Ole Miss has endured no shortage of chaos en route to its appearance in the College Football Playoff semifinal Fiesta Bowl on Thursday.
Just ask Rebels quarterbacks coach Joe Judge, who drew on his previous experience as Aaron Hernandez’s neighbor to describe what it’s been like in Oxford this week.
During a press availability on Tuesday, Judge was asked whether Ole Miss-turned-LSU assistants working for both teams in the lead-up to Thursday’s semifinal against Miami now qualifies as the most hectic week of his career. The former New York Giants head coach confirmed that to be the case, noting that it has even surpassed what it was like living next to Hernandez during his time as an assistant with the New England Patriots.
“My next-door neighbor was Aaron Hernandez,” Judge said, according to CBS Sports’ Brandon Marcello. “I know this is still more chaotic.”
As you’re likely aware, the late Patriots tight end was arrested — and ultimately convicted — for the murder of Odin Lloyd in 2013. Considering Hernandez’s status as a star tight end on one of the NFL’s most prominent teams, the case generated a plethora of media attention, much of which Judge had a front-row seat for.
Asked to expand on his comment, the 44-year-old assistant coach noted that he’s bound to a non-disclosure agreement stemming from his time in New England. He did, however, offer insight into what it was like living next to Hernandez amid such a unique and trying time.
“If you watch those documentaries, my house is on the TV next door,” Judge told reporters. “The detectives knocked on my door to find out where he was. I didn’t know. We just kind of talked to the organization. But it was obviously chaotic. But again, those players that year handled that extremely well. Came out of that chaos and we had some really good direction inside with some veterans and some different guys.
“You have something like that happen — how do you handle something like that? How do you deal with something like that? So you keep the focus on what you can handle, what you can control, which at that time was football for us and we went through the stretch and we were able to have success that year.”
While some may take exception with such a comparison, Judge was largely offering his own perspective on what is undoubtedly a unique time for his program. Still, it speaks volumes that he would consider the last week more chaotic than what the Patriots endured with Hernandez, especially considering how close he was — literally — to the entire situation.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.