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On Tuesday and Wednesday, Oklahoma Sooners football quarterback John Mateer has been making a lot of headlines. A screenshot of Mateer’s Venmo transactions went viral and since then people have been quick to accuse him of betting on NCAA football games, which is not allowed for players. With that said, the John Mateer betting scandal is taking over at the wrong time for Oklahoma.
| SEC title odds |  |  |  |
| Texas to win | +250 | +250 | +250 |
| Georgia to win | +300 | +300 | +300 |
| Alabama to win | +350 | +350 | +350 |
| Oklahoma to win | +950 | +950 | +950 |
Mateer issued a statement saying that this was more of an inside joke with his friends and that he has never participated in sports betting while he’s been in college. Despite that, a lot of sports fans are a bit worried over the specific captions and calls for an investigation to take place have come in. Oklahoma and Mateer have both said there’s nothing to see here, so the hope is that the NCAA won’t look into it.
— John Mateer (@John_Mateer4) August 12, 2025
John Mateer has Oklahoma fans worried over his sports betting drama
The alleged Mateer betting moves came while he was still with Washington State University. Mateer, from Texas, signed with Washington State University out of high school and spent several years there. He became the starter at quarterback for Jake Dickert for the 2024 season and he put together a strong year while leading the team.
This led to him entering the transfer portal and signing with Oklahoma leading up to the 2025 season. Mateer is focused on not only putting together a strong year with the Sooners now that he’s reunited with Ben Arbuckle, the new offensive coordinator at Oklahoma, but he’s also dreaming of leading the Sooners to the College Football Playoff. That’s why this sports betting update has been so surprising.
“The allegations that I once participated in sports gambling are false,” Mateer said in a statement. “My previous Venmo descriptions did not accurately portray the transactions in question but were instead inside jokes between me and my friends. I have never bet on sports. I understand the seriousness of the matter, but recognize that, taken out of context, those Venmo descriptions suggest otherwise.”
Oklahoma also released a statement to say that it has been in communication with Mateer and they’re doing everything possible to look into this matter. Oklahoma will face Illinois State to open the season and the top sports betting sites have them as colossal favorites to win. They should have no issues going 1-0 to start the year this season.
After that, Oklahoma will take on the Michigan Wolverines for the second game of the year and that’s going to be a tough game. Per the top college football betting sites, Oklahoma holds -110 NCAAF betting odds for that game. Michigan features 5-star quarterback Bryce Underwood, who is expected to be named the Michigan starting QB at any moment.
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