FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas athletic director JeffLong didn’t mince words in his
response to what he called "unfoundedand slanderous remarks" by Ohio State President Gordon
Gee aboutRazorbacks football coach Bret Bielema.Long issued a statementSaturday in which he recognized
Gee’s apology to Bielema, who Gee calleda "thug" in a meeting of Ohio State’s Athletic Council
in December.However,Long was hardly finished — leaving little doubt about his feelingsabout the brash
comments made by Gee, who has come under fire this weekafter an Associated Press report revealed he
mocked Notre Dame, RomanCatholics and the Southeastern Conference during the meeting."As amember of
the higher education community, a director of athletics and anative of Ohio, I am deeply troubled by the
unfounded and slanderousremarks the president of the state’s flagship institution, Dr. E. GordonGee,
made about coach Bret Bielema," Long said. "While I recognize Dr.Gee has issued an apology
stating his regret for his comments, it doesnot erase the unwarranted attack on Bret’s
character."Included inGee’s remarks were shots at Bielema, who left Wisconsin and the Big Tenin
December for Arkansas and the SEC. Gee said he talked with Wisconsinathletic director Barry Alvarez
after Bielema left the school for theRazorbacks and that "you could just see there was a lot of
unhappiness.""Thatwas a blessing to Wisconsin, and they knew it," Gee said. "He was
undertremendous pressure; they didn’t like him. Barry Alvarez thought he wasa thug, and he left just
ahead of the sheriff."… (Bielema) did not leave for necessarily a better job; he left ahead of
the sheriff."Geehas apologized to multiple people for his comments and was warned byOhio State’s
trustees in March that comments or actions he makesdetracting from Ohio State’s core values are not
productive and areunacceptable.One of those he apologized to was Alvarez, who issued a statement of his
own."Ihave never said that about Bret, nor had those feelings toward him,"Alvarez said.
"I accepted Gordon’s apology and consider the matterclosed."Bielema posted a copy of a written
apology from Gee onTwitter late Friday night, in which Gee wrote that his comments "wereunfair,
inaccurate and wholly wrongheaded."The Arkansas coach tweeted "It’s a start from Mr. Gee. Will
take his apology and phone call soon."Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.