The investigation into Marquess Wilson's allegations of abuse against WSU coach Mike Leach and his staff took a huge first step towards resolution today with the athletic department releasing a summary of the findings of its internal investigation -- findings that exonerate Leach and his staff.

In the report, Moos states that "what is not widely known but is of great importance is I received a text message from the departing player following the UCLA football game where he recanted the allegations of abuse made in a letter written by he and a relative and sent to the media earlier that evening." The text of the message was not included in the report, but it's been obtained by Christian Caple of the Spokesman-Review:

"Mr. Moos this is marquess … With that letter I wasn't trying to accuse the coaches of hitting players or anything. I was just trying to put it in different terms and now everything is getting misinterpreted and I didn't mean it like that at all … I simply was trying to get my story across and get my name cleared instead of having it say I'm suspended for breaking team violations … That could mean like I did drugs or something … I was never trying to harm the university or the program with it."

Essentially, this confirms what we suspected about the letter all along: It was a clumsy attempt to get out in front of what the Wilson camp perceived as an anti-Wilson narrative. An attempt that obviously backfired horribly.

I'm curious as to when or if Wilson will give another statement or grant an interview. I can understand why he'd be a bit gun shy after how this turned out, and I really don't blame him for continuing to lay low as he evaluates his options. But something clearing the air at some point sure would be nice, and I would have to think that a public act of contrition would help improve his stature in the eyes of pro scouts.