Genshaft: Leavitt refused to admit wrongdoing during meeting

Hours before firing Jim Leavitt as head football coach, USF President Judy Genshaft and athletic director Doug Woolard asked him to admit to allegations he had struck a player and explain his actions as a momentary loss of control.

But Leavitt "was sticking to his guns," insisting he did nothing wrong, Genshaft said in a message this morning to faculty senate president Laurence Branch.

Branch, also a member of the USF board of trustees, played the voicemail message for The Tampa Tribune. It's not clear when the discussion Genshaft refers to occurred, but USF staff members saw Leavitt leaving her office after 8 a.m. this morning.

Genshaft had met Thursday afternoon with Branch, before receiving the official review of the incident that led to Leavitt's firing. The incident occurred during halftime of the Nov. 21 USF-Louisville game at Raymond James Stadium.

"I did get the report. ... It's very clear," Genshaft said in her message. "But I took your advice and I met with the coach as well as Doug Woolard."

Genshaft said she and Woolard confronted Leavitt with the conclusion from the report that Leavitt had committed a serious violation of conduct.

"We said, 'Coach, here is this report. What do you have to say?'"

Leavitt's response, said Genshaft: "I didn't do it. I didn't do it. I didn't do it."

She told Branch she wished Leavitt had admitted to slapping the player and had said words to the effect of "it was a fit of passion ... I got over emotional."

But Leavitt refused, she said, and insisted again and again he had done nothing wrong.

Sounding exhausted, Genshaft ended the voice mail to Branch by saying, "This has been very, very difficult."

Branch said Genshaft's message gave him the impression she was as concerned about the way Leavitt handled the accusation as she was about the incident itself.

"His denial left her no options," Branch said.

What if Leavitt had expressed remorse?

Said Branch, "... would she have had other options? I don't know."

At a press conference today, USF spokesman Michael Hoad said Leavitt couldn't have saved his job even if he had admitted to the allegations and expressed contrition.

"The truth is, the incident itself was too serious," Hoad said. Leavitt "crossed the line."