Jessica Dorrell Placed on Paid Leave by University of Arkansas

The University of Arkansas has announced that Jessica Dorrell, the 25-year-old woman whose relationship with former head football coach Bobby Petrino led in-part to his firing, has been placed on paid leave.

According to CBSSports.com, the university's decision to place Dorrell on leave was confirmed by a school spokesman. The university will not be issuing any further details.

Petrino's firing, which was first reported by ESPN on Tuesday, came just a few days after he was placed on paid administrative leave by the university. The school found out that he had lied about not having a passenger aboard when he crashed his motorcycle on Sunday, April 1. 

It was revealed that Petrino had been riding with Dorrell in a police report obtained by the Associated Press. The report also revealed that he had just hired her to be a student-athlete development coordinator for the football team. Dorrell had previously worked as a fundraiser for the Razorback Foundation.

According to CBSSports.com, Dorrell's current salary is over $55,000.

When Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long broke down the reasons for Petrino's firing, he noted that Petrino had hired Dorrell over nearly 160 other applicants, and that he had also paid her $20,000 in cash.

At the time he was placed on administrative leave, Petrino admitted that he and Dorrell had carried out an "inappropriate relationship." His phone records have since revealed the extent of it, as CBSSports.com notes that the two of them exchanged over 4,300 text messages and 300 phone calls in the last seven months.

Petrino was the head coach at Arkansas for four seasons, compiling a record of 34-17.