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The Fiesta Bowl terminated its president with cause Tuesday, after an independent investigation revealed that officials from the marquee college football bowl game directed more than $46,000 in improper campaign contributions to local politicians and gave themselves and state officials supportive of the bowl “excessive compensation” and “inappropriate gifts.” The investigation also uncovered a “conspiracy to conceal” this behavior from the bowl’s board of directors and state officials. Duane Woods, chairman of the Fiesta Bowl Board of Directors, responded in a statement: “The actions undertaken and orchestrated by John Junker [the bowl game's president and chief executive officer] and others are shocking and completely unacceptable. Their actions, unfortunately, have tainted the stellar reputation that the Fiesta Bowl has worked so hard to maintain for more than 40 years.”
The Independent Special Committee, which undertook the investigation, offered a series of recommendations to “address and prevent future improprieties,” which the bowl’s board recently approved. Woods added: “Clearly, the board placed too much trust in a single executive without proper oversight.… We also plan to share the lessons learned from this experience with other bowls around the country and the [Bowl Championship Series] and seek further input on our reforms.”
