SAN DIEGO -- San Diego State University's athletic director's resignation was announced at a press conference Thursday, amid accusations of him having an affair with a married woman and requesting reimbursement from public funds for the money he spent on travel expenses to see her.

Jeff Schemmel had been the athletic director at SDSU since 2005.

Accusations about his behavior came to light after an Alabama man, John Lineberger, filed a lawsuit in San Diego to subpoena Schemmel's university travel records.

According to 10News' partner, the San Diego Union-Tribune, Lineberger's soon-to-be ex-wife, Carolyn, said under oath she had an affair with Schemmel.

In a deposition transcript, an attorney asked Carolyn Lineberger, "Did he come on university business?"

She replied, "No."

The attorney then asked, "His sole purpose for being there was just to see you?"

She answered, "Yes."

The news of Schemmel's situation was met with harsh reaction by several SDSU students who spoke to 10News. Many of the students said they could not believe he overstepped his boundaries, especially during the state's financial crisis.

"For a faculty of this university to be using money like that for his own personal affairs, it's just wrong, morally wrong," said SDSU student Abe Yuen.

Carolyn Lineberger filed for divorce on January 5, in Alabama. She testified that she met Schemmel about 11 years ago in Austria but only became romantically involved with him in 2008.

Schemmel previously issued the following statement about the situation:

"This is a private matter between Lori [Schemmel's wife] and me. We have worked hard to put this behind us."

Schemmel earned more than $250,000 a year as SDSU's athletic director. His contract was scheduled to expire in 2013.

The following is a statement from SDSU President Stephen L. Weber regarding the resignation of Jeff Schemmel as athletic director:

"It is my sad duty to announce that Jeff Schemmel has resigned as Athletic Director effective today. I have accepted his resignation. Jeff and I agree that this is in the best interest of our athletic program and San Diego State.

I want to thank Jeff for his service to the university and for his willingness to do the right thing under these difficult circumstances. I believe our athletic program is headed in the right direction for which Jeff deserves considerable credit. This includes some great hires, several conference championships and increases in the graduation rates of our student athletes.

2008-09 was one of the best years our student athletes have ever had, both on the field of play and in the classroom.

We have a distinguished coaching staff and support professionals, many of whom Jeff hired. Thanks to the help of philanthropists and our students we have developed excellent athletic facilities. I am particularly pleased with the improvement we have been making in graduation rates and gender equity.

In short, I think San Diego State has turned the corner in a long and difficult journey to bring our athletic program to the level of excellence that characterizes our university as a whole. Jeff deserves considerable credit for what we've achieved. This is a setback for our athletic program, but one we will overcome.

We will begin a national search immediately to hire the best qualified person to continue the steady improvement of our athletic program. We are in the process of identifying a search committee; the search process will include interviews with a broad spectrum of campus and community representatives. It is my hope that we will have identified a new athletic director by March 1."