The NCAA’s “Don’t Bet On It” video recently released to all member schools was recognized with a Platinum “best in show” award at the Aurora film and video awards.

Don’t Bet On It is an ongoing campaign to educates student-athletes about the dangers of sports wagering and how organized crime targets college sports. The Aurora Awards is an international competition designed to recognize excellence in the film and video industries. The competition focuses on commercials, cable programming, documentaries and industrial, instructional and corporate videos. Entries are judged by industry peers – media and video professionals who evaluate the work against a fixed scale measuring creativity, message effectiveness and technical excellence.

The video, produced for the NCAA by Creative Street Media Group, features sports commentators Beth Mowins and Clark Kellogg discussing the consequences of collegiate sports wagering through interviews with gambling addicts, FBI agents (who also happen to be former student-athletes), family members and a convicted former mobster.

“One important goal of the Don’t Bet On It program is to expand our reach to student-athletes by using a variety of media,” said Rachel Newman Baker, director of agent, gambling and amateurism activities. “While these young people can learn the ins and outs of NCAA rules around wagering at www.dontbetonit.org, this video dramatically demonstrates the real-life consequences and risks of sports wagering. Our message is about much more than preventing rules violations; it’s about keeping every student-athlete safe. When we are recognized with communication industry honors, we know we are succeeding in making the information powerful and memorable – so this award is very gratifying.”