Hed lost his older brother to drugs. Every accomplishment made me want to work harder. It was like a paradise to me, coming from where I came from. The City of M. So Lavine was fascinated when he found out that Sweeney was one of a handful of Eagles players accusted in connection with a the point-shaving scandal that was making national headlines in 1981. If you got your own apartment after high school, that was considered a success. Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. Couldnt people see how much he loved the game? Other times, they didnt deliver as promised, which caused some very dangerous and ill-tempered men to lose large sums of cash. The combination thereof led to the downfall of a previously untouchable New York crime boss responsible for multiple murders and the largest cash heist in U.S. history, via cronies in Pittsburgh who ran a point-shaving scheme that paid a few players to keep scores within the spread at Boston College during the 1978-79 college basketball season. Sometimes, B.C. They treated me great. I just thank God there is justice.. 1978, and March 1, 1979. We werent really checking for B.C. 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. My parents have suffered. In practice, he was the lunatic who his teammates sucked their teeth and rolled their eyes at when he told the coaches that they needed to run more sprints after an exhausting practice. Kuhn was later convicted and served ten years in prison for the crime. She knew the terrain in terms of what I needed to be doing, said Cobb. When he returned to the United States, he moved to Phoenix, Arizona, where he became a Special Education teacher and high school basketball coach. But for Bowie, it was too little, too late. The third-highest scorer in BC history with 1,760 points, he was a co-captain with Sweeney in 1978-79, when he averaged 21.3 points a game. Utah Jazz, 6th round (1st pick, 109th overall), 1979 NBA Draft, More Ernie Cobb pages at Sports Reference, More Ernie Cobb Basketball Reference pages. 1975 TOPPS BASEBALL SET #197 ERNIE BANKS-FOX CHICAGO CUBS EX Sold by wlbjr | Ends on 2023-03-06 23:50:31 That includes Rick Kuhn, the former minor league baseball player who started the scandal and who Sweeney says got him involved in it. Boston College Point Shaving. After she began working with him, she came to talk to me and said, Oh my god! No . We publish narratives intentionally and specifically to enlighten and transform the world. I was eating Rory Sparrow up, who went on to have a decent NBA career, in that camp. Thursday, March 22, 1984. At 11:05 a.m., U.S. District Judge Leonard Wexler completed his instructions to the jury in the Federal Court Building in Brooklyn as Ernie Cobb awaited his judgment. Bowies reputation was immediately sullied and he subsequently lost his job playing pro ball in Europe when the story broke. That only leads to animosity. Jim Sweeney was not charged. Man, I was really into bikes, Cobb said. As a junior, he averaged 37.6 points per game and was named All-State. He was adamant, that he would take the stand in his own defense, despite his lawyers pleas not to do so. He ate, drank and slept basketball. . It wasnt until I actually saw him play that I realized how special he was as an offensive talent. They were a massive disappointment, yes, but also so transcendent for brief moments. Quiz clue: Category (S = Singles, D = Doubles, T = Triples, HR = Home runs) / Hits . Can you name the Top 25 MLB career leaders in singles, doubles, triples and home runs? He hugged his tearful mother before walking out into the hallway for a few moments. A wake will be held for Dr. Cobb-Stevens on Monday, July 16, from 4-7 p.m. at the Chapman, Cole & Gleason Funeral Home, 475 Main . But she had to work very hard, over some long hours, which meant she couldnt monitor my every move. 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NCAA. Ernie Cobb joined the scheme for the last five games . Duality underpins practically everything about the brief existence of the KD, Harden and Kyrie Nets. So from then on I had a juvenile record. His competitive desires were satisfied with all of the recreation activities that were offered. Find Ernest Cobb's current house address. So I guess the thought process was, Well, if there were criminal activities going on, it had to be the brothers! My name and picture, and Michael Bowies as well, was on the front page of every newspaper in the country.. These people [in the mob] get glamorized or sensationalized, Sweeney said. I was nervous because I didnt know what was going to happen. We present them here for purely educational purposes. Checkout the latest stats of Ernie Cobb. He said, Ernies the only kid who listened, did everything he was supposed to do and never tried to run away. I would walk long distances, for miles, out into the suburbs in Greenwich. The arresting officer for the second incident took an interest in the young kid, and saw more than just a young man escalating into juvenile delinquency. The very next day, the Nets cut me., When the F.B.I. The scheme began with small-time gamblers Rocco and Anthony Perla who devised a plan with the players to deliberately shave points on specific games to win . I really wanted to get to the bottom of it from a personal curiosity [standpoint], and then also knowing that this had to be a great story.. I was better than everybody on the team, but I talked back to him and he cut me because he said I had a bad attitude. Hill flew into Boston, at the behest of Jimmy Burke, late in 1978 to meet with Mazzei, the Perlas, Kuhn and Sweeney at the Logan Airport Hilton and ensure that everything was in place. He loved the foliage, the fresh air and scenery. 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. You realize that you cant play if you dont do this. Things that happened to me and my siblings, it wasnt her fault. Kuhn acknowledged his role and was the only player convicted. We get home, I open it up, and theres $1,000 in there.. The story: Three Boston College players leading scorer Ernie Cobb, forward Richard Kuhn and Sweeney, the team's point guard were fingered by Hill for participating in the point-shaving scheme. 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. Playing for the Mob makes good use of Scorseses classic, splicing in Goodfellas clips between interviews and using Liotta as the films narrator. The phone calls flooded in from his friends and family in Boston and Connecticut, with despaired voices on the other end asking, Did you do this? I knew that I could play basketball with anybody. 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. I told him that he was going to have to work very hard and that he was going to have to do things the right way if he wanted to be successful, said Alswanger. The final player involved in the fix, Rick Kuhn, is . Some of it happened almost by accident, and some of it happened after years of determined work. But I dont feel any bitterness toward the prosecution. How much he was indebted to it? Hill brought in his mentor, Jimmy Burke, to finance the operation and set up a network of bookies who could advance the financial potential of the scheme. Im stuck. It was a meaningful existence, a testament to persistence and the strength of believing in the beauty of ones dreams, which hed worked so diligently to reconstruct from the ashes of juvenile delinquency and poverty. Studied Special education at Grand Canyon University. All of those guys walkedin his footsteps., He was the African-American guard in the modern era of B.C. I was forthright and honest with them. The Boston College coaches practically lived in our gym. In "Playing for the Mob'' which features commentary from Sweeney, Hill, Ernie Cobb, the leading scorer on that Boston College team, and others he tells what happened 36 years ago. Kuhn enlisted the help of starters Ernie Cobb . Kuhn, a reserve forward on the 1978-79 Boston College team, and four other men were convicted last November of a plot to manipulate the . Cmon, you can do it. She was a remarkable individual that helped me so much, in terms of establishing the study and work habits that allowed me to be successful in the classroom.. At that point, I was looking forward to a trial, said Cobb. Javascript is required for the selection of a player. They had a beautiful campus and it was small enough to where I could function, and yet it was big enough that I could get the exposure I needed to fulfill my dreams.. Im looking at him play against Clyde Frazier and right then and there, I thought it was a realistic dream for me to make it to the NBA. He eats it up. It was like this whole new world opened up to him and his desire to succeed was unreal. age of adaline comet. Browse our public records directory to see Ernest Cobb's contact info, age, cell phone number, email address, social media profiles, and more. We lived in dormitories. He says basketball was Ernie's "vocation and avocation. I just had to be alone, Cobb told the reporters afterwards. I dominated all those guys on the playground and they laughed at me when I got cut. 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. Joe Streater was not part of the Boston College point shaving scandal that was popularized this week by ESPN's latest 30 for 30, . After Cobb was not charged, he thought he was finally past the sordid affair. And she loved him. Years later, I wound up using that police officers Cadillac to go to my high school prom, said Cobb. Thats why I got into education and coaching. All content 2000-2023 RealGM, L.L.C. I never got to realize my dream of playing in the NBA, but Ive been all over the globe and have experienced so many different and beautiful cultures. They couldnt stop him. He acknowledges taking $500, but says he never did anything to fix games. The scam was born when Jimmy Burke (De Niro's Jimmy Conway in the movie) and Hill recruited Boston College players Rick Kuhn, Jim Sweeney, and Ernie Cobb to manipulate scores to cover point spreads. Ernest was born in Harlem, the first son of the . The game had saved his life, delivered him from peril, from a path leading nowhere, from dysfunction and illiteracy, to an elite college education and a shot at the NBA and a better future. 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. The Shadow League is a narrative company. If you missed Part I, you can read it here. With his pro career and NBA dream in limbo for over four years since news of Boston Colleges point-shaving scandal was first splashed across the front pages of newspapers and magazines, he simply desired to have his life back. Stamford (108,056) Ernie Cobb (Boston College basketball), Gary Cobb (NFL, 11 years), Donna Lopiano (Raybestos Brakettes), Dick Mayer (1957 U.S. Open golf champion), Andy Robustelli (Pro Football . And unfortunately, if you see a real-life situation that involves people like myself and others, then you say, Wow, thats the type of effect that whatever [the gangsters] do can have on others lives.. 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. When the evidence came up at the first trial, it didnt match up, but they still came after me a few years later. I have suffered. Who was involved in the Boston College basketball scandal? It all seemed like a fairytale, until he was indicted for allegedly fixing college basketball games for the mob. Three basketball players at Boston College Jim Sweeney, Ernie Cobb, and Richard Kuhn became entangled with members of the Mafia in a points-shaving scandal during the 1978-79 season. They mentioned the $1,000 that Rocco Perla gave my girlfriend and I told them the truth. He quickly thrived and was recognized as one of the leagues best players. Confirm that your trade proposal is valid according to the NBA collective bargaining agreement. I called my buddy Frank Melzer, who was an attorney, said Alswanger. Using extensive background research as well as interviews with the principal characters, Fixed provides the first in-depth reconstruction of the point-shaving scandal involving the 1978-1979 Boston College basketball team, from the genesis of the plot in the summer of 1978, through the uncovering of the scheme during an unrelated investigation in 1980, to the trial that captivated the sports . And now, here I was on that same floor, pumped sky high, giving my defender buckets! Leading scorer Ernie Cobb was accused . Boston College confirmed the investigation on Friday. At trial in 1981, the government's case consisted primarily of the testimony . 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! At around the same age, his parents separated, with his father moving across town. The campus was so beautiful. inStamford,Connecticut Ernie Cobb weighed 180 lbs (81 kg) when playing. He spent countless in the gym, practicing his basketball skills, replaying a very hurtful experience over and over in his mind, from when he was cut from his junior high school basketball team back in Stamford. He says he believes his experience could serve as a test case for others, to help prevent anything like it from happening in the future. A failed minor league baseball player from Pittsburgh turned college basketball player in Boston. Career Length: Rookie More bio, uniform, draft, salary info. Ernie Cobb, 24, 5'11", 180-pound star of the team, from Stamford, Conn. I dont know. The main thing was that they were really trying to rehabilitate us and teach us, hoping to turn us around before we became hardened criminals. ERNEST COBB OBITUARY. Per Game Team and Opponent Stats Table G MP FG FGA FG% FT FTA FT% TRB AST STL BLK TOV PF PTS; Team: 26: 30.6: 72.3.423: 12.9: 18.4.701: 40.6: 11.1: But its the points that Cobb and teammate Michael Bowie didnt score during the 1978-1979 season which has spawned a federal investigation. And he always managed to be seen cruising around his neighborhood with a new, expensive one. Profile. Of course, of course I was upset, but what could I do? Contribute to The Shadow League today and help us share our narratives. I didnt know what that was all about. I felt valued, that I mattered and that people cared about me. The thoughts continuously raced through Cobbs mind: how had he arrived here, he wondered, of all places, charged with allegedly conspiring to commit sports bribery while allegedly fixing college basketball games for the Mob? When I think about my journey, it brings tears to my eyes. My mom raised me to be respectful, so I never talked back or exhibited any violent or aggressive behavior., But I had an overactive imagination and couldnt sit still, he continued. If you missed Part I, you can read it here. Do you have a sports website? It was a tragedy that he never got another chance to play in the NBA., Kevin Loughery never gave me a firm reason why the Nets were letting me go, said Cobb. I could have sneezed and they would have sent me to the principals office.. Ernie Cobb, the star of the Boston College basketball team in the 1978-79 season, was found not guilty yesterday of charges that he joined a game- rigging conspiracy to benefit gamblers that season. Bob Zuffelato, former BC coach, now at Marshall recruited Cobb. 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. Im ready to move on from the actual filmmaking process. Heading into his senior season in 1978-1979, as the team captain, Cobb was hoping that he could lead his team to the NCAA Tournament. I got caught, they arrested me and I had to go to court. Cobb insisted on having his day in court, of clearing his name. It's also available for football, hockey and baseball. A social worker at the facility, who took notice of Ernies work ethic and burgeoning athletic potential, contacted Herm Alswanger, the varsity basketball coach at Stamford High School, where the youngster would soon enroll upon his release from Meriden. Cobb had been a prolific shooting guard at Boston College in the late 1970s, a team captain whod etched his name into the schools record books as its third-leading career scorer. They were comparing him to Calvin Murphy, the great pro, who was similar in stature and who was from Connecticut, said Alswanger. But as it turned out, the trial was simply one chapter of many in his life, and not the defining one. A documentary about the Boston College point-shaving scandal is . The game had saved his life, delivered him from peril, from a path leading nowhere, from dysfunction and illiteracy, to an elite college education and a shot at the NBA and a better future. We spoke to everybody, whether they ended up in the film or not.. A talkative informant. 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. As a matter of fact, one thing Im really happy with in this film, is we really did get to everybody, Lavine said. After a full recruiting cycle, which schools got it right - and wrong - four years ago He listened and did everything I told him to do. I was like, Yeah, whatever. Sure enough, a few weeks later, he hands my girlfriend an envelope. Cobb eventually cleared his name and Sweeney was never . I dont know what went down because I wasnt involved. 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. Ernie Cobbs story, in retrospect, is a modern-day adaptation of a Horatio Alger novel, seemingly lifted straight from the pages of Ragged Dick, where the impoverished boy, through determination, honesty and courage, rises out of despair, toward a life of comfort and respectability. I excelled. Cobbs older siblings began having brushes with the law. I was tremendously focused because I knew that I was going places., In my neighborhood, people didnt go to college, said Cobb.
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