University of Georgia athletics head out for DUI
ATLANTA (AP) - Damon Evans was arrested and charged with DUI late Wednesday. On Thursday, Evans said he "failed miserably" as a leader and representative of Georgia...
ATLANTA (AP) — A person familiar with the decision says Damon Evans is out as Georgia’s athletic director.
The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because no official announcement has been made. The person said Sunday it was unclear whether Evans resigned or was fired.
A conference call of the athletic association’s board of directors executive committee is scheduled Monday. It will include University of Georgia president Michael Adams. A statement by the school is expected after the meeting.
Evans was arrested and charged with DUI late Wednesday. On Thursday, Evans said he “failed miserably” as a leader and representative of Georgia.
More embarrassment for Georgia came when the incident report of the arrest was released on Friday, including details of 28-year-old Courtney Fuhrmann, who was with Evans in his car and was charged with disorderly conduct.
According to the incident report, Evans attempted to influence the arresting Georgia State Patrol officer, identified in the report as M. Cabe, by telling the officer he was Georgia’s athletic director.
According to the report, Evans said: “I am not trying to bribe you, but is there anything you can do without arresting me?”
Cabe said that Evans asked to be taken to a motel instead of jail or to be let off with a warning.
Evans, a 40-year-old married father of two children, was found with a “red pair of lady’s panties between his legs,” according to the report.
Evans told the officer that Fuhrmann was nothing more than a friend, according to the report. Cabe said that Fuhrmann later told him that the two had been seeing each other for “only a week or so.”
On Thursday, Evans said “My actions have put a black cloud over our storied program.” He also apologized to his wife, Kerri, who attended the news conference.
Evans said Thursday he hoped to keep his job, which he has held since July, 2004. He acknowledged he had placed Adams in a predicament.
“Certainly this is not an example of the kind of leadership that I expect our senior administrators to set,” Adams said in a statement.
Adams returned from a vacation to review the arrest with senior staff and legal counsel.
Evans did not return phone messages Sunday. Evans’ attorney, Steve Weiner, also could not be reached for comment.
Evans, who played at Georgia as a receiver under Vince Dooley, rose in the athletic department under Dooley’s era as athletic director. Adams hired Evans as athletic director after refusing to extend Dooley’s term.
Dooley had been at the school for 40 years, including 25 years as athletic director.
Evans became the Southeastern Conference’s first black athletic director, and he bolstered the program’s already strong financial standing.
Adams gave Evans a new contract in February that took effect Wednesday. He was awarded a $90,000 raise, making his annual salary $550,000.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.
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