Rick Pitino emerged from hiding Wednesday, apologizing for an "indiscretion" he had six years ago when he had sex with Karen Sypher at a Louisville restaurant.
Although a "moral depravity" clause in Pitino's contract could cost the 56-year-old Louisville coach his job, it appears unlikely university officials will take that course. But the married father of five may not recover from the damage to his reputation.
Dick Weiss of the New York Daily News writes: "If the university is willing to put its reputation on the line and keep him on, fine. Pitino has the strong backing of [athletic director Tom] Jurich. But be warned, this is going to get ugly. Pitino will not be able to spin this story, which will be headline news until the end of a trial that has not even been scheduled yet."
Sypher, 49 and a mother of four, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of conspiring to extort money from Pitino in exchange for her silence about the alleged crimes, and with lying to the FBI. She has pleaded not guilty.
Rick Bozich of the Louisville Courier-Journal writes that Pitino will be tried a different court: "Public opinion will count in this story. Pitino is a very public Catholic man in a strong Catholic community. For some, the aborted Sypher pregnancy will resonate beyond a Big East championship.
Bozich later writes: "It was the personal and public apology he had to make — his words, his vulnerability, his perspective, not a recitation of a statement crafted by a lawyer or public-relations handler. Pitino knew he had to get it right, and the apology was the proper start."
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