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3/14/10

Attorney: Case 'substantially stronger'

LUBBOCK, Texas -- Former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach spent more than five hours behind closed doors Friday, testifying under oath as part of his lawsuit against the school for firing him amid allegations he mistreated a player suffering from a concussion.

After completing his deposition, Leach gave a brief statement, his voice cracking with emotion as he talked about how great it was to be back in Lubbock after a decade building his pass-happy team into a Big 12 powerhouse.

"We've had 10 incredible years here, and had a really good day today," he said. "What can I say? It's 10 years."

He got up quickly from his chair and left the room.

Leach has denied he mistreated receiver Adam James last season and said he suspects an $800,000 bonus he was to have received Dec. 31 was the reason he was fired one day earlier. His lawsuit includes allegations of libel and slander and breach of contract.

The sophomore receiver said his coach twice ordered him to stand for hours while confined in a dark place during practice. James and his father, former player and ESPN analyst Craig James, are expected to give their depositions on Saturday.

One of Leach's attorneys, Ted Liggett, said Leach will be in the room when Craig James is questioned, but not when the younger James gives his deposition.

Another one of Leach's attorneys, Paul Dobrowski, said his client's case is "substantially stronger" following depositions from school officials who investigated allegations of mistreatment. He said testimony from school Chancellor Kent Hance and a university attorney confirmed Leach's contention that Craig James wanted the coach fired when he complained about the way his son was treated following his injury.

One of the attorneys for Texas Tech, Dicky Grigg, said at a news conference late Friday that Leach testified that he "never treated" another player with a concussion like he treated Adam James.

"It was clear from Mike Leach's deposition taken today that he was out to punish a student athlete who had a brain concussion," Grigg said. "This is shown by the language he admitted today under oath that he used."

The school released a profanity-laden sentence Grigg said had been Leach's instruction to trainer Steve Pincock at that time, and that Leach admitted to saying in his sworn testimony Friday.

"What this language shows is that his intent was vindictive, not therapeutic to this young man," Grigg said. "Anything else that's being discussed by anyone, other than these indisputable facts proven under oath, anything else is simply an attempt to confuse and avoid the real issues."

Grigg did not take questions at the news conference.

Testimony from Hance and the attorney also confirmed that university President Guy Bailey penned a memo Dec. 27 to Hance recommending that Leach "be issued a letter of reprimand" and that the James case be closed, Dobrowski said.

But Dobrowski said Craig James got word to the chancellor that he wanted Leach fired. Hance relayed that information to the board of regents and board Chairman Larry Anders and Vice Chairman Jerry Turner were the ones that recommended Leach be fired, Dobrowski said.

Dobrowski said Hance and the attorney both testified in their depositions that it was "against Texas Tech policy for regents to unduly influence or direct Messrs. Bailey and Myers to terminate an employee like Mike Leach."

The Bailey memo also stated, Dobrowski said, that university policy gave Leach the right to file a lawsuit seeking a temporary restraining order after he was suspended Dec. 28 "without fear of retaliation." Yet he accused Anders of recommending that Leach be fired if he filed a lawsuit.

"I think that we know and they know that our case has gotten substantially stronger by virtue of the discovery process, and that the documents that Texas Tech has produced has confirmed Mike's position," Dobrowski said.

The case has been ugly, including a rapid-fire stream of court filings filled with accusations.

Dobrowski said it was "no coincidence" Texas Tech released video footage this week that shows Leach in the locker room after games against Baylor and Kansas State. Leach is seen and heard using profane language when talking to his team.

The school released the footage because, Dobrowski said, because it is "trying to smear Mike."

Grigg said the school was required by law to release the footage after media outlets filed open records requests. He said he did not know who informed the outlets the tapes existed but that they are "irrelevant" to this case.

The dispute was ordered into mediation, but Dobrowski said he believes the case will go to trial.

"That's my view," he said. "Certainly we are preparing for trial."

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Hancock to respond to Senators' letter

WASHINGTON -- The head of the Bowl Championship Series thinks Congress "has more important things to do" than look into the way his group distributes money to college football conferences.

Still, BCS executive director Bill Hancock said Wednesday he will respond to a question-filled letter sent to him by two U.S. Senators.

"I'm looking forward to taking a longer look at the letter. I sure do think that Congress has more important things to do, with all the issues facing our country," Hancock said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "The BCS is fair. Access is fair. Revenue is distributed fairly. And frankly, we welcome the opportunity to tell our story every chance we get."

Hancock did not give a timeline for when he will answer the queries sent to him this week by Sens. Orrin Hatch, a Utah Republican, and Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat.

Their letter, which was posted on Hatch's official Web site, asks for details about how the BCS calculates which conferences get automatic bowl bids, how money will be divvied up under a new TV deal and what sort of legal status the organization has.

Under the BCS, the champions of six major conferences receive automatic bids to play in top-tier bowl games, and those conferences receive more money than the other leagues. Hatch has asked for a Justice Department investigation into whether the BCS violates antitrust laws, arguing that the millions of dollars at stake justify oversight by the federal government.

Hatch's home-state team, Utah, didn't play for the national title at the end of the 2008 season despite going undefeated.

In their letter to Hancock, Hatch and Baucus wrote that the "conclusion of the 2009 college football season has raised a number of additional questions." Two undefeated teams, Boise State and TCU, didn't get a chance to play for the national title, instead facing each other in a bowl game.

Coach apologizes for remarks

COMMERCE, Texas -- A Texas college football coach has apologized for applauding his players for removing campus newspapers from their racks because of a story about the program.

Texas A&M-Commerce coach Guy Morriss told campus police the actions by his players was "the best team-building exercise we have ever done." On Monday, the former Kentucky and Baylor coach apologized for a "lapse in judgment" and said the comment was made facetiously.

Police were investigating the disappearance of newspaper editions that included a front-page article about two football players being arrested on drug charges.

A&M-Commerce athletic director Carlton Cooper said the Division II program would pay for the reprint of the missing edition, and that coaches and players would distribute it.