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Utah State football coach submits 70-page rebuttal as fight over firing continues

Anderson has officially sent a response to USU following his termination.

(Young Kwak | AP) Utah State head coach Blake Anderson speaks to an official during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Washington State, Saturday, Sept. 4, 2021, in Pullman, Wash.

(Young Kwak | AP) Utah State head coach Blake Anderson speaks to an official during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Washington State, Saturday, Sept. 4, 2021, in Pullman, Wash.

After being informed two weeks ago that he would be fired for Title IX violations, embattled Utah State football coach Blake Anderson and his attorney Tom Mars submitted a 70-page response to Utah State athletic director Diana Sabau on Monday.

“On behalf of Head Football Coach Blake Anderson, we submitted a 70-page response to USU’s termination notice to the Athletics Director earlier today,” Mars said in a post on X. “As a courtesy to the university, we won’t be commenting or releasing the response while Coach Anderson is still employed by USU.”

Alongside Anderson’s being put on notice, Utah State director of player development Austin Albrecht and former deputy athletic director Jerry Bovee were terminated for failing to comply with the university’s policies in regards to reporting sexual misconduct and domestic violence, USU said.

Amy Crosbie, who was the executive associate athletic director for internal affairs and senior woman administrator for nearly five years, was also fired by the university on July 8. No reason for her termination was given.

During Mountain West Conference media day in Las Vegas last week, USU safety Ike Larsen said he is “frustrated as hell” over Anderson’s firing. According to the safety, the athletic department has failed to communicate the reasoning behind Anderson’s firing other than a mandatory team Zoom call on July 3, which announced his dismissal to the players and coaching staff.

While Anderson awaits a response from the university, former defensive coordinator Nate Dreiling will serve as the Aggies’ interim head coach for the 2024 season. USU will kick off its season vs. Robert Morris University on Saturday, Aug. 31 in Logan.

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