Officials in multiple states are reportedly investigating suspicious betting activity ahead of a college football game between UNLV and New Mexico. [Image: Shutterstock.com]
Suspicious behaviour
A college football game involving the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the University of New Mexico is under investigation in several states for suspicious betting activity. UNLV won the November 4 game by a score of 56-14.
The Rebels were 10.5-point favorites about a week before the game, with the lead extended to 16.5 points at kickoff after a flurry of betting. Four of UNLV’s first five scores came after errors by New Mexico players.
The independent Integrity Monitoring Service has issued an alert
An independent integrity monitoring service issued an alert in the hours before the game about suspicious betting activity. This irregular pattern was first noticed by a major sports newspaper in the United States. Action network She mentioned that creating new accounts just to bet on the game was one of the red flags.
There are no clear indications of match-fixing
The game in question was not popular, so the large sums of money people were laying raised suspicions. A typical, low-profile college football game might have a betting handle of up to $20,000 with a given sportsbook.
the Las Vegas Journal Review Last month I reported that a bettor bet $200,000 on UNLV to overcome a 13-point deficit versus New Mexico. This netted him a profit of $181,000 through Bellagio’s BetMGM sportsbook. Scott Shelton, director of Mirage Sportsbook, noted that this was the biggest UNLV bet he had ever seen.
They did not notice anything suspicious in the performance of their players
New Mexico Gaming Director Eddie Nunez confirmed that the US Integrity Commission informed him of the betting activity a week after the contest. He immediately told his employees about it and none of them knew of any possible wrongdoing. They also did not notice anything suspicious in the performance of their players despite the heavy defeat. Nunez fired the team’s coach after the bad season, but stressed that this decision had nothing to do with the betting investigation.
Concerns about betting in colleges
One of the most important topics of discussion since the end of the federal ban on sports betting in the United States has been the protection of college sports. These games are big business even though the majority of players are not properly compensated. This may increase the temptation for players to engage in match-fixing.
UNLV finished the year with a winning record for the first time since 2013 and will play Kansas in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl in Phoenix on December 26.
The NCAA has worked hard to make sure no betting issues arise. Despite these efforts, there have been several scandals on the college athletic field over the past year. Alabama has fired its head baseball coach after providing information about his player’s expected injury status before a game to someone who then tried to place a six-figure bet on the game. Several Iowa college athletes have also been investigated for betting violations.
