SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Notre Dame has suspended its men’s swimming program for at least a year after an outside review found numerous violations of NCAA rules prohibiting gambling and that team members “failed to treat each other with dignity and respect,” the school announced Thursday.
“To ensure this behavior ends and to restore a culture of dignity, respect and exemplary behavior, we have decided to suspend the men’s swimming program for at least one school year,” athletic director Pete Bevacqua said in a statement.
Bevcaqua said not all team members were involved in the misconduct and that coach Chris Lindauer and his staff fully cooperated with the review.
“The review found that staff were unaware of gambling or the scope and extent of other problem behaviors because team members effectively concealed such behaviors from coaches and staff through concerted efforts,” Bevacqua said. “The review found that when certain isolated cases of unacceptable behavior were brought to their attention, staff treated them seriously and professionally.”
Notre Dame said that after reports of possible misconduct were brought to the attention of administrators, the school hired the Ropes law firm. and Gray is asked to write a review.
Team members are allowed to transfer, but anyone found to have violated gambling rules faces sanctions from the NCAA.
The NCAA has changed its gambling violation sanctions in recent months to mitigate penalties for small bets and bets on sports other than those in which athletes participate.
“We hope this decision sends a clear and unambiguous message reinforcing that commitment and expectation,” Bevacqua said. “And as we do after any major action, we will continue to review our internal processes and reporting structures to ensure we are doing everything we can to provide a positive experience for all Notre Dame student-athletes.”
Other college sports teams have also been involved in gambling cases recently. Alabama fired baseball coach Brad Bohannon in May 2023 after authorities in Ohio discovered suspicious bets involving his team had been made at a Cincinnati casino.
Around the same time, Iowa authorities announced they were investigating illegal sports betting by college athletes at Iowa and Iowa State. Criminal charges were filed against about two dozen athletes, with most of them accepting settlements and a few having their charges dropped when a judge granted a defense motion that there was insufficient probable cause to investigate.
Nevertheless, all of them were declared ineligible by the NCAA, including five starters on the ISU football team. Several athletes filed a civil lawsuit against the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.
