Who is Robert Crane from The Risk Pool and what is their importance?

Robert Crane is Ned's college friend. Robert is a big, fit looking man, who claims he was Four-F in the Vietnam draft because of acne, but in reality his number was 366. He is married and living in student housing with his wife, Anita, while they both finish their master's degrees. Robert and Anita are both compulsive gamblers and spend a lot of time at the dog track.