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New York remains among the states that ban all college player prop bets as regulators around the country keep tightening rules tied to athlete harassment and abuse.
A new CNS Maryland report says 15 states now prohibit all college player prop wagers, including New York, Maryland, Ohio, Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Virginia. More than a dozen others allow only limited versions, often by restricting bets on in-state schools.
States are taking different paths on college prop bets
The report describes a patchwork approach nationwide. Its state-by-state table says college player props are available without restrictions in seven states, restricted in 18 states, and illegal or banned in 26 states.
The NCAA has been pushing for broader restrictions since 2023. NCAA President Charlie Baker said, “We now have more states that don’t permit prop bets than do,” while continuing to argue that college player props should be eliminated.
Ohio became a key example in February 2024, when the Ohio Casino Control Commission removed college prop bets from the state’s approved sports wagers. According to the report, Ohio residents could not legally place prop bets on any players during the 2026 men’s NCAA tournament, including athletes on Ohio schools.
That came after an analysis by the Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism found more than 7,000 player prop betting lines during the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. The article also said betting platforms had offered more than 200 prop bets on men’s basketball players from four Ohio universities.
Regulators are also using exclusion lists against abusive bettors
Not every state is focused only on banning a bet type. Ohio, Wyoming and West Virginia have all used or authorized exclusion lists for bettors whose conduct crosses the line.
Ohio was the first state to act against abusive gamblers on betting platforms in 2023, according to the report. Its rules target abuse aimed at athletes, referees and coaches when the threat is related to sports gaming. In Wyoming, regulators can place people who harass athletes on an involuntary exclusion list that bars them from sports betting in the state.
For players in New York, the immediate takeaway is simpler: college player prop bets are already off the board here, and the broader policy debate is shifting toward enforcement and athlete protection. The next thing to watch is whether more states follow Ohio’s ban model, or adopt exclusion-list tools instead. New Jersey, for example, saw Sen. Kristin Corrado reintroduce a bill in 2026 to ban prop bets on college athletes after a similar 2025 measure stalled.
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Source: As reported by cnsmaryland.org.
