San Diego State took the final step in divorcing strength and conditioning director Dave Ohton from the football team yesterday when it named women's track coach Rahn Sheffield as his replacement.

Sheffield will oversee all aspects of the football team's weight room, conditioning and speed work.

Ohton was removed from his on-field duties with the football team two weeks ago. Head coach Tom Craft has continually lamented that his players are not in good enough shape, indirectly implicating Ohton's offseason workouts.

What Craft and other SDSU officials would not talk about yesterday was Ohton's role as the author of a 103-page document that was an integral part of the California State University audit that eventually led to the forced resignation of Athletic Director Rick Bay.

"The football coaching staff needs to have a group of people all working toward the same end," said Sally Roush, the vice president for business affairs who oversees the athletic department. "The football coach has made a lot of staffing changes."

Ohton, who retains his duties working with athletes on SDSU's 17 other varsity teams, declined comment yesterday. Because of various commitments, Ohton and interim Athletic Director Gene Bartow were not on campus at the same time yesterday, and as of late last night Ohton had not been officially informed of his change in duties.

Ohton spent eight years compiling a list of what he describes as "illegal and ethically questionable activities" he says he witnessed in and around the school's athletic department.

When he finally could not "continue to watch our athletic department in its continual decline," Ohton wrote a single-spaced, 103-page report that alleges NCAA violations, illegal activities and mismanagement.

The report, which contains a two-page table of contents in addition to the 103 pages, includes an account of his childhood, his career ambitions and a summation of his nearly 18 years working in his current position. It is also rife with his opinions on various topics.

After an 11-month investigation, the CSU auditor in May released a 37-page report that ultimately led to the forced resignation of Bay and the firing of Senior Associate Athletic Director Jana Doggett. Senior Associate A.D. Vance Redfern resigned last year in the midst of the investigation, and athletic equipment manager Steve Bartel is currently on paid administrative leave.

All four of them – and their alleged misdeeds, particularly those of Bartel, Doggett and Redfern – were mentioned extensively in Ohton's report.

Roush confirmed yesterday that some of the allegations in the 103-page report that her office investigated had been proven to her satisfaction to be false, and others could not be verified. It has been acknowledged by SDSU that some charges in the report were true, while other allegations remain under investigation.

In addition, Bartel's attorney has provided sworn statements from five individuals who refute virtually all of Ohton's claims against Bartel. And SDSU booster Scott Pressley acknowledged last week he is implicated in Ohton's report as having aided in obtaining nightclub admission for underage student workers and receiving numerous pieces of equipment from Bartel. He denied Ohton's allegations.

Ohton demanded in his report that he remain anonymous. His name does not appear anywhere in the background material obtained through the California Public Records Act last month, which is why The San Diego Union-Tribune has declined to identify him to this point.

Ohton is being identified by the Union-Tribune only after the paper obtained documents this week identifying him as the author of the report. Ohton has declined to speak on the record about the report or his job status.

While it is common knowledge within the SDSU athletic department that Ohton authored the 103-page document, no one will speak on the record about Ohton or the report for fear of anticipated legal action by Ohton.

Ohton has told friends he believes he is protected from retaliation under the "California Whistleblower Protection Act."

In his report, Ohton takes issue with Craft and members of his staff on several occasions. He writes of witnessing NCAA violations being committed by members of the football staff.

Ohton states in his report that he is "not a disgruntled employee, nor am I hell bent on revenging anyone." However, he devotes a good deal of space to questioning the hiring of Craft in December 2001. He also questions decisions made by Craft, including the coach's choice not to retain defensive coordinator Ken Delgado.

Craft refuses to address Ohton's accusations and has said repeatedly his only motive in replacing Ohton was to get his team in better shape.

Bartow yesterday said he supported Craft's decision to remove Ohton from the football support staff because "who (Craft) wants on his (staff) to make his program work, he's entitled to that."