UCF coach O'Leary: I gave permission for Playmate shoot in UCF locker room

Head coach George O'Leary told the Orlando Sentinel he granted access for a magazine photo shoot featuring a Playboy Playmate

After video of the photo shoot appeared on the Internet Saturday, a school spokesman said that university officials would be reminding employees about the university's standards.

University of Central Florida head coach George O'Leary told the Orlando Sentinel this afternoon that he was the one who granted access to a UCF locker room for a magazine photo shoot featuring a Playboy Playmate.

The photo shoot with Miss July 2010, Shanna Marie McLaughlin, is featured on the website of Axis magazine, an Orlando entertainment publication. McLaughlin, a UCF alumna, is the magazine's August 2010 cover model.

The video shows McLaughlin in the locker room wearing a shirt and underwear bearing UCF and Knights logos. She occasionally turns her back to the camera and lifts her shirt. At one point, she holds a Knights football helmet.

"I approved the magazine," O'Leary told a Sentinel reporter after practice ended Saturday. "The guy called my office and basically wanted to know if they could do a magazine shoot. There was a UCF girl who had her MBA and all that. And the only thing I asked is, 'Is that a magazine that is distributed on campus?' And they said, 'Yes.' They've done I think four, since I've been here at least four, initial copies of football [previews] opening up the football season."

O'Leary said he was shown a copy of the magazine cover.

"Eh, it's not what I expected, but I don't think there's anything outlandish on the thing. I never saw the video."

In a statement e-mailed to the Sentinel on Saturday, Joe Hornstein, associate director of athletics, apologized to UCF fans.

"An employee without proper authorization allowed access to our football locker room. By the time the video of the shoot was brought to our attention, it had already made its rounds via the internet," Hornstein's statement said.

"Let me make this clear, UCF does not condone the photos and the video. We have spoken to the employee in question and we will speak to our entire staff to make sure that this does not happen again. To any fans who were offended by this, we sincerely apologize."

Usually, requests for photo shoots in athletic facilities go through the athletics department, while other requests go to university administration, according to Grant Heston, a university spokesman.

Heston declined to name the person who gave permission for the magazine photo shoot but said staffers would be "re-educated" about what is appropriate on university grounds.

When asked about O'Leary's comments, and whether O'Leary had the authority to authorize the shoot, Heston said the issue was that the approval didn't go "through normal channels."

"The way it was explained to me is that somebody who wouldn't normally approve it approved it," Heston said.

O'Leary later said he did see the video, after he was approached by a TV reporter Friday. He said he didn't know there was a video until the reporter asked him about it and tried to play it on a laptop for him.