What Happened to the NC A&T Gambling Probe?

It’s been more than three months since news broke that federal investigators are allegedly looking into an illegal gambling ring’s unusual wagering on North Carolina A&T basketball. Getting official confirmation that the Greensboro HBCU is under scrutiny has proven to be a losing proposition.

Will the rising use of sophisticated technology deter and detect the poison fruits of human frailty? But outside of that cone of silence, concerns have flared again about the integrity of a collegiate athletics marketplace that is increasingly saturated in bookmaking activity. Who bears responsibility for fair play and above-board outcomes? Will the rising use of sophisticated technology deter and detect the poison fruits of human frailty and temptation?

NC A&T chancellor James R. Martin II and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Earl M. Hilton III did not respond to multiple emails seeking comment on the investigatory allegations. Reached by email, a UNC System representative told the Martin Center that “athletics is under the purview of the campus, not the System.”

Meghan Durham Wright, NCAA associate director of communications, provided the athletic association’s boilerplate response:

Due to confidentiality rules put in place by NCAA member schools, the NCAA will not comment on current, pending or potential investigations. However, the NCAA takes sports betting very seriously and is committed to the protection of student-athlete well-being and the integrity of competition. The Association works with integrity monitoring services, state regulators and other stakeholders to conduct appropriate due diligence whenever reports are received.

The North Carolina State Lottery Commission works closely with licensed sports-wagering operators to ensure that they adhere to federal and state laws and commission rules. The commission can suspend or revoke licenses and assess civil penalties.

“To ensure the integrity of investigations when they do occur, the Commission’s practice is to not respond to inquiries regarding the existence or status of potential investigations,” commission spokesman Ryan Carter said.

NC A&T fell under the national glare in early February, after sports conglomerate ESPN reported that an investigation into two NBA gambling cases had expanded to unusual betting on at least nine men’s college basketball games played by NC A&T, Eastern Michigan, and Mississippi Valley State University. Sportsbook accounts connected to a gambling ring bet against those schools.

According to ESPN, “Sportsbook sources in the U.S. and offshore pointed to suspicious betting on the first half of a Jan. 9 game involving North Carolina A&T and Delaware.”

NC A&T is a member of the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA), and Commissioner Joe D’Antonio told the Martin Center that he is in the dark about the allegations.

“We’ve been notified by the NCAA that there is a matter that’s being looked into involving North Carolina A&T. That’s literally all I’ve been told,” D’Antonio said.

The conference has not issued a formal statement, initiated an investigation, taken any action, or heard from the UNC System. The conference has not issued a formal statement, initiated an investigation, taken any action, or heard from the UNC System. Nor has the conference contacted NC A&T to offer assistance or to seek information.

“They know the same thing that we know, that something is being looked into. That’s it,” D’Antonio said.

While the NCAA and some athletic conferences have extensive preventive measures in place, the CAA does not. Three NC A&T players—Ryan Forrest, Julius Reese, and Landon Glasper—were suspended indefinitely for violating team rules by Coach Monté Ross shortly after the federal investigation was launched.

“Those suspensions had nothing to do with anything involving the allegations regarding sports wagering,” D’Antonio said. “Now, it could ultimately be determined that those people were one and the same.”

The CAA does have a disciplinary and sportsmanship policy. Breaches are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Discipline could range from a letter of reprimand to suspensions or both. While the NCAA and some athletic conferences have extensive preventive measures in place to educate their schools’ athletes, coaches, and staff about gambling issues, the CAA does not.

“Our understanding is that each institution is providing education to their own student-athletes,” D’Antonio said. He declined to speculate whether the national attention has cast a cloud over the conference and NC A&T.

Some experienced observers say that the legalization and growth of sports wagering, big money enticements to fix games or shave points, and nefarious actors are all on the playing field today.

“Betting has the potential for working corrupt activity into sports. It has to be constantly monitored, and you have to be very vigilant,” Bill Squadron, assistant professor of sports management at Elon University, told the Martin Center. He has been active in the sports industry and has worked with integrity companies that track betting trends and algorithms to detect questionable wagering.

“I think that, first of all, most athletes are competitors and the vast, vast majority of a school’s activities are completely honest and legitimate. Do I think that there are challenges here? Do I think this kind of vigilance is necessary? I totally do,” he said. He believes additionally that schools, conferences, and the NCAA need to share oversight responsibility.

Jon Pritchett, an advancement officer who has leadership experience in sports marketing, advising, and recruitment in the private and collegiate realms and has researched and written about sports wagering, agrees. “I think it’s critical that sports organizations and leagues take the initiative to develop policies which use the detection technologies that exist … so that all members can be in compliance and take advantage of the economies of scale that exist. Ultimately, the NCAA should be leading this charge,” Pritchett said.

While he favors enforcement decentralization, Pritchett further stated that it’s important to establish basic “rules of the game,” because conference schools are in different states and each regulatory environment is different. “We need some common practices that ensure no game—no matter how small—can be manipulated,” Pritchett said. If the NCAA or the leagues don’t self-police the system and agree on some common rules, “then you can count on Congress to get involved and start trying to make new laws. In my view, it’s better if the sporting entities do it themselves.”

As part of their sponsorship and fee agreements, colleges should insist that gaming companies deploy modern detection systems at every level of competition. Almost every sport, league, and media content producer/distributor is involved in some way with gaming and is flush with cash. Schools are in constant pursuit of new revenue streams. As part of their revenue sharing, sponsorship, and fee agreements, college athletics should insist that the gaming companies deploy the same modern detection systems at every level of competition, Pritchett said. If a game doesn’t have the detection technology, consumers should not be allowed to place a bet on it.

“Knowing that the public—and legislative bodies—worry about the integrity and fairness of sports, the sports betting companies have developed and deployed data analytics, blockchain transparency, and AI-driven learning technology to detect potential manipulation,” Pritchett said. Such technology methods include:

• Betting pattern analysis to identify recurring behaviors and outcomes;
• Player and game data monitoring to analyze player activities, performance, and interactions;
• Cross-referential fraud detection to pinpoint inconsistencies and anomalies;
• Tamper-proof record-keeping and automated payouts.

Partner organizations such as Sportradar, Genius Sports, and the International Betting Integrity Association monitor and share suspicious activities with sports bodies, gaming companies, and law enforcement, Pritchett said.

In addition, real-time technologies use algorithms to adjust odds based on betting activity, live-event actions, and market activities, Pritchett continued. Many sports apps, such as ESPN’s, use those.

Other technology methods being used to detect and prevent fraud include geolocation, identity verification, and KYC (Know Your Customer) protocols employing biometrics and device tracking. They are designed to identify and stop accounts linked to organized-crime groups and other nefarious organizations trying to influence outcomes. There are also anti-money-laundering (AML) software systems used by regulatory agencies to monitor financial flows and irregular transactions so that betting platforms aren’t used to launder money through match-fixing.

Collusion and cheating are part of human nature, so sports-gaming investigations, prosecutions, and penalties will occur, Pritchett said. Inevitably, some people will question the integrity of games and even some outcomes.

“However,” he said, “the more technology we can deploy to monitor, detect, and report fraudulent activities—and the more we can openly and severely penalize the perpetrators—the more trust we’ll all have in the outcomes of competition.”

Dan E. Way is the senior communications manager in the North Carolina Department of State Treasurer. He was previously a writer for Carolina Journal and the editor of the Chapel Hill Herald.