When you work for the NCAA, the demons of sports wagering are hammered home regularly. So regularly, in fact, I often don't stop to think about why sports wagering is wrong.

Yesterday the Delaware legislature approved a bill that would legalize sports wagering in the state. The move got me thinking about the nature of gambling and how betting on sports is different than other forms of gaming.

Here's the thing, I'm not opposed to most forms of casino betting (I think it's a waste of money, but to each his/her own). When it comes to betting on sports, however, I'm absolutely one hundred percent confident that plopping down money on the game is wrong. In my mind it comes down to the simple fact that, unlike games of chance, betting on sports is betting on actual human beings and people can be influenced and tempted.

Take, for example, the former student-athletes from Toledo who were recently indicted for their alleged involvement in a points-shavings scam. The 20-count indictment found that two business men paid and gave gifts to three basketball and football student-athletes in exchange for them influencing the final scores of games in which they were involved.

People do crazy and immoral things when money is at stake. It's likely the student-athletes who allegedly took part in the Toledo case didn't initially set out to let down their teammates by artificially influencing the outcomes of the games. We've found time and time again, however, that student-athletes who are involved with illegal sports wagering frequently (and quickly) get in over their heads.

Some argue that sports wagering should be legalized in every state and greater regulations imposed to root out cheaters. Personally, I think that's idealist.

In the vast majority of states gambling on sports is currently illegal (it's only legal in Delaware, Navada, Montana and Oregon). Law enforcement officials act in an oversight role, yet illegal activities continue. Widely legalizing the activity would simply make the problem more widespread.

There's also the issue of game integrity and public perception. If gambling on sports was legalized, how many calls would you second guess? If a student-athlete drops the game-winning touchdown, is he on the take?

Sports wagering has no place in an environment that strives to promote the values of fair play and student-athlete integrity.

Delaware passed this bill to add an estimated $50 million to its state coffers, which won't even come close to offsetting the state's projected $755 million deficit. Fifty million seems a very small amount when you consider the potential impact on individuals and athletics for years to come.