A controversial ESPN The Magazine story about Mike McQueary came out yesterday. In it, we learned that McQueary was sexually abused as a child and had a gambling problem while he was a mediocre quarterback at Penn State. He bet on games as a player:

According to several of his classmates and teammates, McQueary developed a compulsive gambling habit at Penn State. He bet and lost thousands of dollars on poker and sports wagering, mostly on pro football, though he also bet, several of his former teammates say, on Nittany Lions games. One former teammate specifically recalls that Big Red bet and lost on his own team in a November 1996 game against Michigan State at Beaver Stadium. With McQueary serving as a backup on the sideline, favorite PSU won on a late field goal 32-29 but didn’t cover the eight-point spread.

As his losses mounted, McQueary owed thousands of dollars to a bookie, a debt that was eventually erased by his father, several people say. A college friend recalls urging McQueary to slow down. “It got pretty bad,” the friend says, “and it just kept snowballing and snowballing. He was very impulsive.”

FANTASTIC. More good news for Penn State and its football program.

And now, via The Big Lead, is some evidence of McQueary possibly running up the score to cover his bet.

Penn State was a 20-point favorite over Rutgers in 1995 and led 52-34 (not 20 points…) late in the game when McQueary, seemingly going against Joe Paterno’s play call, did this:

TOUCHDOWN LIONS! AND THEY COVER THE SPREAD!