'Survivor' host: Emory graduate 'one of the most arrogant guys'

Now some of Lehman's friends have jumped to defend him.

"I am surprised Jeff Probst said those things," said Craig Lammert, his roommate in Jacksonville, Fla., in an email. "Marc is a decent and honest guy. He isn't afraid to say things that others would be afraid to say."

Lammert said he doesn't think Lehman is going out of his way for attention. "He took this opportunity to do something different," he said, "not to become a celebrity." Lammert said Lehman plans to move back to Atlanta this fall.

Michael Mohseni, one of Lehman's triathlon training partners, considers his friend "cool to hang out with, humble, smart."

"I get the feeling that Probst and CBS are trying to spin a twisted reality into this reality show," Mohseni said. "I know the guy and stand by him for his character and who he is."

Glen Hill, who met Lehman in 2003, says he's "very driven. He works hard to push himself on all levels. He's also got a pretty good tolerance for pain and discomfort." Hill said Lehman is an avid tennis player and was an assistant coach for the women's tennis team at Emory.

Hill says he can see why Lehman might come across as arrogant.

"Certainly, I think it would be very easy for producers to portray him as arrogant with selected sound bites," Hill said. "And at the end of the day they're there to make the show interesting."

Probst wasn't completely negative. To ew.com, he called Lehman "a true leader, an extremely bright guy... He's a huge threat to win the game."