Four current Iowa State athletes and one former football player that’s now in the NFL have been accused of betting on NCAAF games, many of which involved the Cyclones.
Game tampering and point shaving has been a major concern of lawmakers across the country when considering the regulation of sports betting.
Many US states have included prohibitions for gambling on local college teams for that reason. Legal sports betting in Iowa allows for betting on in-state teams, a decision the Hawkeye State may now regret.
Cyclones Players Accused Of Betting On College Football
The most notable player involved is current ISU starting quarterback Hunter Dekkers. He’s accused of betting on college football games in 2021, with some of the wagers placed on Iowa State.
Dekkers was not the starting quarterback at the time of the wagers. 366 total bets were placed on a DraftKings account that was controlled by Dekkers. 26 of those were on games involving Iowa State.
Hunter was under 21 at the time of the alleged wagers. Dekkers plans to remove himself from all team activities and will enter a plea of not guilty to all charges.
“Hunter Dekkers denies the criminal charge brought against him. He will plead not guilty to that charge because he is, in fact, not guilty of that charge. This charge attempts to criminalize a daily fact of American life. Millions of people share online accounts of all kinds every day.”
Hunter Dekkers’ Attorney, Mark Weinhardt
Dodge Sauser is a sophomore offensive lineman that is accused of placing 113 total bets, with 12 of them being laid on Iowa State.
Eyioma Uwazurike was drafted by the Denver Broncos in 2022 and was recently suspended by the league for betting on NFL games. Uwazurike allegedly made 801 bets, with 4 on Iowa State football.
Even kicker Aaron Blom has gotten in on the action. Blom placed a total of 170 bets while underage in Iowa. One of them was a winner on the over/under for a game he played in.
The other athlete accused of betting on ISU games is sophomore wrestler Paniro Johnson.
What’s At Stake For These Players
If the Iowa Criminal Division’s investigation proves correct, all current Cyclones players are facing a lifetime ban from college sports. The official charge levied against these individuals is “tampering with records” – basically, creating a sportsbook account using fake credentials.
The charge is an aggravated misdemeanor with a maximum sentence of 1-2 years in prison.
The NFL also has a stringent anti-gambling policy regarding betting on league games. No announcement for a suspension or ban has been made by the NFL at this time regarding any of the ISU players accused of sports betting.
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