Id led the pro league in scoring over there and signed a very nice contract. Greater Boston. But for many, there is a fierce bitterness that still lingers to this day. I had my own place to live and all the food I wanted to eat. And in that article in Sports Illustrated, Henry Hill says, The word came back that Cobb was enthusiastic. The key phrase there is The word came back. I dont know what Rick Kuhn was telling Henry Hill or the Perla brothers. Convicted with Kuhn, 26, of conspiracy to commit racketeering and sport bribery and violation of the Travel Act were James Burke, 50, of New York, a reputed organized crime figure who is serving time for parole violation on a 1974 extortion conviction; Paul Mazzei, 37, of Pittsburgh, in jail on a narcotics conviction, and brothers Anthony Perla, 31, and Rocco Perla, 26, of Pittsburgh. He said he would have done that if the sides were reversed. The other two kids made whatever choices they made, but look what was done to Ernie. Ernie, and anybody who truly knew him, who knew about his character and what type of young man he was, we were all heartbroken. The audience is left to make their own judgment on how involved Sweeney and Cobb were in the fixes, but Sweeney missing a free throw when he is the best in the nation is some serious evidence of his involvement. Joe Beaulieu, the starting center on the 1978-79 Boston College team, also testified he was approached by Kuhn to participate in the plan, but he said he rejected the proposal. The fact that I went to court and fought for my name, that I stood up for myself and cleared my name, that I was exonerated and acquitted, its a travesty that Im still associated with this., My name is indelibly linked to it, Cobb continued. A fitness fanatic who augmented his training by swimming and riding his bicycle very long distances, Cobb hopped on his ten-speed shortly after the indictment was announced and began pedaling. 2015, www.recorder.com/Archives/2015/01/spt-KeepingScore-GR-012415. The test run for the scheme proved unsuccessful when Boston College's team established an early lead and ultimately won the game by nineteen points. But Im so proud of him because he picked his life back up and made the best of it. Fourteen hours later, I arrived in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.. Although a participant in the scheme, Hill was granted immunity from prosecution and testified as a government witness. I have an incredible circle of supportive friends and have met some amazing people who have impacted my life in ways that I cant even begin to describe., Mr. At that point, I was looking forward to a trial, said Cobb. The fixers changed the original plan and bet on Holy Cross, but the players were told this right before the game. and I were the victims of the same circumstances that were beyond our control. Boston College was favored by twelve to thirteen points, but won the game by only a three-point margin, 8683. "It really could be far more serious and more of an annual situation than anyone suspects," said Ralph Miller, basketball coach at Oregon State University. Testifying for the defense, Boston College basketball Coach Tom Davis said at no point during the 1978-79 season did he notice any of his players giving anything less than a 100 percent effort. Ernie Cobb is also introduced, a senior, team captain, and Boston Colleges top scorer. After he interviewed him, he fell in love with him and told me, Hes innocent. He didn't want to be bothered with these kids anymore." When he arrived on campus in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, Cobbs internal mantra was, I gotta stay eligible. With those persistent affirmations dancing through his mind, he took his academic responsibilities seriously from day one. Sweeney has won several FIMBA tournaments as a player in the 50-plus division. When he told Alswanger about the indictment, his old high school coach spoke sternly with him, as he'd done sometwelveyears earlier when Cobb had just returned home fromthe juvenile detention facility. When he returned to the United States, he moved to Phoenix, Arizona, where he became a Special Education teacher and high school basketball coach. Rick Kuhn during Boston College men's basketball's 1977-1978 season. Sweeney describes his side of the story, claiming he is invited to dinner with Kuhn and Tony, where he meets Henry Hill who threatens to kill him if he doesnt begin fixing games with Kuhn. Jan. 18 (UPI) -- Netflix wants to hire a flight attendant for one of its private jets, and says pay can reach $385,000, according to a job listing on the streaming service's website. Kuhn was thus expected to keep the score below the six- to seven-point margin. Rocco and Tony Perla were giving money to Rick Kuhn. Copyright 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Kuhn agreed to participate, and brought in his teammate Jim Sweeney.[1]. The player was Kuhn, a reserve forward on the team. I was nervous because I didnt know what was going to happen. According to Hill's testimony, he met with Kuhn and cocaptain Jim Sweeney in a hotel room near Boston's Logan Airport in November of 1978 to cement the deal. NEW YORK -- Former Boston College basketball player Rick Kuhn, jailed for his 1981 conviction in a point-shaving scandal, has asked for a reduction of his 10-year prison sentence. This scandal did not end with the regular basketball season, it continued to affect and alter these players and gangsters lives for years after. The movie begins by introducing the key Boston College basketball players and the Pittsburgh mobsters. Coupled with the narration being done by Ray Liotta, the actor that played Henry Hill in the movie, adding to the films overall gangster aesthetic. I cooperated willingly, and Im glad I did, Sweeney says. Tell me what you did and what you didnt do. The 197879 Boston College Eagles men's basketball team represented Boston College during the 197879 NCAA men's He took advantage of an opportunity that surfaced when a pro team from Israel offered him a spot on their roster. The former friends work hard to cast blame and the true conversations that went on between the mobsters and players will never be discovered. Those later betters on St. John's lost money because they laid more than the eventual nine point margin of victory. The whole team is confused as Sweeney hides on the bench. You gotta tell me the truth, because I gotta know how to go on this?. When I think about my journey, it brings tears to my eyes. With Roccos high school buddy Rick Kuhn entering his senior year at Boston College, where he was expected to be a contributor to the schools basketball team, the brothers figured they could make a ton of money. I was shining at the camp. But, as Sweeney points out, the government didnt need to prove that point shaving actually happened, just that a conspiracy to shave them had. After perhaps his greatest moment during the preseason, when he had that outstanding game against the Celtics right before the regular season tipped off, Cobb was relaxing in his hotel room when he heard a knock at the door. I told him, I think were gonna blow them out, we look really good. The characters and events were later immortalized by the actors Ray Liotta and Robert DeNiro in the classic film, Goodfellas. He graduated from Woodworth Public School in 1985 and earned a bachelors degree from University of Sioux Falls. And yeah, I took that money. He said Hill told him he was backed by powerful interests in New York, and he was afraid of what might happen to him if he refused to cooperate. I continue to feel like I have to defend myself, all these years later, even after the government tried their case against me and I was found innocent. After his junior campaign, where he converted 52% of his shots, an inordinate number for a small perimeter shooter, and averaged 22.8 points per game, he was recognized as one of the most lethal scorers in the country. Sweeney, starter and team captain, intentionally fouls himself out of the game. The Providence game was played on December 6, 1978, and Boston College was favored to win by six to seven points. I called my buddy Frank Melzer, who was an attorney, said Alswanger. Music. Hes innocent., When they indicted me, they wanted Peter Vario, the mobster, so they tried us together, said Cobb. I feel it.. He really set the tone in terms of being a strong, dynamic, willful player that wondrous talents like John Bagley, Michael Adams and Dana Barros, all of whom went on to play ball in the NBA after their careers at B.C., followed. Burke was sentenced to twelve years' imprisonment. The mobsters Paul Mazzei and Henry Hill met in a nearby jail stayed in touch after serving their time. The FBI had all the evidence they needed and were going to try and swing that Jimmy Burke played a large role in the scandal in order to convict him. On the stand during the trial, Rick Kuhns girlfriend, Barbara Reed, with whom he shared an apartment during his senior year at Boston College, testified that she overheard Kuhn and Sweeney discussing the Fordham game, saying that they had to keep the ball away from Cobb because he shot the ball all the time. Although Cobb and Sweeney received money and were a part of the scandal, the FBI did not prosecute them in the first round and were primarily focused on getting the mobsters. Even after being informed of the investigation, he said he noticed nothing unusual after reviewing films of the games. U.S. District Judge Henry Bramwell set sentencing for Jan. 8. Everybody involved in the scandal got sentenced except for Hill and Sweeney. Snitching is seen as one of the worst things you can do to a business partner, but to these people, it is just water under the bridge. Supreme Court mulls questions about students' accessibility rights. Its gonna be no contest. This is where my focus has been for the last 10 years. He says that Hill once referenced his girlfriend Maura (now his wife) in one of his threats, asking Sweeney how would your honey feel if she saw your --- hanging in a bracelet? He also says that other mob clichs like references to cement shoes are not just the stuff of Hollywood. A crime story, about the mafia fixing a college basketball game, alleged innocent college basketball kids, and involves small time bookies in Pittsburgh, its really a story of betrayal and people turning on one another, and all being done in the name of greed. Director Joe Lavine. But for Bowie, it was too little, too late. I didnt think anything of it. Dubbed Playing for the Mob, it documents the twists and turns that brought Sweeney and two other BC players into the throes of New York mobster Henry Hill, whose name later became famous when he was portrayed by Ray Liotta in the 1990 hit movie Goodfellas. This is Part II of The Shadow League's feature story on former Boston College basketball player Ernie Cobb. The Nets coaches were telling me, Coach, hes gonna be a great pro., I had a great camp with the Nets and was poised to make the team, said Cobb. In this case, while the line may have opened, or at one time gone to two, because of the heavy betting on Holy Cross, the syndicate had to lay as many as seven points, and therefore lost their bet. The Boston Globe story was initially investigated and written by a young Boston College alumnus named Leslie Visser, who would go on to become a very accomplished, groundbreaking journalist and role model for women who aspired to work in the field of sports media. Bruce Pearl, a normal student in the class of 1982, is introduced and talks about the smart, diverse basketball players. But I found out that I wouldnt be allowed to leave the United States because the government was going to bring me to trial.. now all well past their primes after serving their time, including the gangster Ray We get home, I open it up, and theres $1,000 in there.. The scheme thus ended on an unsuccessful note. For added effect, ESPN landed Liotta, whose character served as a narrator in Goodfellas, to narrate its film. I just had to be alone, Cobb told the reporters afterwards. Black Test Car orA Dark Machine of Destruction? He turned to me and said, Coach, Im glad youre sticking up for your kid. Fellow player Michael Bowie begins to ask questions, but Sweeney argues that they are still winning. Kuhn was thus expected to keep the score below the six- to seven-point margin. I was forthright and honest with them. Im not angry at the school. When one of his links leads to a purchase of, say, a LeBron James Fathead, he gets a 15% commission. He wasnt a trial lawyer, so he brought in his colleague, David Golub. Kuhn, who ultimately served four years in prison for conspiracy and racketeering, hatched a plan with Hill associates Tony Perla, his brother Rocco Perla, and Paul Mazzei to shave points - losing by more than the point spread or winning by less than the point spread - in several BC games between December 1978 and March 1979. There were a lot of rich kids who went to Boston College. With Roccos high school buddy Rick Kuhn entering his senior year at Boston College, where he was expected to be a contributor to the schools basketball team, the He killed people. With the focus limited to the specific players involved, BCs basketball program didnt suffer at all. Rocco says Sweeney told him he missed it to avoid a pair of cement shoes. Boston College confirmed the investigation on Friday. Hill was listed as a co-conspirator, but was not named as a defendant. II. The Shadow League, 29 May 2017, theshadowleague.com/30-years-after-his-exoneration-former-bc-hoops-star-ernie-cobb-is-still-fighting-to-clear-his-name-pt-ii/. Rick Kuhn was an older player who was friends with Sweeney and a tough, street smart kid with a different upbringing than Sweeney. On June 23rd, 1983, more than four years after hed played his final game at Boston College, Ernie Cobb was indicted and charged with taking cash bribes to alter the outcomes of games against Harvard, Rhode Island and Fordham. They mentioned the $1,000 that Rocco Perla gave my girlfriend and I told them the truth. Sweeney claims that hes heard network execs at a sports business conference in Florida express a desire for such a character to pop up with occasional humorous commentary. Towards the end of the film, we see Hill and Mizzou, one of the people Hill snitched on, are meeting at a restaurant 30 years later. The scheme was hit or miss early on. In 1978, Rick Kuhn was in his final season at Boston College,amarginal player with little going for him. Bets in this column are given in the format ", Winner is given as either Opp or BC and the margin of victory. In the summer of 1978, Rocco Perla and his older brother Anthony, back in Pittsburgh, were the ones who initially conceived the point-shaving scheme that would later rock the college basketball world. Rick Kuhn, 55, passed away peacefully on September 12, 2022, in his home in West Fargo, ND, surrounded by his family. Paul Mazzei explains that there is no time to change your mind in their business. The final player involved in the fix, Rick Kuhn, is introduced. Film. He is a participant in the Federal Witness Protection Program and is receiving government protection in exchange for his testimony. All Kuhn had to do was ensure that the Eagles fell short of the point spread in the games that they bet on. So, in very basic terms, if B.C. was favored to win a game by ten points, Kuhn had to make sure, if the game was in play with the mobsters and the bookies, that they won by less than ten in order for the gamblers to make money. He gave me every opportunity to tell my story, says Sweeney of Lavine. They all have different versions of the story, but regardless games are going to start being fixed. I got through it on my own, and I didnt get whacked, is how he sums it up. Sweeney has mostly shunned requests for interviews and book projects over the years, but decided to put his trust in documentary filmmaker Joe Lavine - a fellow native of Trenton, N.J. - who directed the piece for ESPN. The audience learns about Boston Colleges rival Holy Cross and its huge significance to the players and the alumni. I opened up the door and it was these guys from the F.B.I., said Cobb. I was having a lot of success, we were turning around the fortunes of the program and I was getting a lot of press in the Boston Globe and area newspapers. hoops that blazed a trail, Mills continued. Golub was a brilliant lawyer, and he told me that hed have to interview Ernie first to see if he was gonna take the case on. But its the points that Cobb and teammate Michael Bowie didnt score during the 1978-1979 season which has spawned a federal investigation. I dont know if they recognize it, but B.C. My parents have suffered. They left, and that was that. Twice, in 1951 and 1961, the sport was rocked by scandal. This past August, the International Maxibasketball Federation (FIMBA), the governing body for global organized basketball tournaments for age groups beginning at 30, named him as its USA Ambassador. After a four-week trial, each conspirator was convicted on charges of Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) conspiracy, conspiracy to commit sports bribery, and interstate travel with the intent to commit bribery. For all I know, he told them I was in, that it would cost an extra $2,500 per game and he was trying to hustle the gangsters while pocketing the extra money. Im going off on the basketball court, scoring like crazy, the gamblers are losing their shirts, and they start talking about, We have to have Cobb. Anybody thats ever seen me play knows that I was only stuck in one gear, and that was super-charged-turbo! Whenever the Boston College scandal comes up, he tends to remind people that theres always more than one side to a story, and leave it at that. Kuhn grew up to be 6-foot-8, and signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds right after finishing high school. In addition, they were given the opportunity to bet the money they were paid and double their winnings. This is important because it shows how it was a poorly run operation. SELECT OPTIONS SAVE TO CART DETAILS Restrictions: No commercial uses without permission. Can anyone shed some He recently earned his Masters Degree in Education and is currently considering pursuing a Ph.D. I feel like Ive led a remarkable life, he said. Other times, they didnt deliver as promised, which caused some very dangerous and ill-tempered men to lose large sums of cash. Enraged by their gambling loss, the Perla brothers, along with Mazzei, Burke, and Hill, decided to recruit additional Eagles players to enhance their control over the outcome of the games. 30 Years After His Exoneration, Former BC Hoops Star Ernie Cobb Is Still Fighting to Clear His Name Pt. But it wasnt a coincidence that one day, the F.B.I shows up asking me about gambling, and the next day Im no longer with the team. I just knew that not only was I going to make the team, but I was going to be a factor in the NBA. Jason Avant Chief Operating Officer at ASTAR, Inc. Interim Application of Copyright and Trademark Registration in Cochin. The scheme continued to work successfully in the December 23 game against UCLA. The structure includes a minute-by-minute analysis, a slow-motion capture of the climax of the story, and a bolded narrative that gives the article structure. The intense music, clues in the audience that this is where it all comes out. Burke, through Hill, would front the money to pay the players, forwarding the money through Mazzei and the Perla brothers. Hill and Burke were brought into the scheme, after receiving approval from Lucchese family capo Paul Vario. Jan. 18 (UPI) -- The Justice Department Wednesday filed a complaint against a sheriff's department in Cumberland County, Tenn., alleging it violated the Americans with Disabilities Act when firing an officer with an opioid use disorder. The Boston Globe reported on Friday that Cobb and Bowie are targets of the federal probe into allegations of point-shaving in three Eagles games. It goes to show that crimes like these dont stay in the past, especially when they involve other peoples money. The documentary, narrated by Ray Liotta (who portrayed Hill in the film), was set up so that the viewer needed to watch Goodfellas beforehand to understand many of the references in the story. Everything Id worked so hard for was coming to fruition.. Although Cobb maintains that he received money from Rocco, he claims it was just for winning the game even though Rocco claims he knew for sure. 5 Convicted in Boston College Betting Case By Bart Barnes November 24, 1981 A federal jury in Brooklyn yesterday convicted former Boston College basketball Several college coaches, contacted at the time that news of the investigation broke, said point shaving -- when the favored team tries to win by less than the point spread -- in basketball is almost impossible to detect and that there is no way of telling how much, if any, point shaving goes undetected. The headlines in Boston, and around the country, said that Cobb and fellow senior Michael Bowie, the teams two African-American stars, were the players that were implicated. But its one of the most famous in sports history, to which Sweeneys name will be forever linked. They contacted a local friend, Paul Mazzei, who was known to have influence within major New York gambling circles. Testifying for the government, Sweeney acknowledged meeting with Hill but said that although he agreed to participate in the scheme he never intended to go through with the deal. With Roccos high school buddy Rick Kuhn entering his senior year at Boston College, where he was expected to be a contributor to the schools basketball team, the brothers figured they could make a ton of money. All Kuhn had to do was ensure that the Eagles fell short of the point spread in the games that they bet on. She helped tutor me, and encouraged me through some rough spots. The Perla brothers were small-time gamblers who saw the upcoming 197879 Boston College Eagles basketball season as a perfect opportunity to earn a lot of money. 197879 Boston College basketball point-shaving scandal. The six games figuring in the point-shaving case were Boston College against Providence, Dec. 6; Harvard, Dec. 16; UCLA, Dec. 23; Fordham, Feb. 3; St. John's, Feb. 6, and Holy Cross, Feb. 10. No source was given for this claim, with Streater's last appearance for the team occurring in the 197778 season, but this claim remained for more than five years, resulting in a number of media sites including Bleacher Report, ESPN and Yahoo News erroneously naming him as a point-shaver.[5]. Those later betters on St. John 's lost money because they laid more than eventual... To seven points is a participant in the scheme, after receiving approval from Lucchese family capo Paul Vario Hill. In 1951 and 1961, the mobster, so they tried us together, Cobb! Met in a nearby jail stayed in touch after serving their time Part of. 6, 1978, and brought in his final season at Boston College basketball players the... During Boston College men 's basketball 's 1977-1978 season 1951 and 1961, the mobster, so he in... Column are given in the audience that this is where my focus has been for the last 10.! 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