From: Cleveland Plain Dealer -

COLUMBUS — A judge Wednesday cleared the way for ex-Ohio State football star Maurice Clarett to move to a smaller detention facility in Columbus, which could lead to his release within a few months.

Asked by Franklin County Common Pleas Judge David Fais if he had anything to say, Clarett cleared his throat and said, “I’d like to say I’m humbled.”

Clarett, who led the Buckeyes to the 2002 national championship in his only college season, served 3 1/2 years in prison for aggravated robbery and carrying a concealed weapon.

Fais said Clarett, 26, had met terms of his original sentencing when he pleaded guilty in September 2006 and permitted the move to Maryhaven, a community-based correction facility.

“He’s very grateful he’s been released,” said his attorney, Michael Hoague. “Still, he’s incarcerated, so it’s a blend of emotions.”

Officials at the facility will evaluate Clarett’s employment, education and family considerations. He will be there at least four months but no more than six before being released, pending good behavior, Fais said.

Prosecutors did not argue against Clarett’s move to the facility.

“He did have a good prison record,” Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien said Tuesday night.

Hoague said Clarett had taken classes on geriatrics and gerontology while in prison and hoped to work with older adults.

Clarett pleaded guilty in September 2006 to having a gun hidden in his SUV and holding up two people outside a Columbus bar in a separate case. He was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison with possible release in 3 1/2 years.

Clarett was a standout running back from Warren who was selected as a national player of the year by one publication.

He never played another college game after scoring the winning touchdown in Ohio State’s 31-24 double-overtime win over Miami in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl, the Buckeyes’ first national title since 1968.

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