Texas Tech has suspended Mike Leach while it investigates complaints from wide receiver Adam James and his family about how the coach treated the player after a concussion.

James is the son of former NFL player and current ESPN college football analyst Craig James.

The school said Monday in a release that defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill would be interim coach and lead the team Saturday in the Alamo Bowl against Michigan State. James' family released a statement identifying Adam as the player involved.

Citing the enhanced recognition of the dangers of concussions, the James family said their son has been "subjected to actions and treatment not consistent with common sense rules for safety and health."

The statement did not elaborate on the concussion. The Associated Press, citing a person familiar with the case, said Adam James suffered the concussion in practice Dec. 16. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity, was not authorized to speak publicly about the case.

Craig James was scheduled to work the Alamo Bowl. ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz said he no longer would work the game.

Leach is the second coach in the Big 12 and third in major-college football to be involved in issues of player treatment this season. Kansas' Mark Mangino resigned this month after a school investigation into allegations of mistreatment of players.

South Florida of the Big East has been conducting an inquiry into allegations made by player Joel Miller's father, Paul, in an online report that coach Jim Leavitt struck Joel Miller at halftime of the game against Louisville. Paul Miller backtracked from the original statements that Leavitt had made contact with his son's neck and face.

Big 12 spokesman Bob Burda said in an e-mail Monday that the league office is declining to comment on the issue. Grant Teaff, executive director of the American Football Coaches Association, cautioned that not all details are known.

"Is this an aberration? Or is it the fact that anytime anybody's nose drips it's all over the Internet?" Teaff said. "All of these incidents have not been resolved. Mangino wasn't resolved, he was just let go.

"Anybody that cares about our game and our profession is concerned whenever anything like this happens, but I'm not losing sleep over it at this point."

There's been internal strife this season with the Red Raiders, and Leach has resorted to some tongue-lashing.

He chastised players after a loss to Texas A&M for listening to "their fat little girlfriends" and thinking A&M was a pushover. After a loss at Houston in September, Leach banned players from having Twitter pages after linebacker Marlon Williams asked on his account why he was still in a meeting room when "the head coach can't even be on time."

In February, Leach and Tech agreed to a five-year, $12.7 million deal that could keep him at the school through 2013.

In the Alamo Bowl, Tech faces a Michigan State team that also has had a rocky time. MSU will be minus wide receivers B.J. Cunningham and Mark Dell and starting cornerback Chris L. Rucker. They were charged with misdemeanors in connection with a Nov. 22 dorm fight. Eleven players were suspended and two were dismissed after the fight.

And now he has been fired.

I'm starting to like Michigan State's chances, more and more.

The guy asked to at least be allowed to coach against Michigan St. and they fire him...... thats too funny and priceless, would have loved to see the look on his face