Rocco Perla was sentenced to four years' imprisonment. I have suffered. With the focus limited to the specific players involved, BCs basketball program didnt suffer at all. [ii] Holy Cross ultimately won by only two points, as Cobb scored eight points in the final minute to bring the Eagles close, and everyone involved lost a substantial amount of money. Mizzou understands that Hill was doing what he had to do to survive. Result is the outcome of the syndicate's bets. It had to cost around $200,000 at the time to defend me.. The players as well as the mobsters believe that this failed fix would be their last, the players graduate and the mobsters move on. A former Boston College basketball player and four other men were charged yesterday with conspiring to fix six basketball games during the 1978-79 season by shaving points. 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. Art. 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. Whats striking about the point shaving scandal from the perspective of 35 years is how different, i.e. In addition, they were given the opportunity to bet the money they were paid and double their winnings. Fake cannabis billionaire pleads guilty to securities fraud. Ernie, and anybody who truly knew him, who knew about his character and what type of young man he was, we were all heartbroken. A witness is interviewed and says, The rat one.. They need to get another player to help fix games. Those later betters on St. John's lost money because they laid more than the eventual nine point margin of victory. The abbreviated version of events reads like this:the Perlas brought in a Pittsburgh hood named Paul Mazzei, who contacted his friend Henry Hill, an associate of New Yorks Lucchese crime family that had befriended him during a stretch in federal prison. When Henry Hill started threatening Kuhn and Sweeney, promising that they couldnt play with broken limbs, the players, according to Hill, claimed that they were doing their best, but the scheme would never work unless Ernie Cobb was in on the fix. It was one of the most tremendous feelings Id ever experienced.. Even with the not guilty verdict, he still lost all hope of going to the NBA. Dean Smith, basketball coach at the University of North Carolina and the president of the National Association of Basketball Coaches, said last night it is standard procedure for coaches to speak to team members about the possibility of point-shaving overtures and to encourage them to report any efforts to persuade them to manipulate scores. I didnt like dealing with a third party I didnt know and had never metBut the word came back that Cobb was enthusiastic and, dont worry Henry, nothing can screw up now., In the 30-for-30 documentary that ESPN just aired, Henry Hill admits that he never talked to me, said Cobb. 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. I was like, Yeah, whatever. Sure enough, a few weeks later, he hands my girlfriend an envelope. Sweeney purposefully misses a free throw to help the fixers win even though he is the best free-throw shooter in the nation. Alswanger, my high school coach inspired me to rise above my circumstances, he continued. But Cobb denied receiving any money and he was not indicted. Intentional point shaving on the floor was never proven, and if Hill hadnt later confessed the scheme to prosecutors after getting busted for his other crimes, the whole ordeal might have passed without notice. This is where my focus has been for the last 10 years. He traveled throughout the world, getting paid to play the game that he loved. less serious, the aftermath was compared to the fallout that would occur today. The former friends work hard to cast blame and the true conversations that went on between the mobsters and players will never be discovered. 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. All of those guys walkedin his footsteps., He was the African-American guard in the modern era of B.C. Ernie, dont lie to me, Alswanger instructed him. The conspirators decided that these games presented especially good opportunities because New York bookmakers generally accepted large bets for New York teams. Kuhn's sentence was the heaviest ever imposed on a college player convicted of point shaving. 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. The Providence game was played on December 6, 1978, and Boston College was favored to win by six to seven points. 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. I was eating Rory Sparrow up, who went on to have a decent NBA career, in that camp. They left, and that was that. The government won convictions against Burke, the Perlas , Mazzei and Kuhn thanks in part to testimony from Sweeney, who was neither charged nor offered immunity. Sweeney knows hell probably never completely escape the association to the scandal, something he learned to live with years ago. Hes now happily at work on his latest project, a sports cartoon character named Mike (as in microphone) that appears on his daily sports blog and in 35 comic books downloadable on Amazon. He quickly thrived and was recognized as one of the leagues best players. Sweeney was not charged. The Texas woman who owned the ring thought she had misplaced it, but it was actually stolen and admitted as evidence in a 1986 drug trial. Loughery told me that I had the ability to play in the NBA. The February 6 game against St. John's was a "push" (winning back exact bets), as the syndicate neither won nor lost when St. John's prevailed 8576, the exact point spread (nine) the bookmakers had offered.[i]. But he did take money. 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. Still, he feels lucky. Said Hill, "I asked the players which of the upcoming games they felt we could shave. The story read, in part, as follows: Ernie Cobb tossed in 1,760 points in a stellar basketball career at Boston College and only two other Eagles scored more. Cobb's trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 31 before Judge Leonard Wexler. This is Part II of The Shadow League's feature story on former Boston College basketball player Ernie Cobb. Sweeney has won several FIMBA tournaments as a player in the 50-plus division. The same channels would be used for the passing of the point spread from Burke and Hill to the players. (In some of the Boston College games cited, the Eagles were underdogs and lost by more than the point spread.). I felt like, You put my name out there, so let me clear my name! When they investigated me, I told them straight up about the $1,000 that Rocco Perla had given me. Tennessee church holding prayer as FAA investigates plane crash that killed 4 members. The Eagles managed to lose by 22 points, 10381, with the syndicate winning its bet. I want to be disassociated from it as well. With his name swirling down the vortex of the mob cesspool from the moment the story broke, Ernie Cobb found it difficult to make a living. Kuhn grew up to be 6-foot-8, and signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds right after finishing high school. Director Joe Lavine goes on to feature many references and clips of the movie. 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. In early February, Boston College was scheduled to play two New York State teams, Fordham and St. John's. indictments charged against them. Bruce Pearl, a normal student in the class of 1982, is introduced and talks about the smart, diverse basketball players. Ive had a grand life, is how he puts it. Hill stated that, at the time, he and Burke were watching the game on television at Burke's home in Queens, and Burke put his foot through the television in anger at having lost $50,000 ($186,700 today). The Boston College case arose out of the Lufthansa investigation. So I didnt even go on trial with Kuhn and the mobsters that put the whole thing in motion.. 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. They contacted a local friend, Paul Mazzei, who was known to have influence within major New York gambling circles. And he also cultivated interest, in the area's black community, in terms of being engaged and intrigued bywhat was going on with Boston Colleges basketball program. 5 Convicted in Boston College Betting Case By Bart Barnes November 24, 1981 A federal jury in Brooklyn yesterday convicted former Boston College basketball This is important because it shows how it was a poorly run operation. The move on and they all thought the fixes were history. 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. Jim Sweeney admits that Kuhn gave him cash. Apparently, someone called into the online editor the second to inform them of the "miss." I never lied about that. Hill was listed as a co-conspirator, but was not named as a defendant. Holy Cross was favored to win and, consistent with the scheme, were bet on to win by a margin greater than the seven-point spread. None of them know that this is only the beginning, as Henry Hill would talk to the FBI launching a massive investigation that would lead to the arrest of famous mobster Jimmy Burke. The conspiracy unraveled in 1980 after Hill was arrested by New York State authorities on drug trafficking charges and was subsequently implicated in the Lufthansa heist, which occurred while the point-shaving scheme was underway. 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. 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. In 2014, the ESPN-produced 30 for 30 series debuted Playing for the Mob,[6] the story about how Hill and his Pittsburgh associates, and several Boston College basketball players, perpetrated the point-shaving scheme during the 197879 season, an episode briefly mentioned in the movie Goodfellas. When I think about my journey, it brings tears to my eyes. This is when the documentary transitions to the Pittsburgh mobsters and how they meet. He is a participant in the Federal Witness Protection Program and is receiving government protection in exchange for his testimony. Other notable players selected in that draft included Sidney Moncrief, Bill Laimbeer, Bill Cartwright, Mark Eaton and Jim Paxson. It is similar to how they captured Al Capone on tax evasion, the smaller of his many crimes that would ultimately put him away. 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. Walgreens settles West Virginia opioid lawsuit for $83 million. Everything Id worked so hard for was coming to fruition.. The whole team is confused as Sweeney hides on the bench. The problem was Cobb. But by the next summer, in 1980, he sparkled while playing for the New Jersey Nets during the pre-season. You gotta tell me the truth, because I gotta know how to go on this?. Only on occasion does the scandal come up. She helped tutor me, and encouraged me through some rough spots. He jumped in the air, as if soaring for a rebound, as cheers filled the courtroom. It was national news that brought Cobb, Sweeney, and Kuhn under massive headlines. now all well past their primes after serving their time, including the gangster Ray He continues to be involved in sports and is in an older mens basketball league that competes around the world. Jim Sweeney is a happy guy. Mazzeis connection to Kuhn was through fellow gangsters Rocco and Tony Pearla. Keeping Score: Close Shave. Greenfield Recorder, Greenfield Recorder, 27 Apr. Sometimes, B.C. His testimony essentially corroborated that of Hill, who went into witness protection. 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. They all have different versions of the story, but regardless games are going to start being fixed. . He just kept swishing them in, 30 or 35 points, I dont remember., Hill went on to say, And they (Kuhn and Sweeney) were still saying, We got to have Cobb. I realized that and so I passed the word through Tony (Perla), At all costs, talk to him. Next thing I heard Cobb was all set, but it was going to take another $2,500 for his share. A few blocks from Boston College, the place that held so much meaning to him, where hed worked so hard to create his lifes purpose, the symbolism was inescapable when he found that he had a flat tire. Hill and Burke were brought into the scheme, after receiving approval from Lucchese family capo Paul Vario. ESPN's latest 30 for 30 film tackles the Boston College basketball point-shaving scandal. Sweeney goes on to sell his computer service company and make millions. 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. With Sweeney making it out with no sentence, the mystery still remains of how involved he really was. 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. According to the Boston Globe, Judge Henry Bramwell, who set sentencing for January 8, 1982, told the jury, "I agree with your verdict." I was a senior in high school when Ernie Cobb was a senior at Boston College and Id heard that he was a very good player, said Lemuel Mills, a Boston area hoops aficionado, coach, community mentor and historian. 2015, www.recorder.com/Archives/2015/01/spt-KeepingScore-GR-012415. 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. Even though he was not guilty, Boston College has erased them from their memory. While Hill was being questioned, FBI agents inadvertently mentioned his frequent trips to Boston around the time of the Lufthansa heist. "He said he had a betting thing set up in a way to make money during the season so that we could be taken care of," said Reed, now a nurse in Syracuse, N.Y. Reed also testified that Kuhn threatened to kill her if she ever told of the scheme. Teammate Rick Kuhn, a former minor league baseball player with connections to small-time Pittsburgh mobsters, conspired with the mobsters to initiate the point-shaving Paul Mazzei explains that there is no time to change your mind in their business. 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. She also recalled Kuhn saying that Cobb was too into his own game to cooperate with the betting thing, but the New York gangsters were adamant about getting him involved. This scandal did not end with the regular basketball season, it continued to affect and alter these players and gangsters lives for years after. Suspecting that some bookmakers might be getting wise to the scheme, the conspirators temporarily revised their strategy after the UCLA game. It would fit with ESPN, which reports sports but also has an underlying self-deprecating humor, is basically his pitch. Rocco says Sweeney told him he missed it to avoid a pair of cement shoes. won the gangsters some serious money by falling short of the spread. But what was I going to do, take it to court?It was here that they began telling Perla we would have to have Cobb. Thats the real strength of his story, that you pick yourself up and make something of yourself.. Kuhn's attorney, Gary Zimmerman, said his client recognized the seriousness of his crimes and that his stiff jail sentence 'was a stern warning to other college athletes.'. We have decided to cover the most scandalous of all 30-for-30s, Playing for the Mob. 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. 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. Rocco Perla and Kuhn were high-school classmates. "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. SELECT OPTIONS SAVE TO CART DETAILS Restrictions: No commercial uses without permission. On August 12, 2008, an anonymous user edited the Wikipedia article on the scandal, naming former player Joe Streater as an accomplice in the point-shaving, recruited by Kuhn alongside Sweeney. Cobb was drafted by the Utah Jazz in the 6th Round and cut during training camp. ESPNs 30-for-30 sports documentary series is many of our last hopes at seeing historic events from our favorite sports. He gave me every opportunity to tell my story, says Sweeney of Lavine. Needing an inside man, the brothers wanted to recruit Rick Kuhn, a high school friend of Rocco who was entering his senior year at Boston College and was expected to be a key member of the 19787 It was a sweet victory for prosecutors against Burke, for whom they failed to even build a charge against for his biggest crime, the famous $6 million Lufthansa heist. 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/. Purdum, David. Being at Boston College, when I first got there, was so amazing, said Cobb. He rebounded well and was a good outlet The characters and events were later immortalized by the actors Ray Liotta and Robert DeNiro in the classic film, Goodfellas. Kuhn was thus expected to keep the score below the six- to seven-point margin. Keep supporting great journalism by turning off your ad blocker. 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. Rick Kuhn during Boston College men's basketball's 1977-1978 season. Thus, for example, if participating bookmakers determined Boston College to be an eight-point favorite in a particular game, Kuhn would be paid a bonus, usually $2,500, if they won by less than eight points. Regardless of what the audience thinks, the eyes of the law he is not guilty. When he was implicated in the scandal, I was shocked.. Man, I would watch Jo Jo White, Dave Cowens and John Havlicek playing on television, on that same famous floor where Bill Russell and Bob Cousy and all of those great Celtics teams won all those championships, said Cobb. Laid more than the eventual nine point margin of victory government protection in exchange for his testimony corroborated... The Federal witness protection live with years ago to begin Oct. 31 before Judge Wexler. 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