Former B.C. Lions general manager and current Saskatchewan Roughriders GM Eric Tillman says he will rely on the justice system to air the facts after being charged with sexual assault.

Tillman says he has been "completely co-operative" in an investigation into allegations that he sexually assaulted a 16-year-old girl last summer in Regina.

Tillman would not discuss details of the charge, but did say he has told "the total truth."

His lawyer suggested there could be "developments" in the case before Tillman is expected to appear in court February 24th.

The charge sent shock waves across Saskatchewan where football fans live and breathe Rider green and white.

The team placed Tillman on paid administrative leave.

Roughriders president Jim Hopson said the club will move ahead, even if Tillman isn't at his post.

Hopson also urged people not to rush to judgment on Tillman or the team.

A man of "all things football"

Tillman, a native of Jackson, Miss., and the son of a minister, has been involved in football on both sides of the border for nearly 30 years. The married father of two young children graduated from Ole Miss in 1979 with a journalism degree.

Tillman joined the Riders in August 2006, replacing the longtime GM Roy Shivers. In the off-season, Tillman hired former Saskatchewan quarterback Kent Austin as head coach then proceeded to shave more than $600,000 from the club's payroll to reach the league-mandated salary cap.

Great success in B.C.

Tillman has enjoyed great success in the CFL as a general manager. He led the B.C. Lions and Toronto Argonauts to Grey Cup titles in 1994 and 1997, respectively, and has worked as a television analyst with TSN and Sportsnet.

He began his football career in 1981 when he joined the public relations department of the NFL's Houston Oilers. He first came to Canada in 1982 as the player-personnel director of the Montreal Concordes. Tillman returned to the U.S. in 1984 when he became executive director of the Senior Bowl, which annually attracts the top draft-eligible NFL prospects.

Tillman returned to the CFL in 1993 when he became general manager of a B.C. Lions team that had posted a 3-15 record the year before. However, B.C. won the 1994 Grey Cup, downing the Baltimore Stallions 26-23 at B.C. Place.

With files from The Canadian Press