Six College Players Banned for Game Manipulation and Insider Betting

The cases, while distinct, involve common themes: players manipulating their performance to fix outcomes or providing internal team information to bettors. All six student-athletes: Cedquavious Hunter, Dyquavian Short, Jamond Vincent, Donovan Sanders, Alvin Stredic, and Chatton “BJ” Freeman, also violated NCAA ethical conduct rules by providing false or misleading information to investigators. None of the players are currently enrolled at their former schools.

New Orleans Scheme: Throwing the Spread

The most extensive violations occurred at New Orleans, where three players allegedly manipulated their performance across seven games between December 2024 and January 2025. The investigation began in February 2025 after the NCAA was tipped off about potential game manipulation.

A teammate reported hearing Hunter, Short, and Vincentdiscussing a third party placing a bet for them on the team’s December 28, 2024, game. The same teammate reported that Short instructed him during a late-game timeout to stop scoring points.

Phone records imaged by enforcement staff provided direct evidence of the scheme. Text messages on Vincent’s phone included instructions to three outside parties to bet on the December 28 game because the players planned to “throw the game.” Further texts between Short and Hunter showed them discussing receiving $5,000. The players’ goal was to lose, or attempt to lose, by a margin greater than the betting spread.

They also participated in video calls with a known bettor who told them to “lay it down” for the next contest. When questioned, Vincent admitted to the conversation but denied following through. Short and Hunter denied any involvement, adding a failure-to-cooperate violation to their betting offenses.

Mississippi Valley and Arizona State Cases

The NCAA focused its investigation on Mississippi Valley after public reports in February 2025 suggested an NBA gambling ring may have college basketball ties. Integrity monitors flagged suspicious betting trends on the team’s January 6, 2025, game. An MVSU player told investigators he heard Sanders on a phone call before the December 21, 2024, game discussing “throwing the game.”

Sanders later texted the teammate, telling him to delete their messages. Sanders and Stredic later admitted they were offered money to play poorly in the first half of the January 6 game by an anonymous caller. The enforcement staff proved Sanders supplied betting information for two games and Stredic for one. Both players also withheld requested information and gave false statements to investigators.

At Arizona State, Chatton “BJ” Freeman’s violations were discovered while enforcement staff reviewed records for a different case involving a player at Fresno State. Records showed Freeman shared inside information on four occasions with the Fresno State player, who was betting on Freeman’s stats through daily fantasy sports accounts. Freeman also provided information to his girlfriend, who placed similar bets. Freeman provided false information to investigators by denying he had shared information and denying he owned a daily fantasy sports account.

The permanent loss of eligibility for all six players follows a 2023 change in Division I guidelines. The new policy makes betting on one’s own games or sharing insider information for betting grounds for a permanent loss of eligibility. The cases were resolved through negotiated resolutions with the universities.