STUDENT-ATHLETES
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Gambling
NCAA rules prohibit all student-athletes, coaches and staff (including those outside of the athletics departments who have oversight over athletics) from wagering on any intercollegiate and professional sport, at any level, that is sponsored by the NCAA. This means that the prohibition covers not only, for example, wagering on the NCAA basketball tournament, but also, for example, wagering on professional football, since both football and basketball are sports sponsored by the NCAA. (Bylaw 10.3)
What is considered "wagering"?
Any time you put something at risk - an entry fee, an amount of money, dinner, even a t-shirt - with the opportunity to win something in return, it is considered a wager under NCAA rules.
The NCAA definition of gambling includes any pools or bracket contests that involve an entry fee and have a prize for the winner OR any fantasy leagues that involve an entry fee and a prize for the winner.
NCAA rules also prohibit student-athletes, coaches and staff from sharing information about injuries, disciplinary actions or similar issues involving athletics teams with anyone known to be involved in gambling.
10.3.2 Sanctions
The following sanctions for violations of Bylaw 10.3 shall apply as follows:
(a) A student-athlete who engages in activities designed to influence the outcome of an intercollegiate contest or in an effort to affect win-loss margins (i.e., "point shaving") or who solicits or accepts a bet or participates in any gambling activity through a bookmaker, a parley card or any other method employed by organized gambling that involves wagering on the student-athlete's institution shall permanently lose all remaining regular-season and postseason eligibility in all sports.
(b) A student-athlete who solicits or accepts a bet or participates in any gambling activity that involves intercollegiate athletics or professional athletics, through a bookmaker, a parlay card or any other method employed by organized gambling, shall be ineligible for all regular-season and postseason competition for a minimum of a period of one year from the date of the institution's determination that a violation has occurred and shall be charged with the loss of a minimum of one season of competition. If the student-athlete is determined to have been involved in a subsequent violation of any portion of Bylaw 10.3, the student-athlete shall permanently lose all remaining regular-season and postseason eligibility in all sports.
Drug Testing
The NCAA list of banned-drug classes is subject to change by the NCAA Executive Committee. Contact NCAA education services or www.ncaa.org/sports_sciences/drugtesting for the current list. The term "related compounds" comprises substances that are included in the class by their pharmacological action and/or chemical structure. No substance belonging to the prohibited class may be used, regardless of whether it is specifically listed as an example.
Many nutritional/dietary supplements contain NCAA banned substances. In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not strictly regulate the supplement industry; therefore purity and safety of nutritional/dietary supplements cannot be guaranteed. Impure supplements may lead to a positive NCAA drug test. The use of supplements is at the student-athlete's own risk. Student-athletes should contact their institution's team physician or athletic trainer for further information.
Banned-drug classes include:
- Stimulants
- Anabolic Agents
- Diuretics
- Street Drugs
- Peptide Hormones and Analogues
NCAA Penalties
This is only a summary of NCAA drug testing rules. ASU has a separate drug-testing program with its own penalties that are laid out in the student-athlete handbook.
- 1st Offense: The first positive test for a banned substance results in the student-athlete becoming ineligible to compete in regular season and post-season competition for at least one calendar year following the positive test. The student-athlete will also be charged with the loss of a minimum of one season of competition in all sports.
- 2nd Offense: A second positive test will result in the loss of all remaining eligibility in all sports.
Playing and Practice Seasons
NCAA regulations limit the length of playing and practice seasons. The following are permissible activities for enrolled student-athletes:
During the Playing Season
Student-athletes may engage in only 4 hours per day and 20 hours per week of countable athletically related activities. They must also be given at least 1 day off per week. A countable athletically related activity is any activity with an athletics purpose involving student-athletes that occurs at the direction of or supervised by one or more institutional coaching staff members (including strength and conditioning coaches).
Outside the Playing Season - Academic Year
- Student-athletes may be required to participate in up to 8 hours per week of required strength and conditioning activities and individualized skill instruction.
- No more than 2 hours of the permissible 8 can consist of individualized skill instruction. No more than four student-athletes may be involved in skill instruction at all sites combined at any one time.
- Student-athletes must be given two days off from required activities per week.
Countable Athletically Related Activities
The following activities are considered countable athletically related activities for the purpose of practice hour limitations.
- Practice (no more than four hours per day)
- Athletic meetings with a coach that are initiated or required by the coach
- Competition (counts as 3 hours regardless of actual length)
- Field, floor or on-court activities
- On-court or on-field activities called by any member of the team and confined to members of the team
- Required weight training and conditioning activities
- Participation outside the regular season in individual skill-related instructional activities with a member of the coaching staff
- Discussion or review of film
- Participation in a physical activity class for student-athletes only and taught by athletics staff
- Participation in clinics in which student-athletes and coaches are both present
Non-countable Athletically Related Activities
The following activities are not considered countable athletically related activities for the purpose of practice hour limitations.
- Compliance meetings
- Meetings with a coach that are initiated by the student-athlete
- Drug/alcohol educational meetings
- Study hall, tutoring or academic meetings
- Student-athlete advisory committee (SAAC) meetings
- Voluntary weight training not conducted by a coach
- Voluntary sport-related activities, no attendance taken, no coach present
- Traveling to/from the site of competition
- Training room activities
- Recruiting activities (e.g., student host)
- Attending banquets
- Fund-raising activities or public relations/promotional activities or community service project.
Employment
A. A student-athlete wishing to seek employment during the academic year must complete a student-athlete employment form.
B. Student-athletes wishing to work on a commission basis must disclose this to the Compliance Office and receive prior approval.
C. The Compliance Office may conduct periodic employment checks throughout the academic year (phone interviews with employers, onsite inspections, etc…) to verify adherence to NCAA and Drake employment policies and procedures. Additionally, employers shall make available for review and inspection by the Compliance Office, any requested records during such employment checks.
D. Student-athletes shall not accept any benefits or privileges that are not available to other employees doing similar work, including transportation provided or arranged by the employer to/from the place of employment. A student-athlete who is offered a benefit not available to other employees doing similar work shall immediately notify the Compliance Office.
E. The student-athlete shall be made aware that failure to abide by the student-athlete employment procedures and NCAA rules and regulations could be contrary to NCAA unethical conduct legislation. Further, any violation of NCAA rules could seriously affect the student-athlete’s athletic eligibility and financial aid.
Extra Benefits
The NCAA defines an extra benefit as any special arrangement to provide a student-athlete (or a student-athlete's relative or friend) a benefit that is not generally available to other Drake University students and their relatives and/or friends or, is not expressly authorized by NCAA legislation. The list below is not exhaustive. Please refrain (including family and friends) from ever accepting anything that isn't available to all students or the general public.
Examples (list is not exhaustive):
- Transportation
- Food
- Cash
- Clothing
- Textbooks not covered by scholarship
- Loans or co-singing a loan
- Unadvertised discounts
- Admission or special access to events
Agents
Before an agent may contact any student-athlete who has not exhausted eligibility, the agent must register with the Compliance Office by completing the Agent Registration Form and receive permission to contact a particular student-athlete.
NCAA Rules
An individual shall be ineligible for participation in an intercollegiate sport if he or she ever agrees (orally or in writing) to be represented by an agent for the purposes of marketing his or her athletic ability or reputation in that sport. Further, an agent contract not specifically limited in writing to a sport or particular sports shall be deemed applicable to all sports, and the individual shall be ineligible to participate in any sports.
Representation for Future Negotiations: An individual shall be ineligible if he or she enters into a verbal or written agreement with an agent for representation in the future professional sports negotiations that are to take place after the individual has completed his or her eligibility in that sport.
Legal Counsel
Securing advice from a lawyer concerning a proposed professional sports contract shall not be considered contracting for representation by an agent unless the lawyer also represents the student-athlete in negotiations for such a contract.
Presence of a Lawyer at Negotiations: A lawyer may not be present during discussions of contract offer with a professional organization or have any direct contact (i.e. in person by telephone or mail) with a professional sports organization on behalf of the student-athlete. A lawyer’s presence during such discussions is considered representation by an agent.
Contract
If a student-athlete decides to enter into a contract with an agent, it should contain:
- The amount of money the student-athlete will pay the agent under the contract;
- Anything the agent will receive from someone else because the student-athlete entered into the contract;
- A description of any expenses the student-athlete will reimburse the agent;
- A description of what services the agent will provide the student-athlete;
- The date the student-athlete entered into the contract;
- How long the contract will last; and
- Once signed the agent must give the student-athlete a copy of the contract.
Warning: the contract must include a warning to the student-athlete stating:
If you sign this contract:
- You may lose your eligibility to compete as a student-athlete in your sport;
- If you have an athletics director, both you and the agent must notify your athletic director within 72 hours after entering into this contract; and
- You may cancel the contract within 14 days after signing it. ** Cancellation of the contract may not reinstate your eligibility. **
An agent CANNOT contact a student-athlete until the agent is registered with the Drake Athletics Compliance Office and with the State of Iowa. An agent CANNOT give anything of value before a contract is signed. They CANNOT pre-date or postdate a contract, and they CANNOT mislead or make any false promises. These rules also apply to family members of student-athletes.
