SAN DIEGO ---- Angry players rose to the defense of San Diego State football coach Tom Craft on Friday after allegations surfaced that Craft struck a player and engaged in a pattern of drinking on road trips in 2002.

The allegations were made in a 22-page complaint filed in San Diego Superior Court by Dave Ohton, the athletic department's strength and conditioning coach.

Ohton was removed from working with the football program in August at Craft's request.

The documents also contain sworn declarations by players claiming that players would occasionally show up drunk at practice.

Ohton names Craft as a defendant. Others named include the California State University system, San Diego State University, defensive coordinator Thom Kaumeyer, director of football operations Dave Powroznik, vice president for business and financial affairs Sally Roush, director of human resources Sue Blair and former interim athletic director Gene Bartow.

Attorneys for Ohton didn't return phone messages on Friday.

It was Bartow who stripped Ohton of his football duties. Ohton alleges in the complaint that the action was in retribution for critical information he provided to a CSU auditor about Craft and others during a CSU investigation of alleged improprieties in the athletic department.

Ohton's suit said he has suffered loss of earnings, loss of earning capacity and mental and emotional distress. He is seeking unspecified economic and punitive damages.

The player who was allegedly struck by Craft was El Camino High graduate Mike Kracalik. Several players who witnessed the incident said it was not done maliciously.

Those players said the incident occurred during a team meeting in which Craft was cautioning players about retaliating when physically threatened.

"He harmlessly, and I repeat, harmlessly, gave him a slap in the face," said linebacker Kirk Morrison, the Mountain West Conference defensive player of the year last season. "It wouldn't have hurt me or anyone else.

"It was a slap and you kind of went, 'Whoa. What's going on?' Everybody was stunned. The point was being made that just because someone did something to you doesn't mean you have to respond."

Said former Aztecs star J.R. Tolver: "I saw it. I wouldn't call it malicious."

Former quarterback Adam Hall was vehemently upset with the way the incident was portrayed in some media reports.

"It was just a little slap," Hall said. "He didn't hit him that hard. There's no way he left a mark on his face. I don't know where that came from."

Shortly after the incident, Craft and Kracalik embraced, according to several players.

"They hugged each other and everybody laughed about it," Morrison said. "Because Mike is 6-foot-9, it was funny in that sense. Now two years later, everyone is trying to make a deal out of it."

Craft didn't return phone messages Friday. Athletic department media relations director Kevin Klintworth said that Craft will not be commenting on the allegations.

University media relations director Jason Foster said the university had no comment. CSU director of public affairs Colleen Bentley-Adler confirmed that the CSU received the complaint on Friday.

"All I can tell you is we've received it and we will review the claims in it and determine how we will proceed and what our response will be," Bentley-Adler said. "These are allegations that have to be looked at. You need more time than one day to review it and see what the allegations are."

San Diego State athletic director Mike Bohn declined to discuss specifics.

"Personnel issues are never discussed publicly and won't be," Bohn said. "With the existing litigation, it is inappropriate for me to comment."

Current and former players, though, had plenty to say.

They disputed nearly every allegation that surfaced, even sworn declarations from former players Brook Miller and Anthony Foli.

Miller said in an affidavit that players showed up to practice after drinking heavily and also drank on plane flights. The 22-year-old admitted in a phone interview Friday that he was among the players who drank on plane flights.

"Everything in my affidavit is true," said Miller, who finished his Aztec career last fall and is hoping to play professional fooball. "I've been asked not to comment further by my agent."

Foli claims in a sworn declaration that he "detected the heavy odor of alcohol" on Craft's breath prior to an afternoon game at Idaho.

Hall strongly disputed that claim. The quarterback said he met with Craft at breakfast and never saw any signs of Craft being intoxicated.

"If anyone would know, wouldn't it be me?" Hall said. "Does he not yell in my face at every game? I would know ... Are people looking for excuses for why we lost? That's B.S."

Said Morrison: "To say our coaches' breath smelled like alcohol, there are obviously guys who have pent-up hostility against the coaching staff."

The complaint also alleges that Craft was heavily intoxicated prior to road games at Wyoming and New Mexico later in the 2002 season.

"For me, the biggest thing is saying Coach Craft was drunk the night before games," Morrison said. "Those are ridiculous allegations.

"Guys are furious about these allegations. They're mad and furious about this. People are trying to bring down the program."

Defensive end Brandon Rager, who finished his career last fall, echoed Morrison's sentiments.

"It's a surprise to everybody that people are saying this stuff happened," Rager said. "I don't understand it. It's disturbing. I don't know why people would try to bring the program down like this. I haven't seen a lot of the things that people said happened."

Rager also expressed disdain for allegations of rampant drinking on plane flights. Both he and Hall said alcohol wasn't served on the team's charter flights.

"That's ridiculous," Rager said. "If a player wants to bring his own flask, that's one thing. They make it sound like coaches were serving drinks on the plane. These guys are grown adults. If a guy can bring alcohol on the plane, that's not the coaches' problem. Do you need to give a Breathalyzer test as they get off the plane?"

Hall said he caught on late last season that some players were drinking prior to practice, but he blames those players for their behavior, not the coach.

"It's disappointing to your teammates, it's disrespectful to your teammates and it's disrespectful to the university," Hall said. "How is the coach supposed to know these guys have been drinking?"

Former Aztec Garret Pavelko said the majority of the problems in the program date back to the Ted Tollner era. Craft replaced Tollner in December 2001 after Tollner was fired.

The program is currently serving a two-year NCAA probation for illegal out-of-season workouts. The pattern began during Tollner's tenure.

"Tollner knew all of the things going on with the beach practices," said Pavelko, a Torrey Pines High graduate. "As far as the drinking stuff, that's ridiculous to blame the coaches.

"If players are going to drink, that's the players' problem. That's not the coaches' problem. What coach is going to think players are coming to practice drunk?

"Players have to take responsibility for their own actions."

Bohn said there was a drinking incident at the team's postseason football banquet that has already been addressed. He said he didn't attend the banquet but changed the department's policy the day after the banquet.

"During official university functions where student athletes are present or honored, the serving of alcohol to student-athletes at university functions will be prohibited to student athletes," Bohn said.

Several players applauded Craft's integrity. Rager cited an incident in Las Vegas where three players missed curfew the night before a game and were sent home.

"He has no tolerance for bad behavior," Rager said. "He's a great coach. The majority of players have great respect for him."

Hall said that Craft has improved the team's behavior.

He reiterated that the point of the Kracalik incident was to teach players not to respond should they be approached by someone at a party who was looking to tangle with a football player.

"Since that day, we had a lot fewer incidents off the field," Hall said. "He taught us a lesson that day."

Hall said he's behind Craft "all the way."

"This stuff is so unfair," he said. "There's always going to be a small core of people with a chip on their shoulder. Coach Craft is a great coach, he's a great man and he's a great family man."