Sports

Rick Pitino Sues Louisville For $37.6 Million For Breach Of Contract

(Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

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Just a month after the University of Louisville fired Rick Pitino “for just cause” the former head basketball coach is now suing the university’s athletic association for a whopping $37.6 million for breach of contract.

Pitino was fired last month following a FBI investigation into a massive bribery scheme for potential recruits that involved sports agents, financial advisers, Adidas and the schools they sponsor, ESPN reports. The now former Louisville coach was fired for his alleged involvement in the scheme, but continues to argue that he wasn’t aware of what was going on.

(Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

On Thursday Pitino filed a lawsuit claiming that Louisville breached his contract by putting him on unpaid administrative leave without notice and later firing him with no justified cause.

The government indictments filed as a result of the FBI probe do not name Pitino, however he is accused of facilitating payments to the family of Brian Bowen to bribe the five-star recruit to attend Louisville through investment advisor Christian Dawkins, Sports Illustrated reports. Pitino’s lawsuit argues that he had no part in any illegal scheme to bring Bowen to the school.

According to Pitino’s attorneys, Pitino “never has had any part–active, passive, or through willful ignorance–in any effort, successful or unsuccessful, completed or abandoned, to pay any recruit, or any family member of a recruit, or anyone else on a recruit’s behalf, as an inducement to attend the University of Louisville.”

“Coach Pitino,” the lawsuit states, “never understood that Dawkins was an agent, and Bowen’s mother stated that Dawkins was not an agent in any regard for Bowen.”

Bowen has been ruled ineligible to play for Louisville, but will be allowed the opportunity to transfer and play at another school.