An Indiana man whose son is a member of the University of Cincinnati baseball team is the bettor at the center of a separate investigation that led to the firing of Alabama coach Brad Bohannon and two members of the Bearcats baseball staff this month, two people familiar in the questions said. The Associated Press on Friday.
People who identified Bert Neff of Mooresville, Indiana, as connected to the Alabama and Cincinnati cases spoke on condition of anonymity because no one was authorized to speak about ongoing investigations.
A number listed as Neff’s cell phone did not return calls Friday.
Alabama has not released details on why Bohannon was let go after five years on the job. However, the firing came three days after a report warning of suspicious bets on an LSU-Alabama baseball game prompted Ohio’s top gambling regulator to clamp down on licensed sportsbooks. in the state to accept bets on Tide games. It was followed by Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
ESPN later reported that surveillance video from the sportsbook located at the Cincinnati Reds’ Great American Ballpark showed the man placing the bets communicating with Bohannon at the time. ESPN cited multiple anonymous sources with direct information about the investigation.
One of the people familiar with the investigations told the AP on Friday that Neff was the person who placed the bets.
Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne has since said the university has received no evidence that any players were involved in the situation. A text message to Byrne from the AP on Friday was not immediately returned.
Alabama competes in the Southeastern Conference baseball tournament this week and is positioned to reach the NCAA Tournament.
Earlier this week, Cincinnati announced assistant coach Kyle Sprague and director of operations Andy Nagel were relieved of their duties on May 17, about a week after the school opened an investigation into possible violations. of the NCAA.
The school did not provide details on what was being investigated and said it would not comment further. Voice and text messages to Cincinnati athletic director John Cunningham were not immediately returned.
But one of the people familiar with the situation told the AP that the contact with Neff was the reason for the firing. It is not known if Neff bet on baseball games in Cincinnati.
A third person familiar with the Cincinnati investigation told the AP there was no indication games were fixed or that Sprague or Nagel bet on the games.
Neff’s son, Andrew, is listed as a pitcher on Cincinnati’s roster, but did not play this season. The Bearcats’ season ended earlier this week when they were eliminated from the American Athletic Conference Tournament.
One of the people familiar with the situation said Bert Neff is a youth coach at Indiana who has connections with college coaches through recruiting.
Sports Illustrated was the first to report on Neff’s involvement in the Alabama and Cincinnati baseball firings.
The Cincinnati case is the latest gambling-related scandal in college sports this month.
Less than a week after Bohannon was fired, the University of Iowa said 26 of its athletes in five sports were suspected of betting on sports in violation of NCAA rules. Its cross-state rival, Iowa State, acknowledged that about 15 of its athletes in three sports were also suspected of violating gambling rules.
NCAA rules prohibit athletes, coaches and staff from betting on amateur, college and professional sports in which the NCAA holds a championship. The rules are under review as legal gambling spreads across the country, and the NCAA this week said it plans an athlete-only survey on the subject.
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