Pitino defends Louisville's AD amid 'WakeyLeaks' scandal

Amid a potential scandal involving Louisville's football team, basketball coach Rick Pitino is coming to the aid of maligned athletic director Tom Jurich.

Pitino defended Jurich as a man of high character Friday, days after the AD drew criticism for seemingly downplaying the impact of "WakeyLeaks" - the saga that saw Louisville's football program obtain details of Wake Forest's game plan days before a matchup.

"The man will do the right things," Pitino said, per Lyndsey Gough of CN/2. "He always does the right things. He's about honor and integrity ... it's never been about covering up."

Jurich's statement on the situation, sent out Wednesday, oddly omitted any information about how much intelligence head coach Bobby Petrino received from the game plan leak.

Neither of Louisville's two high-profile coaches are strangers to controversy. Pitino is facing NCAA sanctions for his failure to monitor a former staffer who arranged sex parties for recruits during their campus visits.

Petrino, meanwhile, is famous for a motorcycle accident at Arkansas that wound up revealing a mistress - whom he also somehow snuck onto the university's payroll.

Both coaches have checkered pasts, but Pitino said Jurich will get to the bottom of this story the only way he knows how.

"If someone doesn't tell him the truth, there's going to be major consequences," Pitino said, according to Tim Sullivan of the Courier Journal.

Petrino previously stated he had no knowledge of the game-plan leak, though Wake Forest has alleged their materials were discovered on Louisville's sideline before the Nov. 12 game.

Within hours of Pitino's comments, Louisville announced the suspension of offensive coordinator Lonnie Galloway, who was the one to obtain the leaked information.