The NCAA will require player availability reports for the Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments, a move the organization announced on Wednesday, March 4.
The NCAA said it will serve as a pilot program and won’t be used for other NCAA championships during the 2025-26 academic year.
Teams could be penalized for failing to cooperate with the initiative, with up to a $10,000 institution penalty for the first offense, up to a $20,000 fine for the second, and up to a $30,000 fine and up to a $10,000 penalty for the head coach for the third.
The move comes as player availability reports have become common in the sport’s five major conferences over the past few seasons. The ACC, Big 12 and SEC post their initial injury reports for intra-conference games the night before a matchup, while the SEC and Big East post them the morning of league games.
In theory, the updates put athletes and coaches at less of a risk of getting hounded by gamblers looking for injury updates.
“Player availability reports are intended in part to reduce betting-related pressure, solicitations and harassment student-athletes and other team personnel receive from bettors connected to playing status,” the NCAA said in a release. “The NCAA runs the largest integrity monitoring service program in the world and provides college athletes with online threat detection services as part of its comprehensive strategy to respond to the rise of sports betting.”
Under the new system, athletes will be designated as (more than a 75% chance to play), questionable (up to a 75% chance to play) or out (will not play). Teams must submit their initial reports by 9 p.m. local time the night before a game and provide an update by two hours prior to tipoff the following day.