Houston Nutt hasn't been the head coach at Ole Miss since 2011 but his impact was felt in a big way when it came to the resignation of Hugh Freeze this week. In short, Nutt alleged repeatedly that Freeze and the Ole Miss power structure spread misinformation about the former head coach and Nutt filed a lawsuit against Ole Miss as a result.
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Then, after the Freeze news came down, Nutt's attorney Walter Morrison released a lengthy statement to the Associated Press.
As you might expect, Houston Nutt's lawyer had some things to say about the events at Ole Miss tonight and Hugh Freeze. pic.twitter.com/QmBcq8AMsP
— Ralph D. Russo (@ralphDrussoATH) July 21, 2017
The highlighted section reads as follows:
"The revelations that have come tonight and the reason for Freeze having to resign really bears on his character. And I think it is further evidence of the fact that we have said all along and that is the public persona of Hugh Freeze is not the true Hugh Freeze. His efforts to do everything he could to blame all of the university's problems on Houston Nutt were carefully orchestrated and were just flat false. This is just a prime example of what we have tried to show in our complaint.
"I don't think Houston Nutt needs vindication. We drafted a very detailed complaint. He is complete and total victim in this and he doesn't need vindication. It's sad that the university did not deal with this the way they should have. And if they had dealt with Houston Nutt appropriately to begin with he would not have been besmirched, he would have been treated appropriately and fairly consistent with the severance agreement that all of them signed. And interestingly enough, Hugh Freeze would probably still have his job."
This qualifies as something of a victory lap for Nutt and it comes as no surprise given that, in short, he was proven to be right in this case. The Ole Miss athletic department essentially indicated that Freeze would have been fired if he had not resigned but, aside from that, Nutt's statements ring true and as a reminder of how important the treatment of others can be, even in college football.
