Aaron Hernandez News: Will Ex-Patriots Star Be Able To Watch The Super Bowl From Jail?

Two years ago, Aaron Hernandez was playing in the Super Bowl. This year, he won’t even be able to watch the game.

The ex-NFL player is currently awaiting trial for the murder of semi-pro football player Odin Lloyd. Hernandez was arrested in late June, and is being held at the Bristol County House of Correction in North Dartmouth, Massachusetts.

Upon entering prison, Hernandez has been placed under stringent conditions. Because of his celebrity status, he can’t interact with the other inmates, and spends 21 hours a day in cell. The rest of the day consists of three one-hour intervals, in which he can exercise in an outside pen.

His day, however, does not include leisure activities like watching TV or movies. Hernandez is not allowed to watch television and there are no exceptions. He wasn’t even given permission to see his old team take on the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game.

"He's not allowed to watch any TV," Bristol County Sheriff Thomas Hodgson told The Associated Press in mid-January. "As far as finding it out, if they hear an officer talking about it, they might find out that way. He could probably hear about it if some other inmate were to call home and he were to yell out."

The other inmates at the prison were allowed to watch a portion of the contest. Hernandez, though, will miss the biggest game of the season. The Seattle Seahawks face the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII on Sunday, and the former tight end won’t see a second of the game.

“I met with him when he first came in to lay the rules out. I said, ‘Here’s the deal. You won’t be treated any better or worse or get any special privileges here,'"Hodgson explained to the Boston Globe.

In 2013, over 108 million people watched the Baltimore Ravens beat the San Francisco 49ers in the Super bowl. The number is expected to exceed 110 million this year.

Hernandez awaits trial for Lloyd’s death, in which he has been accused of murder in the first degree. He is also considered a suspect in the murder of two men who died in a drive-by shooting that took place in Boston in July 2012.