Ex-San Francisco guard Marcus Williams violated NCAA gambling rules, report says

Former University of San Francisco guard Marcus Williams violated sports betting rules during the 2024-25 season, the NCAA said in an investigation report released Wednesday.

The NCAA report said that Williams knowingly provided information on his own future statistics to former Fresno State forward Mykell Robinson, who used daily fantasy platforms to bet on Williams’ performance. Robinson was one of three NCAA men’s basketball players banned by the NCAA in September because of gambling violations.

The NCAA said that Williams “agreed to his violations” in a negotiated resolution. The penalty for sports betting violations is permanent ineligibility, though Williams has no collegiate eligibility remaining.

“Marcus regrets that he responded with confidence when a friend and former AAU teammate reached out to him about published betting lines for his stats (over/unders) on various games, but he certainly never told anyone to bet on his under(s) or told anyone to bet against his team,” Williams’ agent Paolo Zamorano told ESPN in a statement.

During a separate investigation into Robinson, in which the NCAA discovered that he had allegedly bet on himself five times in the 2023-24 season, investigators discovered text messages between Williams and Robinson. According to the NCAA, between November 2024 and January 2025, Williams provided information to Robinson nine times, and recommended that Robinson take the over line on statistics including Williams’ points, three-pointers, rebounds and assists. It’s unclear how Williams and Robinson knew each other, although they both attended high school in the Houston metro area.

According to the NCAA, Williams also provided “false or misleading information” to NCAA enforcement staff in March by denying that he had a daily fantasy sports account, despite it being listed under his name and address. The NCAA said that Williams only used the account to place bets on professional sports, violations that “did not involve any integrity issues.”

Prior to the West Coast Conference Tournament last season, Williams was sidelined by San Francisco because of a “potential NCAA rule violation.” He averaged 15.1 points, 4.3 assists and 3.6 rebounds per game for the Dons in 2024-25. Williams went undrafted and played for the Miami Heat’s Summer League team last summer.