hoops that blazed a trail, Mills continued. With Sweeney making it out with no sentence, the mystery still remains of how involved he really was. Mizzou understands that Hill was doing what he had to do to survive. Rick Kuhn, 55, passed away peacefully on September 12, 2022, in his home in West Fargo, ND, surrounded by his family. Contact Me. 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. Boston College's basketball team ended their 197879 season with a 229 record. The scheme was conceived by Rocco Perla and his brother Anthony in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, during the summer of 1978. "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. After winning a few and losing a few, Hill and his gang came to view Cobb and Sweeney as unreliable game-fixers and eventually gave up the scam. Jim Sweeney was not charged. But Im so proud of him because he picked his life back up and made the best of it. Henry Hill avoided going to prison, and he went off into the sunset of the governments Witness Protection Program, said Alswanger. I admitted to receiving that money, and spending it. He turned to me and said, Coach, Im glad youre sticking up for your kid. Justice Department files complaint after officer fired for opioid use disorder. Rocco Perla received a four-year sentence and Rick Kuhn was sentenced to a ten-year bid as well, which was later reduced to 28 months. 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. BC basketball players Rick Kuhn, Joe Streater and Jim Sweeney were persuaded to fix nine Eagles games during the season. The conspirators decided that these games presented especially good opportunities because New York bookmakers generally accepted large bets for New York teams. At the close of the two-week trial, Alswanger was the last character witness who took the stand in Cobbs behalf. They couldnt stop him. We get home, I open it up, and theres $1,000 in there.. 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. They all have different versions of the story, but regardless games are going to start being fixed. 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. Jan. 18 (UPI) -- A class ring that went missing decades ago has been returned to its owner. Convinced that Cobb was innocent after his mentee walked him through everything that had transpired, and certain that he was being used by the federal government to send more organized crime figures to prison, Alswanger began working the phones. I have suffered. Alswanger, my high school coach inspired me to rise above my circumstances, he continued. Bruce Pearl, a normal student in the class of 1982, is introduced and talks about the smart, diverse basketball players. Twice, in 1951 and 1961, the sport was rocked by scandal. After the investigation was completed, Cobb was not named as a defendant in the initial trial, U.S. vs Burke, which opened to a circus of media attention on October 27th, 1981. But I dont feel any bitterness toward the prosecution. It is quite a ride, so please, enjoy it. ESPN's latest 30 for 30 film tackles the Boston College basketball point-shaving scandal. I dont know what went down because I wasnt involved. She knew the terrain in terms of what I needed to be doing, said Cobb. His testimony continued terribly, he was a nervous wreck, he was rambling about unnecessary information and he couldnt even look in Burkes direction. Walgreens settles West Virginia opioid lawsuit for $83 million. Barbara Reed, 25, Kuhn's former girlfriend who was living with him at the time, testified that Kuhn uncharacteristically began buying her presents -- a stereo set, a television set and jewelry -- during the winter of 1978-79. 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. 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. But I know that its not really in vain, because I know the truth.. Kuhn went on to live a quiet life only talking about the scandal to high school students encouraging them to not make the same mistakes. Kuhn was thus expected to keep the score below the six- to seven-point margin. 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. 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. The 197879 Boston College basketball point-shaving scandal involved a scheme in which members of the American Mafia recruited and bribed several Boston College Eagles men's basketball players to ensure the team would not win by the required margin (not cover the point spread), allowing gamblers in the know to place wagers against that team and win. ESPN Looks Back On Boston College Point Shaving Scandal And A Player Speaks Out. Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 1 Oct. 2014, www.forbes.com/sites/tomvanriper/2014/10/01/espn-looks-back-on-boston-college-point-shaving-scandal-and-a-player-speaks-out/#3f03989d26b8. They treated me great. I feel it.. Des., University of Florida; MArch, Harvard GSD Professional interests: My passion lies in all things design but specifically in higher education, cultural and civic projects. The 80-minute documentary tells how BC forward Rick Kuhn conspired with two of his hoodlum friends from Pittsburgh to bet against the Eagles. The audience gets one on one interviews with each person to see the scandal from their perspective. A witness is interviewed and says, The rat one.. Jan. 18 (UPI) -- A Memphis-area church is holding prayer services Wednesday for four of its members who were killed in a plane crash in Texas. They need to get another player to help fix games. The narrator explains that the strength of how Henry Hills testimony is would determine if Burke was going to be convicted. 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. Cobb was acquitted of any wrongdoing, despite Kuhn giving Cobb's girlfriend an allegedly unsolicited envelope with $1,000. 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. Kuhn tells Sweeney that the mobsters in New York and Pittsburgh want this win and that this will be the last fix. 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. And that kept him in Hills clutches. Kuhn, 28, was one of five people found guilty of conspiracy to engage in racketeering and other charges that stemmed from a point-shaving scheme hatched for the 1978-79 school season. Film. You understand? He was a murderer and a horrible human being. Purdum, David. They reintroduced the original strategy, which proved successful for the February 3 Fordham game when Boston College, a ten-point favorite, won by seven points. Mazzeis connection to Kuhn was through fellow gangsters Rocco and Tony Pearla. 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. Hes innocent., When they indicted me, they wanted Peter Vario, the mobster, so they tried us together, said Cobb. She helped tutor me, and encouraged me through some rough spots. While the line may have been as low as 13 at some point, the syndicate had to lay 15, and therefore lost their bet when Rhode Island won by only 13. ESPNs 30-for-30 sports documentary series is many of our last hopes at seeing historic events from our favorite sports. Still, he feels lucky. Prosecutors say man accused in wife's disappearance Googled how to dispose of a body. 30 Years After His Exoneration, Former BC Hoops Star Ernie Cobb Is Still Fighting to Clear His Name Pt. The Eagles managed to lose by 22 points, 10381, with the syndicate winning its bet. We get footage of the games and the scheme continued, but no one knew just how much the fixers made. Rocco and Tony Perla were giving money to Rick Kuhn. But I found out that I wouldnt be allowed to leave the United States because the government was going to bring me to trial.. 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. Richard Kuhn AIA by BSA Staff Name: Richard Kuhn AIA Job title and company: Design director, Perkins+Will Degree(s): B. Sometimes, B.C. Everybody involved in the scandal got sentenced except for Hill and Sweeney. (Rick Kuhn, Photo Credit: bostonglobe.com). But my high school coach got his friends to take my case, pro bono. The campus was so beautiful. The Providence game was played on December 6, 1978, and Boston College was favored to win by six to seven points. talked to the Nets, their head coach Kevin Loughery called him in and said, You know why I have to let you go, said Alswanger. Rocco says Sweeney told him he missed it to avoid a pair of cement shoes. Tell me what you did and what you didnt do. I called my buddy Frank Melzer, who was an attorney, said Alswanger. The goal for making some real money is to get the character a TV gig with ESPN, NBC Sports, or another major sports network. U.S. District Judge Henry Bramwell set sentencing for Jan. 8. He told me to keep playing and working hard and that one day I might get another chance., When the story first broke in January of 1981, Cobb was in shock. He said he was brought in on the deal for his ability to maximize profits through his contacts in the gambling world. 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. Jim Sweeney is a happy guy. like that until he got there. 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. 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]. Ive had a grand life, is how he puts it. Mandan, ND 58554 opens in a new window call Rick Kuhn at (701) 663-6385 call Rick Kuhn at Call Me Email Me. The Perla brothers proposed a simple scheme: they, along with Kuhn, would select certain basketball games where the projected point spread separating Boston College from its opponent was expected to be significant. (In some of the Boston College games cited, the Eagles were underdogs and lost by more than the point spread.). Other times, they didnt deliver as promised, which caused some very dangerous and ill-tempered men to lose large sums of cash. At that point, I was looking forward to a trial, said Cobb. In 1978, Rick Kuhn was in his final season at Boston College,amarginal player with little going for him. When the story first broke, it said that Michael Bowie and I were the ones implicated, said Cobb. Kuhn told people at Boston College later Were you shaving points for the mob?. As he walked across the scenic campus, marveled at the schools architectural splendor or ate until his hearts content in the dining hall, hed often pause to quietly give thanks for his fortunate circumstances. I was focused in the moment. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Burke was sentenced to twelve years' imprisonment. 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. He sold copy machines and paved driveways for an asphalt company, which was ironically the same job his father found when hed relocated from North Carolina to Connecticut some twenty years earlier. Sweeney says that he and Maura have almost recouped their costs in launching the character. I was relishing that moment. 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. 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. I was doing well academically and the dream of playing professional basketball was getting closer.. After Cobb was not charged, he thought he was finally past the sordid affair. 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. They were aware that bookmakers generally accepted large bets on this game both because Boston College and Holy Cross were traditional rivals and because the game was being nationally televised. Thats the real strength of his story, that you pick yourself up and make something of yourself.. Ernie, and anybody who truly knew him, who knew about his character and what type of young man he was, we were all heartbroken. Jimmy said he was finished. Sweeney, who went on a year later to win the Naismith Award as college basketballs top player under six feet tall, says he was initially recruited into the fix by Kuhn without his knowledge and that he never intentionally threw an errant pass, missed a shot or did anything else to alter a game. It wasnt an absolute disaster but it was a cousin. We were all so excited for him. The other two kids made whatever choices they made, but look what was done to Ernie. Everything Id worked so hard for was coming to fruition.. Web197879 Boston College Eagles men's basketball team. If this film has taught us anything, it is that it doesnt matter which side was more at fault, ultimately the decisions they made changed their lives forever. The conviction of former Boston College basketball player Richard Kuhn for his involvement in the point shaving scandal during the 1978-79 basketball season was Mazzei and Tony Perla were sentenced to ten years' imprisonment. Hill turned state's evidence in exchange for avoiding prison and possible execution by Burke and the Lucchese family. Hill and Burke both were convicted of extortion in 1972 in Florida and have been prime suspects in the Dec. 11, 1978, robbery of almost $9 million from the Lufthansa Cargo Terminal at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. 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. He talks about the fix and how Jimmy Burke participated even though he wasnt the ringleader. 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. Rick was born on October 14, 1966, in Jamestown, ND, to Timothy Kuhn and Marretta (Deede) Kuhn. Mazzei in turn contacted Henry Hill, a Lucchese crime family associate from New York who had befriended Mazzei while both men were serving sentences in a federal prison. 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. Jan. 18 (UPI) -- Walgreens agreed to pay $83 million to settle a lawsuit in West Virginia related to its role in the opioid crisis and its effect on the state, Attorney General Patrick Morrisey announced Wednesday. At this point in the film, we stray away from the actual point-shaving and more into the consequences and investigation after the fact. Kuhn explains to Sweeney that they are both going to get killed after not successfully fixing a game against Providence. Thats why I got into education and coaching. The syndicate was very happy with this result, and Kuhn was given cash to distribute to the players for their efforts. Theyre no match for us. He told me, Well good, I plan on betting on those games and if you guys win and it turns out like that, Ill take care of you., Man, I was one of the most recognizable athletes on campus and people would come up and talk to me all the time, people I didnt know, Cobb continued. 5 Convicted in Boston College Betting Case By Bart Barnes November 24, 1981 A federal jury in Brooklyn yesterday convicted former Boston College basketball ESPN Investigators find phone records from Pittsburgh to Burke that allow them to connect the point-shaving scheme to him. Danois, Alejandro. A grand jury indicted Burke, Mazzei, Kuhn, and the Perla brothers. So I didnt even go on trial with Kuhn and the mobsters that put the whole thing in motion.. When he was implicated in the scandal, I was shocked.. 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