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LOGAN — A day after Utah State officially fired football coach Blake Anderson for Title IX violations, Anderson's lawyer, Tom Mars, released parts of a legal response he submitted to athletic director Diana Sabau.
Mars posted the excerpts on the social media platform X on Friday morning and said the university's firing of Anderson was for "convenience" rather than "cause."
Legal documents shared by Mars state Utah State made "false allegations" in Anderson's termination letter that are "contrary to indisputable evidence." It also says the school fired three other Utah State employees "who did nothing wrong," and it provided Anderson and former associate athletic director Jerry Bovee with "inconsistent contradictory statements about material findings in USU's year-long investigation."
Mars said a "full response" will follow with "attached exhibits," which will include the school's termination letter sent to Anderson, court records, witness statements and an investigation summary.
The documents also allege Utah State falsely accused or at least implied that Anderson and other employees "were guilty of covering up sexual misconduct in violation of Title IX in a highly inflammatory news release that served no propose other than to falsely portray these loyal employees in a negative light."
Mars also gave a statement to ESPN that reads, in part:
"Prior to starting the 14-day clock in coach Anderson's contract that was intended to give him a chance to defend himself before USU went public with false charges, USU had already found coach Anderson guilty. Worse yet, USU publicly declared that he was guilty in an inflammatory press release it issued the same day the 14-day clock started running. It didn't matter what we said to rip their case to shreds. The die was cast. It'd be surprised if USU even considered our response.
"In truth, this dispute is just about four people being scapegoated so USU could further its goal of portraying itself as a Title IX champion while also stiffing its head football coach. That's all there is to it."
In the documents, Mars invokes French philosopher Voltaire, saying, "Throw enough mud at the wall, and some of it will stick." That, Mars said, is what he belives Utah State has done with its investigation and firing of Anderson.
"USU's approach to terminating coach Anderson has been more like shooting arrows at a rock wall," the document reads. "After seeing every arrow in USU's quiver get shattered or fall to the ground, the university's senior leadership and board of trustees should carefully and thoughtfully consider USU's position before deciding to move forward.
"For the reasons set forth in this response, USU owes coach Anderson not only the full amount of his 'buyout' but also a retraction of its defamatory press release and a public apology."
Utah State said Anderson violated his contract based on "employee reporting requirements," which included a "prohibition on employees outside the USU Office of Equity from investigating issues of sexual misconduct, including domestic violence."
"While I recognize that today's decision has a significant impact, it is the only one that could be made based on the facts," university President Elizabeth Cantwell said on Thursday. "We are committed to moving forward in building a winning athletics program grounded in student success and integrity."
