s more important than ever to double-down on ensuring sport integrity across our conference.”
