OKLAHOMA CITY — The publisher of Oklahoma's largest newspaper and one of its sports writers have sued a University of Texas employee who admitted posting a bogus article on the Internet about two University of Oklahoma football players.

The Oklahoma Publishing Co., which publishes The Oklahoman newspaper and newsok.com Web site, filed a civil lawsuit Monday against James W. Conradt, a Nebraska football fan who works as a service manager for UT's information technology department.

The 10-count civil lawsuit accuses Conradt of libel, copyright violations and trademark infringements. It seeks unspecified financial damages, according to The Oklahoman.

Conradt, 36, used a template from the newspaper's Web site to publish a fake article on the Internet on July 9 that stated OU quarterbacks Sam Bradford and Landry Jones had been arrested for intent to distribute cocaine, the lawsuit alleges.

Conradt allegedly put a link to the article on his Web site and on an online message board.

The lawsuit claims Conradt used sportswriter Jake Trotter's byline and various trademarks to give the bogus article the appearance of legitimacy.

A telephone message left Tuesday at Conradt's office was not immediately returned, and court records do not indicate if he has hired an attorney. Conradt's Web site has been taken down and replaced by a message apologizing for the hoax.