they are only talking about betting in a march madness pool, but i guess the point is a bet is a bet, & that is a no-no.
University of Washington football coach Rick Neuheisel admitted he participated in a NCAA basketball tournament pool the past two seasons.
SEATTLE, June 5 ? Washington football coach Rick Neuheisel said he took part in a college basketball tournament gambling pool the past two years, and the NCAA is investigating, The Seattle Times reported Thursday.
TWO NCAA INVESTIGATORS and one from the Pac-10 Conference questioned Neuheisel on Wednesday after receiving a tip that he put up $5,000 and won about $20,000 by picking Maryland in the 2002 tournament, the newspaper reported.
NCAA officials would not discuss the investigation.
The NCAA manual says coaches, staff members and athletes may not knowingly ?solicit or accept a bet on any intercollegiate competition for any item (e.g., cash, shirt, dinner) that has tangible value.?
?I never in my wildest dreams imagined I was doing anything to jeopardize my employment,? Neuheisel told the Times after meeting with investigators. ?I don?t think I would ever put myself in that situation knowingly, but I?m hopeful I can be the coach at Washington. I?d certainly like to be.?
Washington athletic director Barbara Hedges said she learned of Neuheisel?s involvement in the betting pool Wednesday.
?Gambling is a serious violation of NCAA rules,? Hedges said. ?You can?t minimize this. The university will take this very seriously.?
The kind of pool Neuheisel described is not against state law unless a bookmaker is involved, but NCAA rules forbid any form of gambling on college sports by athletes and coaching staff.
Institutions can be sanctioned in such cases if violations were known to college officials or if the NCAA finds they should have known.
Neuheisel said he was part of a four-member ?team? that had the overall winner in both years he participated in what he called a pizza-and-beer gathering. Neuheisel said his group split its winnings but would not discuss dollar amounts.
Under the format, participants bid on each team and the highest bid gets that team in the tournament.
?I was there really because most of these people were buddies of mine from my neighborhood,? Neuheisel was quoted as saying. ?Their kids went to the same school as my kids and I was an invitee. ... Obviously, it?s become a point of contention, but I never imagined that I was doing anything wrong because we weren?t dealing with bookies or lines or anything like that.?
?We were just friends, like we were betting on golf holes. It seemed pretty harmless,? he told the Times.
NCAA measures to combat gambling include preseason talks by officials to athletes, locker room posters and efforts to deny credentials to cover major NCAA events to newspapers that publish point spreads.
Many college athletic departments ban even ordinary, small-change tournament brackets that are commonly filled out in offices nationwide during ?March Madness.?
?It?s clear that gambling is prohibited on any kind of college sports regardless of what the circumstances are,? Hedges said. ?I do believe Rick should have understood the situation.?
The Times reported that the NCAA investigators also questioned Neuheisel about two potential minor violations.
The most recent was in February, when he denied he had been interviewed for the San Francisco 49ers? coaching vacancy, then admitted he had in fact been interviewed.
Thursday is the deadline for the Huskies to report to the NCAA that Neuheisel has fulfilled all compliance requirements concerning 50 minor violations that were committed while he coached at Colorado from 1995-98.
As the last requirement on the list, Neuheisel attended a regular NCAA compliance seminar Wednesday with athletic department officials from many schools.
Neuheisel has a 33-15 record in four seasons with the Huskies. Under a six-year contract extension he signed in September, he makes $1.2 million a year, and a five-year option could keep him at Washington until 2013.
University of Washington football coach Rick Neuheisel admitted he participated in a NCAA basketball tournament pool the past two seasons.
SEATTLE, June 5 ? Washington football coach Rick Neuheisel said he took part in a college basketball tournament gambling pool the past two years, and the NCAA is investigating, The Seattle Times reported Thursday.
TWO NCAA INVESTIGATORS and one from the Pac-10 Conference questioned Neuheisel on Wednesday after receiving a tip that he put up $5,000 and won about $20,000 by picking Maryland in the 2002 tournament, the newspaper reported.
NCAA officials would not discuss the investigation.
The NCAA manual says coaches, staff members and athletes may not knowingly ?solicit or accept a bet on any intercollegiate competition for any item (e.g., cash, shirt, dinner) that has tangible value.?
?I never in my wildest dreams imagined I was doing anything to jeopardize my employment,? Neuheisel told the Times after meeting with investigators. ?I don?t think I would ever put myself in that situation knowingly, but I?m hopeful I can be the coach at Washington. I?d certainly like to be.?
Washington athletic director Barbara Hedges said she learned of Neuheisel?s involvement in the betting pool Wednesday.
?Gambling is a serious violation of NCAA rules,? Hedges said. ?You can?t minimize this. The university will take this very seriously.?
The kind of pool Neuheisel described is not against state law unless a bookmaker is involved, but NCAA rules forbid any form of gambling on college sports by athletes and coaching staff.
Institutions can be sanctioned in such cases if violations were known to college officials or if the NCAA finds they should have known.
Neuheisel said he was part of a four-member ?team? that had the overall winner in both years he participated in what he called a pizza-and-beer gathering. Neuheisel said his group split its winnings but would not discuss dollar amounts.
Under the format, participants bid on each team and the highest bid gets that team in the tournament.
?I was there really because most of these people were buddies of mine from my neighborhood,? Neuheisel was quoted as saying. ?Their kids went to the same school as my kids and I was an invitee. ... Obviously, it?s become a point of contention, but I never imagined that I was doing anything wrong because we weren?t dealing with bookies or lines or anything like that.?
?We were just friends, like we were betting on golf holes. It seemed pretty harmless,? he told the Times.
NCAA measures to combat gambling include preseason talks by officials to athletes, locker room posters and efforts to deny credentials to cover major NCAA events to newspapers that publish point spreads.
Many college athletic departments ban even ordinary, small-change tournament brackets that are commonly filled out in offices nationwide during ?March Madness.?
?It?s clear that gambling is prohibited on any kind of college sports regardless of what the circumstances are,? Hedges said. ?I do believe Rick should have understood the situation.?
The Times reported that the NCAA investigators also questioned Neuheisel about two potential minor violations.
The most recent was in February, when he denied he had been interviewed for the San Francisco 49ers? coaching vacancy, then admitted he had in fact been interviewed.
Thursday is the deadline for the Huskies to report to the NCAA that Neuheisel has fulfilled all compliance requirements concerning 50 minor violations that were committed while he coached at Colorado from 1995-98.
As the last requirement on the list, Neuheisel attended a regular NCAA compliance seminar Wednesday with athletic department officials from many schools.
Neuheisel has a 33-15 record in four seasons with the Huskies. Under a six-year contract extension he signed in September, he makes $1.2 million a year, and a five-year option could keep him at Washington until 2013.
