Really hate the cloud that Clint Hurtt is under, charged with unethical conduct by the NCAA.

Hurtt, the current recruiting coordinator for the University of Louisville football program, has to regret what happened during his time at Miami and how it could affect his situation at UofL. He was connected to Miami football for over a decade.

Hurtt signed a letter of intent to play at the Miami in 1997. He played extensively as a freshman before redshirting in 1998 to recover from an injury. He returned to the lineup and saw extensive action in 1999 and 2000 before an injury prior to the 2001 season ended his playing career.

He joined the football coach staff as a volunteer strength and conditioning assistant before becoming a graduate assistant during the 2003-04 season. After a year as defensive line coach at Florida International, Hurtt returned to alma mater in 2006 for a similar position. From 2007 to 2009, he also served as recruiting coordinator at Miami.

For some athletic programs, cheating seems to be considered an investment in the future. The NCAA may catch up to you and put the program on probation but in the long run it seems to pay off. See Alabama, twice probated in the last decade, but the reigning national champion. See Auburn, a former national champ. Assuming that was the business model, it hasn’t worked out out well for Miami, which has nose-dived since winning its fifth Associated Press national title in 2001.

If the allegations are true, Clint Hurtt may have been absorbed, playing and coaching, in a culture of corruption, a way of doing business. The university allowed it to happen, may have actively tolerated cheating. Possibly for years.

That doesn’t make unethical conduct acceptable but it may in part explain why he had little choice but to get with the program at Miami.

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By Charlie Springer

Charlie Springer is a former Louisville editor and sportswriter, a public affairs consultant, a UofL grad and longtime fan.