Bert Neff of Mooresville, Indiana got more than he bargained for when he placed a wager on an Alabama-LSU baseball game in the spring. Neff earned a trip to the involuntary exclusion list, which comes with a permanent ban on placing bets with a sportsbook or entering a casino in the state.
Jenny Reske, deputy director at the Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC), told ESPN that a review of the actions Neff allegedly took on April 28 resulted in the punishment imposed. Thing is, the infraction didn’t occur in Indiana but in Cincinnati, Ohio at Great American Ball Park.
According to the investigation, Neff entered the sportsbook at the stadium and bet on LSU to top Alabama that night. But the size of the bet on a regular season game made employees concerned. Media reports thought it may have approached $100,000.
To add to the suspicions, video surveillance showed Neff in discussions with Alabama head baseball coach, Brad Bohannan. Bohannan lost his job as a result and Neff lost his ability to participate in gambling in Indiana. Were they determined to make an example of him when it comes to sports betting?
Neff’s attorney Jeff Baldwin told ESPN on September 14 that the size of the bet and who he bet on were incorrect.
“There was only one bet involving LSU, and it was a parlay,” Baldwin said.
Neff can appeal the decision, but the commission stands by its ruling for the good of the integrity of sports betting.
The punishment does not end the troubles for Neff. Further investigations continue in Indiana, Ohio and for good measure, the NCAA. Indiana is targeting other bets on LSU for that game as well.
Baldwin said he didn’t believe Neff had been contacted by investigators for the NCAA or state gaming regulators.
In May, two University of Cincinnati baseball staff members were dismissed following an NCAA inquiry into possible violations, tied to Neff, whose son Andrew was a pitcher for the Bearcats, but seeks a transfer. Head Cincinnati baseball coach Scott Googins resigned May 31.
“We don’t believe that Bert Neff had anything to do with the firings of the Cincinnati coaches,” Baldwin told ESPN.
University of Cincinnati associate athletic director Zach Stipe told ESPN the department keeps mum on specific decisions on personnel.
Neff has a history of participation in baseball. He played for the University of Louisville in the mid-1990s and coached travel baseball and other youth sports for several years. He got involved in recruiting and hoped to coach on a college level.
ESPN obtained text messages which show Neff frequently contacted Googins in the months leading up to the Alabama-LSU bet. The texts include pictures of betting slips on tennis and the NFL, pitching advice and a request for a coaching job. Googins did not acknowledge the betting references and hardly responded to the texts.
In a text message dated January 21, Neff texted Googins receipts from the Hard Rock Casino in Cincinnati of two winning bets on NFL games. He placed a $40,000 two-team parlay on the Chiefs and Giants that netted nearly $60,000 and a $2,500 bet on the over/under total points in the first half of the Giants-Eagles game. “Don’t mess with the wizard!” he wrote.
Baldwin insisted the texts were between old friends, not necessarily descriptions of bets to be acted upon.
“Make me an unpaid coach…who you think is going to make this gap quicker than anyone for you??? No one you have now can change the roster n bring in players than me!!! the texts said. “He wants me to come in n get them to next level in SEC… But he knows I can evaluate and find players.”
Days after Neff allegedly placed the bet on the Alabama-LSU game, Googins received a text that said, “That other thing isn’t anything like its being portrayed on my end …lot of fabrication n lot of things from my end that are not correct…it’s way deeper than some bet I made on my own…just trust that n we will be able to talk soon enough..”
“They shouldn’t not be letting people bet on college sports,” Neff added in the texts. “…kids are betting them at a rate that’s disturbing and it’s going to be come out soon how widespread it is…”
