but yet another reason to not take a liking to your fine state.
By Bret Hayworth Journal staff writer
Sioux City Journal
Nov 30
If former Nebraska football coach Tom Osborne is successful in his bid to become governor, don't look for him to aid efforts to expand gambling in the state.
In his three terms as Nebraska 3rd District Congressman, Osborne has worked in Congress to abolish all gambling on intercollegiate sports. But despite working with another high-profile Republican on the issue, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, Osborne is chagrined to find he's making no headway. "We've had almost every coach in the country sign off on the legislation, saying it was something we need to do, but we couldn't get it through," Osborne said.
A staunch opponent of gambling, Osborne and his wife opposed a recent Nebraska casino gambling measure.
"Gambling does not produce measurable goods or services, it is not growing corn or making a combine or whatever," he said. While some jobs for hotels and restaurants arise around gambling establishments, he said for every dollar that gambling brings in to the economy, three are taken out in higher social costs like embezzlements, bankruptcies and divorce. "I don't see it as a good way to build an economy," Osborne said.
In Congress, Osborne has introduced legislation to ban all gambling on college sports, which is now allowed only in Nevada. It makes no sense to have wrongful activity in one state, he said, which would be akin to allowing cocaine in one of the 50 states. "Either it is legal or illegal," he said.
Osborne said he is disgruntled that the college sports gambling abolition hasn't made it out of committee, saying it was held up following lobbying from pro-gambling businesses, particularly those in Las Vegas. If the bill could make it onto the floor, he said, "I think it would be really hard for anybody to vote against closing down gambling on amateur sports, but you can't get it on the House floor."
Osborne said "the thing that worries me is that about 5 percent of NCAA athletes have indicated that they have done something wrong -- either they have gambled on their own team or altered their performance because of a gambling debt, done something to jeopardize their team. If you have a football team with 100 people, well, that is five guys. So it is pretty scary. We are probably no more than one major gambling scandal away from being able to get it through. It is going to take something like that to get us over the hump."
Just a few years ago, Florida State quarterback Adrian McPherson was charged with misdemeanor gambling charges for allegedly placing bets on Seminole football games in which he played, Osborne noted.
Many U.S. newspapers, including the Journal, run the point spreads on college football and basketball games. In 2000, college sports gambling represented between 30 and 40 percent of the $2.3 billion gambling industry, Osborne said.
Legislation Osborne introduced in March 2003, when the highly wagered men's college basketball tourney was under way, would ban all betting on high school, college and Olympic sports. "Our legislation would make college sports betting illegal everywhere and would work to return the emphasis of amateur athletics back to skill, endurance and excellence," Osborne said at the time.
By Bret Hayworth Journal staff writer
Sioux City Journal
Nov 30
If former Nebraska football coach Tom Osborne is successful in his bid to become governor, don't look for him to aid efforts to expand gambling in the state.
In his three terms as Nebraska 3rd District Congressman, Osborne has worked in Congress to abolish all gambling on intercollegiate sports. But despite working with another high-profile Republican on the issue, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, Osborne is chagrined to find he's making no headway. "We've had almost every coach in the country sign off on the legislation, saying it was something we need to do, but we couldn't get it through," Osborne said.
A staunch opponent of gambling, Osborne and his wife opposed a recent Nebraska casino gambling measure.
"Gambling does not produce measurable goods or services, it is not growing corn or making a combine or whatever," he said. While some jobs for hotels and restaurants arise around gambling establishments, he said for every dollar that gambling brings in to the economy, three are taken out in higher social costs like embezzlements, bankruptcies and divorce. "I don't see it as a good way to build an economy," Osborne said.
In Congress, Osborne has introduced legislation to ban all gambling on college sports, which is now allowed only in Nevada. It makes no sense to have wrongful activity in one state, he said, which would be akin to allowing cocaine in one of the 50 states. "Either it is legal or illegal," he said.
Osborne said he is disgruntled that the college sports gambling abolition hasn't made it out of committee, saying it was held up following lobbying from pro-gambling businesses, particularly those in Las Vegas. If the bill could make it onto the floor, he said, "I think it would be really hard for anybody to vote against closing down gambling on amateur sports, but you can't get it on the House floor."
Osborne said "the thing that worries me is that about 5 percent of NCAA athletes have indicated that they have done something wrong -- either they have gambled on their own team or altered their performance because of a gambling debt, done something to jeopardize their team. If you have a football team with 100 people, well, that is five guys. So it is pretty scary. We are probably no more than one major gambling scandal away from being able to get it through. It is going to take something like that to get us over the hump."
Just a few years ago, Florida State quarterback Adrian McPherson was charged with misdemeanor gambling charges for allegedly placing bets on Seminole football games in which he played, Osborne noted.
Many U.S. newspapers, including the Journal, run the point spreads on college football and basketball games. In 2000, college sports gambling represented between 30 and 40 percent of the $2.3 billion gambling industry, Osborne said.
Legislation Osborne introduced in March 2003, when the highly wagered men's college basketball tourney was under way, would ban all betting on high school, college and Olympic sports. "Our legislation would make college sports betting illegal everywhere and would work to return the emphasis of amateur athletics back to skill, endurance and excellence," Osborne said at the time.
