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False rumors spreading about Jay Wright's personal life

The internet is often like a giant game of telephone where speculation can become stories and rumors grow like weeds. The rumor bug has once again struck Villanova basketball.

Chris Trotman

Normally, VUhoops.com doesn't address nasty personal rumors related to the Villanova basketball program. So long as no laws are broken, the personal lives of players, coaches and staff are off-limits. Among the reasons are the facts of these rumors are normally too difficult to verify and the subject matter too potentially damaging — we can't expose ourselves to lawsuits for the sake of sensationalism.

However, recent rumors surrounding the personal life of Villanova head coach Jay Wright warrant some notice. I was made aware of the rumor as it formulated in it's early stages around mid-November, and since that time I have heard from individuals and sources close to the Wright family and the basketball program on the matter. After extensive investigation, I feel more than confident in saying that the rumors are not true.

Jay Wright will not be tendering his resignation tomorrow, or any day soon. There will be no press conference regarding Wright. There are no divorce papers filed.

The Philadelphia Daily News also investigated the matter and deemed the rumors untrue; as did hall-of-fame journalist Dick Weiss, who tweeted that "there is no truth -- repeat -- no truth to the rumors about villanova basketball."

At this point, anyone expecting the rumors to come true should prepare to be disappointed.

In discussions with Wright family friends, associates and colleagues, all denied that any part of the stories circulating on the Internet over the past few days was true. Wright and his wife, Patty, are aware of the rumor's existence, but don't feel that acknowledging them publicly would give credence to them and encourage their spread.

Wright has been joined by his wife after most games so far this season. She was absent from the Marshall game to attend the birthday party of a personal friend and had to skip the Nashville road trip last weekend to attend her daughter's basketball game in Pennsylvania.

For his part, Jay Wright has not indicated to anyone that he intended to resign for any reason. Sources close to the head coach report that he is carrying on his business as usual in recent days. It would be highly unlikely for that to be the case if his resignation had been tendered.

VUhoops can confirm that a search of local court records didn't turn up any civil cases where Wright was a plaintiff or defendant, as would be the case if he was getting divorced from his wife. We can also confirm that the Villanova athletics department has not arranged or scheduled any press conferences in the near future. Press conference invitations would normally sent to the entire basketball media list as soon beforehand as the school is able to send notice.

In short, there is no evidence that the rumors being posted on Twitter and elsewhere on the internet are true. Sources close to both Jay Wright and his wife Patty Wright have denied all of the rumor as well.

Should Jay Wright ever decide to resign from Villanova for any reason, VUhoops.com will strive to be at the forefront of that news. At the moment, however, there is nothing to report on that front.

Please keep any potentially libelous material out of the comments section.