A war is expected between the NCAA and Nevada casinos over a proposed betting ban on college athletics. Next week in the U.S.
Senate, the NCAA plans to introduce the bill to outlaw wagering on college games and is determined to push the bill through Congress. The bill is aimed at Nevada, which last year took in $2.3 billion in legal bets, a large portion of which was wagered on college games.

Casino industry executives have been taking up arms, too. All week long gaming lobbyists in Washington have been meeting behind closed doors mapping out a counterattack against the NCAA. Gamers believe the NCAA, which has acknowledged in testimony before the National Gambling Impact Study Commission that student betting is widespread at its colleges, has not done enough to curb the problem. Colleges collect billions of dollars from the television networks, yet have been accused of not spending any of that money on the problem of illegal wagering on their own campuses.

Meanwhile, the NCAA, well respected across the country, will have the built-in public relations advantage of parading students victimized by gambling before the senators during hearings on the betting-ban bill.