Ohio Weighs Banning Angry Gamblers After Dayton Coach Rails Against Online Attacks

Bettors in Ohio may want to ease up on bashing college athletes, because it could get you the boot from sports gambling altogether.

At least that's the way Matt Schuler, the commissioner of the Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC), sees it.

Schuler floated the idea of banning gamblers in his state from placing further bets if they're found lashing out at college athletes, which was the case earlier this week when Dayton Flyers head coach Anthony Grant bashed angry online gamblers for attacking his players.

“There are some laws that have recently been enacted, that to me, it could really change the landscape of what college sports is all about,” Grant said, according to ohbets.com. “And when we have people that make it about themselves and attack kids because of their own agenda, it sickens me.

“They have families. They don’t deserve that. Mental health is real.”

Dayton coach Anthony Grant says players are being attacked by angry gamblers. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)

Dayton coach Anthony Grant says players attacked by angry gamblers

Sports gambling became legal in Ohio on Jan. 1, and Flyers AD Neil Sullivan told the Dayton News that there's since been a rise in online attacks aimed at his student-athletes.

While Grant didn't mention any players by name during his presser, Sullivan called out any angry online trolls and directed them to his office.

“These are young kids,” he said, “and I’m not going to add too much to what (Grant) said, but I’m the paid adult. If someone’s getting mad, they can get mad at me. They know where to find me. They’ve found me many times.”

Schuler, meanwhile, said the state could step in down the road if things don't calm down.

One option? Putting any and all the online haters on an exclusion list and banning them from gambling in Ohio.

"I think that it’s incumbent upon the commission to look into that very power,” Schuler said, according to Covers.com. “That if social media is able to help us determine who these individuals are that are speaking out hate to kids, then the commission has a responsibility to ensure that… certainly those people cannot engage in legal sports gaming in the state of Ohio.

"We obviously don’t have control over people’s behavior, but we do have control over what venues they can choose to participate.”