Former Boston College basketball player Rick Kuhn will go on trial today for his alleged participation in a "point shaving" incident during the 1978-1979 basketball season. ''It looked like big money,'' said Kuhn, who is 29 years old, and whose 10-year sentence has been reduced to a scheduled 28 months after he appealed for a reduction. | Knicks Win Their First Playoff Series In 10 Years But Can They Stay Back On Top In The Big Apple? Their strategy was effective Boston College, a five-point favorite, covered the spread with a 9080 win over Connecticut. Betting - Chronicling the 'worst fix ever', the 1978-79 BC point - ESPN ESPNs Playing for the Mob, a 30 for 30 documentary narrated by Liotta, interviews all the living participants, including former coaches and law enforcement officials. 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. Burkes gang had just successfully pulled off the Lufthansa airport heist at New Yorks JFK airport, where theyd stolen an estimated $5 million in cash and $875,000 in jewels, the largest cash robbery in America at the time. And yeah, I took that money. Sign up to receive The Shadow League Newsletter in your inbox. The fifth man convicted, Paul Mazzei, 37, of Pittsburgh, is imprisoned for a narcotics violation and is scheduled to be sentenced for the point-shaving scheme Feb. 12. Ultimately, nothing happened. Cobb was acquitted of any wrongdoing, despite Kuhn giving Cobb's girlfriend an allegedly unsolicited envelope with $1,000. But I never agreed to fix any games or shave any points. He dreamed of walking away from Boston College at seasons end as one of the schools most revered sons before embarking on what he hoped would be an accomplished, financially rewarding career in the NBA. 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. In the movie, Liotta played Hill and DeNiro played Jimmy Conway, whose character was based off Hills real-life mob associate Jimmy Burke. I was nervous because I didnt know what was going to happen. Was it due to great defence or did he have an off night? The spread comes out in Las Vegas, usually two to three nights before games, said Tony Perla. Rick Kuhn - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com Please play Responsibly. The initial informa tion came from Henry Hill, a Government informant in the Lufthansa case, who casually toldthe investigators that Mr. Burke had been inv olved in a collegebasketball point-shaving scheme. Either way, the mob were unhappy that the plan hadnt worked. Forty-four years later, the full truth about the Boston College points-shaving scandal is still unknown. At that point, I was looking forward to a trial, said Cobb. Kuhn recounted that in the summer of 1978, a Pittsburgh bookmaker he knew, Anthony Perla, offered him $2,500 a game if he could ''see to it'' that in games Boston College was favored to win, the margin of victory did not exceed the point spread. Perla and his brother, Rocco, were into numbers rackets. Federal investigators first learned of the point-shaving scheme while looking into Mr. Burke's suspected role in the $5.8 million robbery of the Lufthansa freight terminal a t Kennedy International Airport in December 1978. But by the next summer, in 1980, he sparkled while playing for the New Jersey Nets during the pre-season. 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. The sources for this article include interviews he gave in 1981, 1985 and 2014, and while the framework of this story is reliable, the specific details change. Kuhn was convicted for his role in the scheme and now lives in southwest Pennsylvania. Whats going on? Early on, before the season got underway, Cobb says that he was approached by a man from Pittsburgh named Rocco Perla, who hed seen hanging around campus with his teammate, senior forward Rick Kuhn. He made other African-American ballers feel like they could go there and really showcase what they could do on a national level. Cobb was drafted by the Utah Jazz in the 6th Round and cut during training camp. Hill was listed as a co-conspirator, but was not named as a defendant. 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. Theres no way you can tell if a referee or player is shaving points, absolutely no way, he once told Sports Illustrated. They contacted a local friend, Paul Mazzei, who was known to have influence within major New York gambling circles. But in the first game the scheme was tested, against Providence College, Boston College won by nearly double the point spread. Boston College's basketball team ended their 197879 season with a 229 record. The December 16 game against Harvard was chosen as the second test for the scheme. The syndicate was very happy with this result, and Kuhn was given cash to distribute to the players for their efforts. But for many, there is a fierce bitterness that still lingers to this day. Enter Rick Kuhn, a senior forward for the Boston College basketball team during the 1978-79 season. At trial in 1981, the government's case consisted primarily of the testimony of Hill and three other witnesses: Sweeney and Joseph Beaulieu, both Boston College players, and Barbara Reed, a 23-year-old nurse who lived with Kuhn during the 197879 Eagles season. "The kid wants to do business," said Tony. The very next day, the Nets cut me., When the F.B.I. Other times, they didnt deliver as promised, which caused some very dangerous and ill-tempered men to lose large sums of cash. Edwin McDonald, who prosecuted the case for the Justice Department, said that he had recommended the incarceration of Mr. Kuhn but had not suggested any specific term. Sports Promos. Said Hill, "I asked the players which of the upcoming games they felt we could shave. ''A substantial argument can be offered,'' Judge Bramwell said, ''that a substantial term of incarceration imposed on this defendant will be recalled in the future by another college athlete who may be tempted to compromise his performance.''.
Body In River Trent Nottingham,
Carrier Reefer Chrome Grill,
List Of Products Containing Polyethylene Glycol,
Articles R