NCAA Sanctions Five Iowa State Staffers Over Sports Betting Violations

The NCAA has penalized five current or former Iowa State football support staff members for engaging in extensive online sports betting, totaling over $100,000 across more than 6,200 wagers. These bets included professional and college games, as well as Iowa State men’s and women’s basketball contests.

The individuals were identified during a state investigation into sports wagering activities within campus athletic facilities between 2021 and 2023. They will not face any criminal charges related to this activity.

In a negotiated resolution finalized last week, Jace Heacock, Chase Clark, Michael Dryer, Kyle Highland, and Mason Williams admitted to knowingly violating NCAA rules against sports wagering. As a result, each individual is subject to a one-year show-cause order, effective until April 24, 2026.

Should any of these five individuals be hired by another school’s athletic department during their show-cause period, they will be required to attend the annual NCAA Regional Rules Seminar at their own expense and serve a two-week suspension.

The Iowa State athletic department has declined to comment on the NCAA’s disciplinary actions.

The NCAA classified these violations as Level II for the individuals, indicating that the breaches could potentially undermine the integrity of the NCAA’s collegiate model.

The involvement of each staff member varied:

Jace Heacock, son of the defensive coordinator, was a football graduate assistant in 2021 and 2022 and recently rejoined Iowa State as director of football analytics. He placed 787 bets totaling approximately $55,359.
Chase Clark, former assistant director of football equipment operations (now with the Detroit Lions), placed 2,305 bets totaling about $18,676, including 46 bets on Iowa State basketball.
Michael Dryer, former assistant of equipment operations (now in sales), placed 1,182 bets totaling about $11,536, including 25 bets on Iowa State basketball.
Kyle Highland, former football recruiting operations assistant (now with Army football), placed 509 bets totaling about $6,365, including eight bets on Iowa State basketball.
Mason Williams, former associate for athletics equipment operations (now head equipment manager at Valparaiso), placed 1,455 bets totaling about $11,679, including 12 bets on Iowa State basketball.
The state Department of Criminal Investigation (DCI) provided the names of these five men to Iowa State officials as part of a broader investigation into underage online sports wagering at colleges in the state. This investigation also implicated dozens of athletes at both Iowa and Iowa State, who faced charges including underage gambling and identity theft. Many of these athletes pleaded guilty and paid fines, while charges were dismissed against others. Over three dozen athletes have also filed a civil lawsuit against the DCI, alleging violations of their rights and damage to their reputations.