Lots of "NFL fix" talk.....Is this inside coincidence?>>>

[HacheMan]

Treehouse, if your referring to me betting the Bucs, check a few other threads and you'll see who I took....here's a hint, they were +5

....oh, and the over, if you want to go into details.....Oh yeah, did I mention that was a 2 team Parlay?!Get real Tree, This thread had nothing to do with a loss, it was just interesting. Try reading the very initial post again and maybe you'll understand.

 

[Horseshoe]

Len Dawson, Paul Hornung, Snake Stabler, Detriot Lions in 50's/60's, Carroll Rosenblum, McMahon, aL dAVIS jR,AL DAVIS JR, AL DAVIS JR!!..if you even have to debate it, you're lost!

[This message was edited by Horseshoe on October 07, 2003 at 08:47 PM.]

 

[DarrylParsons]

wil,

The last I heard refs with 5-year tenure make about $80K per year before taxes which is less than half of what the lowest paid players make. OK they're not struggling for their next meal, but a $10,000 cash payment, say, to make a few calls and turn a blind eye here and there? Seems like a ripe situation to me. Or the money could be wired to a brother-in-law with an offshore account. It's really not hard to remove the traces since bookies send money offshore all the time.

But I am willing to agree to disagree on this. Just wondering, what is your position? That there is no corruption at all? Or if there is, then who is in on it?

BTW, to those who think this has anything to do with sour grapes, I had the Colts on the ML and I even have a pre-game post to prove it

 

[wilheim]

The NFL refs are all part time, by that I mean the money they make is extra above and beyond whatever their day jobs pay. In almost every case the refs are high salaried business men. There has been a lot of talk about hiring refs who do nothing but referee. This would allow them to practice and watch film etc. during the week between games. So far it is only talk. So the rewards of a say 10 dime payoff is in no way worth the risk to any of these guys. The vetting process is extensive, they are all well respected men in different careers other than being NFL refs. Take a guy who is a high ranking exec in a big firm, as many refs are, is he going to risk his whole existence, to make what to him, is small change? I doubt it. btw. College refs are in a similar situation, being part time refs, and full time execs.
Corruption in the NFL may exist in a lot of different areas, like the players well being, there is a lot of feeling about players being used up and discarded quickly especially when injured. Today that problem has gotten less severe with an excellent retirement program in place. Recently I was talking to a guy from Texas who is friends with one of the players in the Cowboy Circle of Fame. He told me the ex-players pension from a past era, was a joke of about $18,000 a year. Team doctors are under pressure to get injured players back on the field as soon as possible. I have a book by ex-Raider team doctor and Harvard grad Rob Huizenga MD. The book is called "Your're OKAY it's just a BRUISE" and is an expose about some of the things team doctors, trainers, coaches, and especially owners do to get players back on the field. Good read. Anyway, the main problem with the NFL imo. is the ethics of the owners. Some are fine, probably most, others are of dubious nature. Do I think that there is point shaving today in the NFL? No, as I have already explained. Is the league lilly white? Absolutely not.


wil.

 

[DarrylParsons]

wil,

Thanks for the detailed reply. I guess I was not up-to-date on the officiating situation, because a couple of years back it was quite different as I recall. If they are independently wealthy then as you say they surely won't be bribable.

 

[CharlieMaxwell]

Wilhelm, We might have worked in the same book. Can you tell me if it was independently owned?

 

[wilheim]

No not privately owned like the Rosebowl, or Churchill Downs, or Gary Austin's, although I used to frequent those places guite a bit. You must remember the hole in the wall. When I first got to town the Dust was a hot spot believe it or not. I can still remmeber my first visit, the big screens, lots of people, I was in heaven.

wil.

 

[CharlieMaxwell]

Wilhelm, thanks for giving me a hint. I DID work for one of the three places you just mentioned.

 

[WildBill]

Money won betting spends the same no matter what sport you bet. Why get involved in the NFL where almost everyone, including a lot of the refs, are millionaires? Same for any pro sport. Talk about ripe for rigging, ask Railbird, he knows about all those 12 year olds. He probably will tell you about some start pitcher getting grounded by his parents, bet he would come cheap

Anyways its been proven best way to fix games is to get the clock guys and secondary officials working for you. I have heard stories of a couple guys who controlled the supply of footballs in a game putting slightly under-inflated balls that would throw off the precise ability of a QB. Then just after a couple series and he might have adjusted, they put the regular balls out there. Another ref or the QB might spot it, but slight differences would not be. Not foolproof, but supposedly enough to make for an edge.

 

[wilheim]

Did you ever play at Mayday's?


wil.

 

[CharlieMaxwell]

I went in there two or three times a week, but not to bet. I was in a little different area of the sports betting business. Gene was ALWAYS very nice to me and the company I worked for.

 

[wilheim]

He was one of a kind. Never afraid to take a bet. I only knew him casually but he always comped me little things. Not that I was any kind of high roller, hell, I was working for a living.


wil.

 

[CharlieMaxwell]

Yes, he was the consumate bookmaker and a class guy. It was an era I was lucky to be a part of.