A Blast from the Past - Maurice Clarett back at Ohio State

Maurice Clarett started classes on Monday, after the university allowed him reentry, an Ohio State spokesman said in a statement released Monday evening.

“Maurice Clarett has been granted reentry into The Ohio State University, following a review by the College of Education and Human Ecology,” said Jim Lynch, director of media relations for Ohio State.

Clarett will attend classes for the second half of OSU’s summer quarter.

Clarett was granted early release from prison Wednesday, April 7, 2010, after serving 3-1/2 years of his 7-1/2-year sentence.

"This is a surreal feeling to be back at Ohio State in such a supportive environment. I have looked forward to being back in school, and I’m doing my best to fit in with other students. I don’t want to be a distraction or nuisance to the football team or to students on campus," Clarett said in a media statement Monday.

Clarett pleaded guilty to two felony offenses Sept. 18, 2006. Those offenses were aggravated robbery with a firearm for the Jan. 1, 2006, robbery of two people in the alley behind the Opium Lounge in downtown Columbus and for carrying a concealed weapon related to his Aug. 9, 2006, arrest after a car chase by the police on the city's far East Side.

During his parole hearing, Clarett had said he hoped to become involved in geriatrics and gerontology, the comprehensive study of aging and the problems of the aged.