WSU’s Jason Gesser resigns after sexual misconduct allegations

Jason Gesser, former star quarterback at Washington State University, has resigned as assistant athletic director for the Cougar Athletic Fund, according to The Seattle Times.

Gesser was placed on home assignment on Monday, the same day a former WSU volleyball player filed a complaint against him, saying he tried to force himself on her in 2015. It was a week after a report in the school’s newspaper detailed hundreds of pages of documents from an investigation into Gesser in 2017 that said he had sexual relationships with co-workers and student interns, and had invited a co-worker to his hotel room.

In a letter sent to The Seattle Times, Gesser said he never meant to hurt anyone and that “circumstances in [his] private life have created a distraction for the department and university.”

The Washington State University’s President Kirk Schulz and Director of Athletics Pat Chun released a statement on Tuesday:

“Late this afternoon, Washington State University received a letter of resignation from Jason Gesser, following the complaint shared with the Office for Equal Opportunity on Monday. The University has accepted Mr. Gesser’s resignation effective immediately.

“We sincerely appreciate the courage it takes for individuals to come forward with concerns of this nature. We take the allegations extremely seriously, and the Office for Equal Opportunity intends to continue its investigation.”