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Dec 12, 2023

Sport Shorts: Iowa St QB Dekkers accused of betting on Cyclones sports

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers has been accused of gambling on Cyclones sports events, including a football game, and was charged Tuesday with tampering with records related

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers has been accused of gambling on Cyclones sports events, including a football game, and was charged Tuesday with tampering with records related to an Iowa Criminal Division investigation into sports gambling.

The criminal complaint said Dekkers placed 366 online bets worth more than $2,799. According to documents, those bets included 26 Iowa State athletic events and a 2021 football game with Oklahoma State when Dekkers was a backup. He did not play in the game.

The Des Moines Register was first to report the charge against Dekkers.

In May, officials Iowa State and the University of Iowa announced they were cooperating with state gaming regulators who were investigating illegal online gambling on their campuses. Iowa said it identified 26 athletes in various sports that might have also compromised their NCAA eligibility. Iowa State at the time said about 15 athletes across three sports were suspected of violating gambling rules.

There were three other current or former Iowa State athletes facing the same charge, according to Iowa state online court records. Those included former Cyclones defensive lineman Eyioma Uwazurike, who was drafted by Denver in 2022 and was suspended indefinitely by the NFL for betting on Broncos games during his rookie season.

Documents said Dekkers participated in a scheme with his parents, Scott Dekkers and Jami Dekkers, to conceal his online gambling and made it appear that bets placed by Hunter Dekkers were made by Jami Dekkers.

The 22-year-old Dekkers started all 12 of Iowa State’s games last season. He could face loss of eligibility under NCAA guidelines against athletes from wagering on their own games or other sports at their own schools.

Three other current and former Iowa State athletes were also charged with tampering of records connected to the investigation, according to state online records.

Offensive lineman Dodge Sauser and Iowa State wrestler Paniro Johnson were also charged with tampering with records in the investigation.

Sauser made approximately 113 online bets worth $3,075 with 12 wagers on Iowa State football games, including those with Ohio, West Virginia, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech, according to records.

Johnson, who won a Big 12 wrestling title last year as a freshman, is alleged to have placed about 1,283 bets online worth more than $45,600, according to the complaint. There were approximately 25 bets on Iowa State athletic events.

The complaint against Uwazurike alleges he made 801 bets online for more than $21,300, with four wagers on Iowa State football games.

All four are set to appear in court on Aug. 16. There was no attorney for Dekkers or the others listed on the complaints.

Gambling in college athletics has come back to the forefront after Alabama’s baseball coach, Brian Bohannon and two Cincinnati baseball staffers were let go due to their connection to gambling investigations.

Struggling Padres get Hill, Choi from the Pirates in 1 of 3 trades before deadlineSAN DIEGO (AP) — The big-budget San Diego Padres, desperate to turn around their disappointing season, obtained 43-year-old left-hander Rich Hill and a left-handed bat in first baseman/designated hitter Ji Man Choi from the Pittsburgh Pirates in one of three trades prior to Tuesday’s deadline.

A year after acquiring star Juan Soto in a blockbuster trade on deadline day, general manager A.J. Preller chose to address some glaring needs, including adding to a bullpen that’s susceptible to coughing up late leads and an offense that struggles to get clutch hits and is among the worst in the majors at driving in runners in scoring position.

Preller thinks the Padres are capable of returning to the playoffs a year after they made a stirring run to the NL Championship Series. He was able to hold on to All-Star closer Josh Hader and left-hander Blake Snell, whose 2.50 ERA is second-lowest in the majors. Both are in the final years of their contracts.

The Padres also acquired reliever Scott Barlow from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for right-handers Jesus Rio and Henry Williams, and infielder Garrett Cooper and minor league pitcher Sean Reynolds from the Miami Marlins in exchange left-hander Ryan Weathers.

The Padres are led by stars Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Soto and Xander Bogaerts yet are buried in fourth place in the NL West, 8 1/2 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers, and five games out of the third wild-card spot, with four teams ahead of them. The Padres entered this season with World Series aspirations and increased their payroll to nearly $250 million, third highest in the majors.

The deal with the Pirates came six days after Choi homered in a 3-2 win at Petco Park that left the Padres 1-5 in the season series against Pittsburgh. The wildly inconsistent Padres then swept the AL West-leading Texas Rangers over the weekend before suffering an almost incomprehensible defeat Monday night at Colorado. The Padres had the bases loaded with no outs in the 10th inning but failed to score, and they dropped to 0-10 in extra-inning games by losing 4-3.

The Padres released DH Nelson Cruz on July 4 and Matt Carpenter is hitting just .166 with four homers and 15 RBIs.

The Padres parted with prospects Jackson Wolf, a left-hander, who recently made his big league debut, and Estuar Suero, an outfielder, as well as first baseman Alfonso Rivas.

Pittsburgh flirted with contention after a 20-8 start but has faded over the last three months. It appears ready to let young players like Quinn Priester and 2021 first overall pick catcher/outfielder Henry Davis, 2020 first-round pick infielder Nick Gonzalez and catcher Endy Rodriguez take the majority of the reps the rest of the way for a team pointing firmly to 2024 and beyond.

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