Wildest details from betting scandal that got Brad Bohannon fired as Alabama baseball coach
The gambling scandal that prompted the firing of Brad Bohannon as Alabama baseball's coach is a masterclass in how to get caught.
The bettor, Bert Eugene Neff, in communication with Bohannon couldn't have done much worse of a job of covering his actions on April 28. The events led to an alert to sports gambling operators to take extreme caution in regards to wagers on Alabama baseball on May 1. By May 4, Bohannon had been fired for cause as the Crimson Tide's coach.
The details of the investigation became officially public on Thursday when the NCAA released its negotiated resolution with the University of Alabama. The penalties for Bohannon included a 15-year show-cause. For UA, it received three years of probation and a $5,000 fine.
Neff was not named in the negotiated resolution, but a source familiar with the situation confirmed his identity to The Tuscaloosa News in May 2023. He's an Indiana native and the father of a former University of Cincinnati baseball player. Attempts to reach Neff and Bohannon by the Tuscaloosa News via messaging for comment have not been successful.
Some of the details from the resolution of what transpired on April 28 are so absurd they almost sound made up.
But they aren't. Here are some of the wildest details from the NCAA's findings in its investigation. Information is from the NCAA's negotiated resolution with UA, unless otherwise noted.
'Hurry': The damning texting evidence
Bohannon used Signal, the encrypted messaging application, to text Neff. That in itself left evidence to use against Bohannon.
"HAMMER … [Student-athlete 1] is out for sure … Lemme know when I can tell LSU… Hurry," Bohannon wrote.
This was before Bohannon had shared his starting lineup with the Tigers. Alabama pitcher Luke Holman had been scratched late from the starting lineup for that Friday game, which Holman later confirmed was for a back issue.
'If only you guys knew what I knew'
It's one thing to try to pull off a scheme without getting caught. It's another thing to try to pull it off while telling someone you're doing it.
That's exactly what Neff did. At the BetMGM sportsbook at the Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati, Neff tried to place multiple bets on the Alabama baseball vs. LSU game. He told the sportsbook staff the bet was "for sure going to win."
"If only you guys knew what I knew," Neff told the staff.
Then Neff tried his best to make sure the staff knew what he knew. He showed the staff the messages he received from Bohannon and he explained what they meant.
The attempt at $100,000
Even if Neff hadn't told the staff what he did, and then showed the staff what he did, his betting amount would have likely caught attention anyway.
He tried to place a $100,000 bet on a regular season college baseball game. The staff at the sportsbook limited the bettor to a $15,000 wager, though.
As a result, Neff tried to place more wagers. The sportsbook staff didn't permit those, though, flagging the suspicious activity.
Nick Kelly is the Alabama beat writer for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network, and he covers Alabama football and men's basketball. Reach him at nkelly@gannett.com or follow him @_NickKelly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Brad Bohannon: Wildest details that led to his firing at Alabama
