Former Iowa Guard Ahron Ulis Implicated in College Gambling Probe

Earlier this season former Iowa guard Ahron Ulis announced he was transferring to Nebraska for the upcoming 2023-24 season. Now his eligibility could be up in the air heading into the season.

It was announced a few months back that players from both the University of Iowa and Iowa State University were being investigated for betting on sports. Now it has been revealed that seven current and former athletes at the two schools have had charges filed against them.

One of those players is Ulis, who faces a tampering with records charge. Ulis allegedly placed 1,850 sports wagers using his older brother’s information, including over 740 before he turned 21. That complicates things as the legal betting age in Iowa is 21. Even more problematic for Ulis is the complaint against him alleges he placed at least one wager on an Iowa sporting event, with more than 430 allegedly on NCAA-sanctioned football and basketball games. It’s reported that Ulis allegedly bet over $34,800 altogether.

According to NCAA guidelines, an athlete that bets on their own school could face permanent loss of collegiate eligibility. Simply betting on NCAA-sanctioned sports not involving a players own team could cost them half a season of eligibility. With Ulis allegedly betting on Iowa, that could cost him his eligibility before he plays a game with the Cornhuskers.

Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg was reportedly unaware of the situation at hand until after Ulis committed to the program.

“We were not aware of this issue at the time we were recruiting him,” Hoiberg said. The head coach was also unaware of the potential legal charges and said they had no idea when the situation could possibly be resolved.

There could also be more players from Iowa and Iowa State named at a future date. According to the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the investigation is still “ongoing and may result in the filing of additional charges.” Iowa had previously indicated 26 current athletes were involved in the probe, so there remains the possibility of future Hawkeyes being named at a later date. Right now the focus from the state seems more on players that potentially broke the law, so there could be more players that didn’t violate any laws that might still be in hot water with the NCAA.