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Sports Illustrated scored another victory Wednesday, when an appeal was rejected in the lawsuit filed against the magazine and two of its reporters for a five-part series about the Oklahoma State football program published in September 2013.

Booster John Talley, represented by Richardson, Richardson, Boudreaux in Tulsa, again failed to prove SI and publisher Time Inc. acted with actual malice, according to a decision by the US Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit.

In the lawsuit dismissed by an Oklahoma City judge in September, Talley was seeking damages in excess of $75,000, claiming the series written by reporters Thayer Evans and George Dorhmann portrayed him in a false light and invaded his privacy.

Talley, the North Central Area Director of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, was accused in the first installment of the series of paying players for work they didn’t do and overpaying them for work they completed. Recorded interviews with 10-20 players confirmed what was reported, according to court documents.