Neuheisel could lose job over NCAA basketball bets

The tumultuous, four-year regime of University of Washington football coach Rick Neuheisel could soon end.

Neuheisel, 42, admitted yesterday that he jeopardized his future as a college coach by taking part in an NCAA tournament gambling pool the past two years.

Two NCAA investigators and one from the Pac-10 Conference were in Seattle yesterday, huddling with Neuheisel and UW officials. The investigators were acting on a tip that Neuheisel put up $5,000 and won some $20,000 in taking Maryland in an auction-format pool on the 2002 men's basketball tournament.

"I never in my wildest dreams imagined I was doing anything to jeopardize my employment," said Neuheisel, who makes $1.2 million annually. "I don't think I would ever put myself in that situation knowingly, but I'm hopeful I can be the coach at Washington. I'd certainly like to be."

As for possible penalties for Neuheisel, UW athletic director Barbara Hedges said: "Gambling is a serious violation of NCAA rules. You can't minimize this. The university will take this very seriously."

Such pools are not against state law if a bookmaker isn't involved, but NCAA rules forbid any form of gambling on college sports by athletes or staffers.

The NCAA database lists no gambling violations of a magnitude such as this one, but other coaches have been fired or suspended for betting much smaller amounts.

Emerging from a downtown hotel conference room late yesterday afternoon after the meeting with investigators, Neuheisel said he was part of a four-man team that split its winnings.

"I was there (at the auction) really because most of these people were buddies of mine from my neighborhood," Neuheisel said, calling it a pizza-and-beer gathering. "Their kids went to the same school as my kids and I was an invitee. ... Obviously, it's become a point of contention, but I never imagined that I was doing anything wrong, because we weren't dealing with bookies or lines or anything like that.

"We were just friends, like we were betting on golf holes. It seemed pretty harmless."

Neuheisel said his "team" had the overall winner in both years he participated, but he wouldn't confirm any dollar figures. Under the auction format, participants bid on each team, and the highest bid gets that team in the tournament.

"There are a lot of questions and we don't have a lot of answers," said Hedges, who first learned of Neuheisel's involvement in the betting pool late yesterday afternoon.

"In hindsight, Rick realizes he should have known," she said. "It's clear that gambling is prohibited on any kind of college sports regardless of what the circumstances are. I do believe Rick should have understood the situation. He just didn't relate it to the particular social situation he was in. Rick was forthcoming. That is to his credit."

Hedges promised "a careful review of all the facts."

The NCAA considers gambling perhaps its greatest threat. Its anti-gambling crusade has included talks by NCAA staffers to athletes before sports seasons; posters in locker rooms; and a campaign to prevent newspapers that publish gambling point spreads from getting credentials to cover major NCAA events.

In college athletic departments, it's common practice to ban even ordinary, small-change tournament brackets filled out across the country in offices during so-called "March Madness."

"If an athlete or coach put $1 in a pool, certainly there would not be a significant penalty," said Bill Saum, the NCAA's director of agent, gambling and amateurism activities. "If there is a significant amount of money in the pool, there would be a significant penalty."

Institutions can be sanctioned in such cases, but the UW would not likely be culpable unless it knew or should have known of the violation.

The part of the NCAA manual that deals with gambling states that coaches, staff members and athletes shall not knowingly "solicit or accept a bet on any intercollegiate competition for any item (e.g., cash, shirt, dinner) that has tangible value."

The NCAA would not comment on any specifics of the Neuheisel investigation. But while the focus was on the gambling allegation, investigators also asked Neuheisel about a couple of possible minor violations, the kind that have dogged Neuheisel through much of his tenure at Washington.

The last of those was in February, when he issued a formal statement through university channels that he hadn't interviewed for the San Francisco 49ers head-coaching vacancy. When he was caught in the lie, Neuheisel was forced to admit the interview took place.

At that time, acting UW President Lee Huntsman said he had talked with Neuheisel about the misstep and said, "It's especially clear to Rick what the university's expectations are. ... I'm satisfied he understands that."

Neuheisel has had a roller-coaster ride at the UW, including a Rose Bowl victory over Purdue in his second season. Last season, the Huskies had a 7-6 record, needing a strong November to avoid the program's first losing season in 26 years.

Last September, Hedges announced a six-year contract extension for Neuheisel running through Jan. 1, 2008, with a five-year option that could keep him at the UW until 2013.

Strictly speaking, he didn't receive a raise in a contract that pays $1.21 million annually, with $1.4 million possible in incentives. However, the new agreement called for a $1.5 million loan over a six-year period, which he won't have to repay if he is still the UW coach Jan. 1, 2008.

Neuheisel's contract stipulates that if he is fired for just cause, he must repay the loan. His contract defines just cause as "any serious act of misconduct by employee, including but not limited to, an act of dishonesty, theft or misappropriation of university property, moral turpitude, insubordination or actions injuring, abusing or endangering others."

If he is dismissed without cause — for instance, because of the team's won-lost record — he is allowed to keep the loan.

Neuheisel, who has a 33-15 record as Huskies head coach, made it clear he wants to stay on the job.

"I never in my wildest imagination thought I was breaking an NCAA rule," Neuheisel said. "Obviously, that would be the furthest thing I would ever want to do. I just thought I was participating in a social event with my neighbors.

"I was fortunate to be on a winning team, but the money was of no consequence. It really made no difference. I was just there to share some social time with some guys in the neighborhood, golf buddies and so forth ... all guys I thought were friends."

The Huskies are expected to be a top contender for the Pac-10 title this year, after a downbeat 2002 season in which Neuheisel admitted the program got away from its reputation for toughness and physical play.

Ironically, Neuheisel spent part of yesterday attending a regularly scheduled NCAA compliance seminar that has attracted athletic-department officials from many schools.

In another coincidence, today was the deadline for the Huskies to file a report to the NCAA that Neuheisel had fulfilled all compliance requirements related to 50 minor violations committed while he was head coach at Colorado from 1995-98. Attending the seminar was the final part of that requirement.

Bud Withers: 206-464-8281 or bwithers@seattletimes.com. Bob Condotta: 206-515-5699 or bcondotta@seattletimes.com. Seattle Times associate editor Blaine Newnham contributed to this article.