Houston Nutt Lawsuit Against Ole Miss Refiled After Initial Complaint Dismissed

Former Ole Miss Rebels head coach Houston Nutt refiled his lawsuit against the university, the Ole Miss Athletics Foundation and the IHL Board of Trustees, the Clarion-Ledger's Antonio Morales reported Wednesday. 

A judge dismissed Nutt's original lawsuit in August. According to Morales, the legal action is "centered around an alleged breach of contract, breach of duty of good faith and fair dealing and punitive damages."

Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde reported among other issues Nutt believed Ole Miss engaged in a "long-running … smear campaign" against him after he resigned at the end of the 2011 season.

Nutt alleged former head coach Hugh Freeze and athletic director Ross Bjork attempted to pin the blame on Nutt and his staff for the various infractions that resulted from an ongoing NCAA investigation. Forde noted nine of the violations tied to the football program happened under Freeze's watch.

Nutt's lawsuit inadvertently led to Freeze's resignation in July.

Forde and USA Today's Dan Wolken reported Nutt's lawyer, Thomas Mars, had successfully appealed to see Freeze's phone records from his university-issued phone. The records showed Freeze had used the phone to call an escort service.

In a press conference shortly after Freeze resigned, Bjork didn't specify the nature of the calls but told reporters the school had discovered a "troubling" pattern.