Big 12's Availability Reports Give a Necessary Nod to the Gambling Era
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In a move that had many around the sports world scratching their heads, the Big 12 Conference announced it will mandate player availability reports for football and basketball starting in the 2025-26 season. It is easy to become torn between cheering for transparency and raising an eyebrow at the motives. Let’s call it what it is... this decision isn’t just about keeping fans in the loop, it’s a direct response to the runaway freight train that is sports gambling.
The Big 12 joins the likes of the ACC, Big Ten and SEC and will now require football programs to submit daily reports three days before games, with a final update 90 minutes before kickoff. Basketball teams will file reports the night before and just before tipoff. Players will be labeled with NFL-style designations—available, probable, questionable, doubtful, or out for football; available, game-time decision, or out for hoops.
Big 12 to Require Injury Reports for Football and Basketball Next Season https://t.co/HU23p4x2Jt
— OK State on SI (@OKStateOnSI) August 13, 2025
It’s a system designed to standardize information, but let’s not kid ourselves and get to the point. This isn’t about helping head coaches game-plan better. It’s about protecting the integrity of a multi-billion-dollar betting industry that’s sunk its hooks deep into college sports.
Sports gambling’s explosion, now legal in 38 states, has turned every snap and jump shot into a wagerable moment. In 2024 alone, Americans bet over $100 billion on sports, with college football and basketball as some of the top betting targets. The Big 12’s move mirrors the NFL’s injury reports, which exist to level the playing field for bettors and bookmakers.
The Big 12’s new injury report rules are great for sports bettors, but terrible for coaches!
— Rachel Bitecofer 🗽🦆 (@RachelBitecofer) August 14, 2025
Every non-conference match up will have them disadvantaged?!
Very interested in why the Big 12 did this@johncanzanobft
Without standardized reports, insider info like a rumor about an injured toe to a star quarterback could give sharp bettors an edge, leaving casual fans and sportsbooks in the dust. The conference’s press release even nods to this, citing the need to shield athletes and coaches from “pressure to share inside information with gamblers.” That’s code for: we’re trying to keep the betting markets clean.
For Cowboys fans, it's easy to get upset. Knowing whether the Pokes' starting running back is a game-time decision could help brace for a shootout against Texas Tech. But the darker side? This policy acknowledges that college sports are no longer just about school spirit, but they’re a gambling commodity.
The Big 12’s not wrong to adapt; the Big Ten started this in 2023, and the SEC and ACC followed. Yet, it’s hard not to feel like we’re selling a piece of the game’s soul to appease Vegas. The Cowboys are about fighting until the final play, which is a quality that doesn't need a betting line to shine. But in 2025, even Stillwater’s orange-clad die-hard fans will be checking the wire on a daily basis, not just for team news, but for the odds.
Taylor Skieens has been an avid sports journalist with the McCurtain Gazette in Idabel, Oklahoma for seven years. He holds the title of Sports Editor for one of the oldest remaining print publications in the state of Oklahoma. Taylor grew up in the small lumber town of Wright City Oklahoma where he played baseball and basketball for the Lumberjax.