Breaking News: Nicco Marchiol Fired and Suspended from West Virginia Football Due to Team Rules Violation Involving Unauthorized Gambling Activity
MORGANTOWN, WV — In a stunning turn of events that sent shockwaves through the college football world, West Virginia University announced early Sunday morning that quarterback Nicco Marchiol has been officially fired and suspended indefinitely from the Mountaineers football program. The decision stems from a confirmed internal investigation into Marchiol’s involvement in unauthorized gambling activity, a direct violation of both NCAA policy and team rules.
The university’s Athletic Director, Wren Baker, addressed the media in an emergency press conference held at the Milan Puskar Center. “We have a zero-tolerance policy regarding behavior that compromises the integrity of our athletic program. After a thorough review of the evidence, we concluded that Mr. Marchiol knowingly participated in gambling activities involving collegiate games — including contests in which West Virginia was a participant.”
The news comes as a devastating blow to the Mountaineers, who were entering the 2025 season with high expectations under head coach Neal Brown, largely centered around Marchiol’s promising arm and growing leadership in the locker room. Marchiol, a former four-star recruit out of Chandler, Arizona, had recently solidified his role as the starting quarterback and was coming off a breakout spring practice that had fans buzzing about a potential Big 12 title run.
Sources within the program revealed that the investigation began after irregular betting patterns were flagged by a third-party integrity monitoring service. The NCAA was alerted and West Virginia’s compliance office launched an internal probe. Text messages, financial records, and online betting activity connected to Marchiol were obtained under subpoena, reportedly revealing multiple wagers placed using an alias account traced back to his IP address.
Despite no evidence that he intentionally influenced the outcome of games, the mere involvement in gambling — especially on games involving his own team — was enough to constitute a major infraction. “There’s no room for ambiguity,” Baker emphasized. “Student-athletes are educated from day one about these rules.”
Marchiol released a brief statement through his agent:
> “I take full responsibility for my actions. I deeply regret the choices I made and the disappointment I’ve caused my teammates, coaches, and Mountaineer Nation. I’ll work to earn back the trust I’ve lost.”
While the NCAA is yet to announce any additional sanctions, it is expected that Marchiol will face a multi-year ban from NCAA competition. Legal consequences may also follow, as betting on games where one holds influence can be classified as criminal conduct in some jurisdictions.
Meanwhile, the Mountaineers are turning to redshirt freshman Sean Boyle, who will now likely assume the starting role. The team is expected to issue further updates as it reshuffles its depth chart just weeks ahead of summer camp.
This incident is another grim reminder of the increasingly murky waters surrounding college athletics and the rising influence of legalized sports gambling. For WVU, the path forward just became significantly steeper — and darker.