Illinois Athletic Director Mike Thomas comments on Simon Cvijanovic accusations

Illinois Athletic Director Mike Thomas spoke to the media during a teleconference on Monday afternoon to address Simon Cvijanovic's accusations of mistreatment against the football program. Cvijanovic appeared on the local ESPN radio station this afternoon to 'clarify' some of his tweets, but his comments haven't reached social media yet.

Below are some excerpts from Mike Thomas' media session.

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#Illini AD Thomas: Beckman puts welfare of Simon and other players first.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: Feedback from student athlete exit interviews don't correspond with Simon's.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: we intend to follow-up in the near future, and determine how to best proceed.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: we've reviewed our records and they don't match up with what Simon is saying.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: the first time I was made aware of it was last night on Twitter.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: my last opportunities to spend any time with Simon was back during the football season.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: Our medical staff documents all interactions with our student athletes.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: to the best of our knowledge, (Beckman) was breaking up a fight. (RE: Kenny Knight)

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: our staff is well versed in handling the specific needs of our student athletes.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: the feedback we get on our exit interviews mention "family atmosphere", "culture", "caring"

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: I've been doing this for 30 years . . . Always been involved in exit interviews

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: exit interviews can be done with transfers and those who have exhausted eligibility. They are not mandatory.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: the timeline and who's to be involved are yet to be determined

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: Coaches thought it was in Simon's best interest to not attend team banquet.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: it goes to the fact that Simon quit the team, left the school, and did not play in the bowl game.

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: Beckman and Simon met: "my understanding was there was a disagreement"

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

#Illini AD Thomas: does not anticipate releasing public report after follow-up

— Michael Carpenter (@FanboyCarp) May 11, 2015

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