Report: Colorado knew of abuse claims against assistant a month before he was put on leave

Colorado head coach Mike MacIntyre was made aware of abuse allegations against an assistant coach almost a month before the assistant was put on leave, according to Michael McKnight of Sports Illustrated.

The assistant coach, Joe Tumpkin, who resigned from the Buffaloes Jan. 27 amid the investigation into the accusations, is alleged to have abused his victim approximately 80 times over a nearly two-year period. The accuser said she informed MacIntyre on Dec. 9 that Tumpkin had been physically abusive to her, but it wasn't until Jan. 6 that Tumpkin was placed on leave by the university.

During that time, MacIntyre named Tumpkin the interim defensive coordinator for the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 29 after Jim Leavitt left Colorado to take the defensive coordinator role at Oregon. Colorado said Tumpkin was placed on leave as soon as it was made aware the accuser had a restraining order against Tumpkin, but court records show the restraining order was issued Dec. 20.

Tumpkin and the accuser began a relationship while he was a coach at Central Michigan and the accuser's son was a player on the team. The relationship continued for three years, two of which the accuser alleges were filled with both verbal and physical abuse.

After informing MacIntyre of the situation, the accuser was contacted by Jon Banashek, a defense lawyer representing Colorado. According to the accuser, Banashek repeatedly asked, "What is it that you want?" She insisted she was not looking for money, but instead that Tumpkin and other women would be safe. After indicating she was thinking of going to the police, Banashek reportedly asked if she would give them a heads up before going to Colorado and meeting with police.

The accuser eventually went to police and while she did not inform Banashek or his client, she did leave a voicemail with MacIntyre (who she was told would not be be answering her calls anymore because he didn't want to be called as a witness) saying she was going to file for a restraining order against Tumpkin.

The restraining order was granted, and then on Jan. 31, Tumpkin was charged with eight counts of assault, including five counts of second-degree assault. Both Tumpkin and his lawyer did not respond to multiple requests from McKnight for comment.