Maurice Clarett Signs One-Year Deal With Omaha Nighthawks

Maurice Clarett will look to restart his football career in the UFL.  Yesterday he signed a one-year deal to play with the Omaha Nighthawks.  I am sure you all remember, but Clarett was recently released from prison after serving three and a half years for a litany of charges involving weapons, drunk driving and wearing a flack jacket.  The stories from that day were borderline terrifying to those of us who have been fans of Clarett’s from the Ohio State days.  At almost 27 years of age and with a new lease on life, Clarett looks to find his way back to football via the Nighthawks.

The Nighthawks are an expansion team for the UFL this year.  They will be coached by former Boston College coach Jeff Jagodzinski.  Jagodzinski was fired from the BC gig after interviewing for the then-vacant New York Jets position without getting permission from the school.  The team features a few names that NFL fans will know.  Former Browns fourth round pick Beau Bell is one of the team’s linebackers.  The team will be guided on the field by quarterback Jeff Garcia.  In terms of competing for playing time, Clarett will have to beat out Ahman Green amongst others.  It won’t be an impossible task with Ahman Green being known to many football fans as a guy who is either hurt or fumbles.

Should Clarett do well and make the team, he will see his first action against the Hartford Colonials on September 24th at 7:00 PM.  The game will be featured on HDNET.  (Other UFL games appear on Versus and some of the regional sports stations from time to time.)

It has been difficult to support Clarett over the years, but as an Ohio State fan it is tough not to find a little good will left to root him on at least a little.  He made some very bad decisions and those just seemed to spiral into even worse situations.  At the same time, I never had the feeling that Clarett was inherently a bad guy.  I don’t know what kind of ceiling there is for Clarett as a football player seeing how he has been away from the game for so long. Still, it must feel like a victory just to get back on a football field after spending so much time in jail waiting for an opportunity to just be free, let alone scampering down a football field.  Clarett is no longer young by NFL standards, but as has been discussed at WFNY many many times, the mileage is very low on him.  As a running back, under the age of 30, that is really all that matters.