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Former Southern California assistant coach Todd McNair has sued the NCAA, accusing the collegiate governing body of libel, slander and misconduct in its investigation of the Reggie Bush case.
McNair is seeking unspecified damages from the NCAA in the lawsuit that was filed Friday. Attorney Bruce Broillet did not immediately return telephone messages Monday.
McNair was punished for what the NCAA claimed was his role in the scandal surrounding the Heisman Trophy-winning tailback. The NCAA claimed he knew about some of the gifts lavished on Bush's family by two aspiring sports marketers hoping to land Bush as a client.
The NCAA imposed a two-year bowl ban and scholarship restrictions on USC last year as a result of the Bush case. McNair was prohibited from contacting recruits and his USC contract was not renewed.
McNair's lawsuit claims the NCAA's investigation was one-sided and that he wasn't allowed to cross-examine witnesses. It asks the judge to strike down the NCAA rules that the organization used in ruling against McNair.
The lawsuit also claims that McNair's future economic opportunities were interfered with and that his career as a college football coach was damaged.
The NCAA released a statement Monday afternoon saying officials hadn't yet been served with the lawsuit.
''Nonetheless, we are confident actions by the NCAA enforcement staff and Committees were proper and we'll vigorously defend that position in court,'' the NCAA said in the statement.
The Los Angeles Daily News first reported the lawsuit.
