A former Abilene Christian University men’s basketball player will be unable to continue to play hoops at the collegiate level.
Airion Simmons, a former forward for the Wildcats, was permanently banned Friday by the NCAA for allegedly helping rig basketball games for sports bettors in 2024.
The violation cited by the NCAA took place on March 20, 2024, during Abilene Christian’s regular-season finale at Tarleton State.
“On March 20, 2024, Simmons violated the principles of NCAA honesty and sportsmanship when he knowingly provided information to individuals involved in sports wagering activities and agreed to manipulate his performance during one Abilene Christian men’s basketball game to financially benefit himself and others,” the findings in a resolution released Friday, May 15, by the NCAA stated.
According to the NCAA, the organization was made aware of the incident when a former Abilene Christian student — who transferred to another Division II school — reported Simmons and another teammate had “pressured his involvement to get paid to lose a game.” Simmons also told NCAA investigators, in a December 2025 interview, that he was also contacted by a second bettor about losing the game for money.
In January, Simmons and the two bettors were included in an indictment by federal prosecutors in Pennsylvania on various charges, including bribery, fraud and conspiracy.
According to the infractions committee, the first bettor allegedly called Simmons while he was with the transfer student and another teammate and told the three players “to lose the game to make money.”
Simmons — who competed at Abilene Christian from 2019 to 2024 — was allegedly offered $3,500 by the second bettor to “play bad” in the game, the infractions committee reported.
Simmons told this second bettor that he was dealing with a hand injury and that another teammate would be absent from the game, according to the NCAA.
Simmons tallied 11 minutes and shot 0-of-2 from the field against Tarleton State before exiting the game early with a hand injury. Tarleton State won the game 86-59.
According to the NCAA, Simmons told enforcement staff he met the second bettor after the game to receive cash in a parking lot outside a Dallas mall. He was told where to go and what type of car per the report.
This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Former Abilene Christian basketball player banned by NCAA for rigging games
Reporting by Carlos Silva Jr., Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / Abilene Reporter-News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
