College hoops coaches charged in bribe scheme
The accusations involve using money to influence recruits in several areas
In one of the biggest crackdowns on the corrupting role of money in college basketball, 10 men, including two Pac-12 assistants and a top Adidas executive, were charged Tuesday with using hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes to influence star athletes’ choice of schools, shoe sponsors, agents and even tailors.
Some of the most explosive allegations appeared to involve Louisville, one of college basketball’s biggest powerhouses, which is already on NCAA probation over a sex scandal involving recruits.
Federal prosecutors said at least three top high school recruits were promised payments of as much as $150,000, using money supplied by Adidas, to attend two universities sponsored by the athletic shoe company. Court papers didn’t name the schools but contained enough details to identify them as Louisville and Miami.
“The picture of college basketball painted by the charges is not a pretty one,” said acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim, adding that the defendants were “circling blue-chip prospects like coyotes” and exploited them to enrich themselves.
Prosecutors said that while some of the bribe money went to athletes and their families, some went to coaches, to get them to use their influence over their potentially NBAbound players.
The coaches charged are Chuck Person of Auburn, Emanuel Richardson of Arizona, Tony Bland of USC and Lamont Evans of Oklahoma State. Person and Evans were immediately suspended.
Bland appeared in federal court in Tampa, Florida, wearing handcuffs and ankle chains. He said little during the brief hearing other than to answer the judge’s questions and did not enter a plea.
Those charged also include James Gatto, director of global sports marketing for basketball at Adidas; Rashan Michel, a maker of custom suits for some of the NBA’s biggest stars; and various financial advisers and managers.
NCAA president Mark Emmert condemned the alleged misconduct, saying in a statement, “Coaches hold a unique position of trust with student-athletes and their families, and these bribery allegations, if true, suggest an extraordinary and despicable breach of that trust.”
Since 2015, the FBI has been investigating the influence of money on coaches and players in the NCAA. Kim noted that a special FBI hotline has been set up and asked anyone aware of additional corruption to come forward.
Prosecutors said the coaches took bribes to use their “enormous influence” to steer players toward certain financial advisers and agents.
Most if not all of the 10 defendants were under arrest. Lawyers for Gatto and three of the coaches did not immediately respond to requests for comment. It was unclear whether Evans had an attorney.
Adidas said it was unaware of any misconduct by an employee and vowed to fully cooperate with authorities.
In court papers Tuesday, the FBI said it recorded a July meeting at which an assistant coach at Louisville was briefed on a plan to funnel thousands of dollars to a potential high school recruit. The participants in the meeting noted they had to be careful because Louisville was already on probation.
“We gotta be very low key,” said the coach, according to the FBI.
Investigators said agents also wiretapped a call in which Gatto and another defendant discussed an unnamed coach at Miami requesting that Adidas pay as much as $150,000 to another recruit, in part to prevent him from accepting a similar offer from a rival apparel company.
Louisville interim President Gregory Postel confirmed the university has been informed it is part of the investigation and said, “Any violations will not be tolerated.”
Miami said it will cooperate with authorities, while USC said it appointed former FBI Director Louis J. Freeh to conduct an internal investigation.
The investigation began after Martin Blazer, a Pittsburgh-based financial adviser to pro athletes, began cooperating with authorities in 2014. Blazer, accused by the Securities and Exchange Commission of taking money from clients without permission, pleaded guilty this month to fraud and other crimes.
According to the report: “The investigation has revealed numerous instances of bribes paid by athlete advisors … to assistant and associate basketball coaches employed by NCAA Division I universities as facilitated by the coaches in exchanges for those coaches exerting influence over student athletes under their control to retain the services of the bribe-payors once the athletes enter the (NBA).”