College baseball games involving the University of Alabama are off the board at sportsbooks in Ohio.
The Ohio Casino Control Commission isn’t taking any wagers involving the Crimson Tide baseball program because of an integrity firm's report, the OCCC told Covers in a statement Tuesday.
“The Commission received information from one of its certified independent integrity monitors regarding wagers made on University of Alabama baseball, and made the decision to prohibit all wagers on UA Baseball,” the OCCC said. “We are continuing to look into the matter.”
The OCCC confirmed this is the first time since Ohio went live with legal sports betting on January 1 that wagering on a particular team has been halted.
The matter stems from last weekend when Alabama played the first of a three-game series at LSU on Friday. According to a document provided by the OCCC, the order to cease wager taking on Alabama came on May 1 after Game 1 of the series.
The order went on to state that “any wagers placed on an incomplete sporting event that has had wagering suspended through the issuance of an emergency order must be voided.”
ESPN reported that FanDuel took Alabama games down from its wagering options across all markets.
LSU staying firm
The Louisiana Gaming Board was alerted to suspicious activity involving a parlay and a moneyline wager that was considered “large,” according to a report.
However, Louisiana Gaming Board opted not to prohibit bets on the game and said LSU was not implicated.
The Tigers were a -245 favorite over the Crimson Tide before Friday’s game, sparking interest from a Las Vegas-based firm U.S. Integrity. LSU was up 8-1 on Alabama and held on for an 8-6 victory.
Integrity firm works for industry leaders
U.S. Integrity works with several professional sports leagues, collegiate conferences (including the SEC), and major online sports betting sites — including FanDuel and DraftKings — that operate in legal sports betting states.
The firm is “dedicated to preventing and reducing unethical and/or illegal sports-betting activities in their own organizations and leagues.”U.S. Integrity uses algorithm analysis to seek suspicious activity while it monitors line movements and betting, as well as misuse of insider information, match fixing, and game manipulation.
U.S. Integrity investigated a UFC match in November 2022 following a fight between Darrick Minner and Shayilan Nuerdanbieke because the odds dramatically moved in the direction of the outcome of the fight.
Ohio at the forefront
While sports betting in Ohio is still fairly new, the Buckeye State already ranks among the top legal sports betting states in both handle and revenue. Ohio has taken in over $1.7 billion in wagers since Jan. 1 and has licensed more than 15 sportsbooks.
FanDuel, DraftKings, Caesars, BetMGM, and Barstool Sportsbook, among others, were all impacted by the OCCC’s decision to remove Alabama from sportsbooks in the Buckeye State.
