Mike Ellis, Minnesota Associate Athletic Director, Resigns Amid Investigation

Minnesota associate athletic director Mike Ellis resigned from his position Friday amid an ongoing investigation into complaints made against him.

Brandon Stahl and Dan Browning of the Star Tribune provided confirmation of Ellis' decision from his attorney, Christopher Madel. Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press noted Golden Gophers spokesman Chris Werle also confirmed Ellis' exit.

The Star Tribune report passed along part of the resignation letter. He stated the school had made "no disciplinary findings against me" and added that he has "done nothing wrong."

His attorney told the outlet that Ellis had recently returned to work for a couple of days after taking voluntary leave in early September for the investigation. Ellis ultimately decided it would be better for him to accept one of the other positions made available to him during his time away, however.

"One of the offers that he got was with a very big name apparel company—but it's not Nike," Madel said. "He got another offer from a sports agent. And he had another offer from a university. He's less inclined to work for any universities—he's just sick of them."

In August, former Minnesota athletic director Norwood Teague resigned after revelations of sexual harassment. Ellis and Teague previously worked together at Virginia Commonwealth University, but Madel stated the allegations that led to Teague's exit didn't involve Ellis.

Josh Verges of the Pioneer Press reported an anonymous email was sent to University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler in August that alleged Ellis and Teague viewed "pornographic images of college-aged women" on Ellis' phone during a 2012 bowl trip.

The school stated the complaints were still "pending" as of Friday but didn't provide any further information about the investigation, according to the Pioneer Press.