Peter Gray, an academic adviser for the University of Iowa Athletics Department, resigned from his position last week, and an internal investigation revealed a host of issues where Gray was engaged in sexual harassment while serving in the position.

The allegations are over a lengthy period of time, and if true, those in a supervisor role over Gray did nothing about them, and even re-hired him in 2002 even though the warning signs were there.

Among the various allegations:

–inappropriate photographs stored on a University computer;

–photo of male swim team members in their swimsuits as his screensaver;

–making inappropriate sexual comments to a recruit and their parents;

–touching the genitals of a student;

–exchanging money and football tickets for sexual favors;

This raises the question of just how valuable Iowa football tickets are. More valuable than I would have thought, I guess. The situation with Gray appears to have been a lingering and prolonged issue, and warning signs existed for a long time, according to the Press-Citizen piece:

According to the document, Gray had a long track record of inappropriate behavior in the workplace, dating back to his first stint working at UI in the 1990s. Investigators said in the report the majority of people they interviewed who worked in the Department of Athletics Student Service and Compliance were concerned about Gray’s behavior with student-athletes. Co-workers and former employees said that during his first employment at UI, and from 2002 to present, they repeatedly witnessed Gray hugging, patting and rubbing the shoulders and hair of student-athletes in a manner that was not casual or professional, and was unsolicited by the student athletes, the report states.

Football coach Kirk Ferentz was asked about Gray yesterday, and was not in much of a mood to discuss it.

[photo via Press-Citizen]