Snyder not planning to leave MU

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Other schools may come calling, but basketball coach Quin Snyder said he's staying at Missouri.

"I'm not leaving," Snyder told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch after the Tigers' 81-75 NCAA West Regional loss to the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday.

Is that a promise, the newspaper asked. "That's a promise," Snyder replied.

During a rally early Sunday upon the Tigers' return to Columbia from San Jose, Calif., Snyder spoke of long-term plans for the Missouri program.

"More important than any single game is the fact these guys have built a program ... a program that will one day play in the Final Four," Snyder told about 200 fans at Hearnes Fieldhouse.

Fans in Columbia urged Snyder to stay put and brush off criticism that erupted during Missouri's stumbling midseason, including jokes about the coach's shock of curly hair that bounces in time with the intensity of the games.

"We want Quin to leave a legacy at Mizzou," Monique Coats, 28, said as she applauded the Tigers while watching Saturday's game at Shiloh Bar & Grill. "Besides, I think Quin is gorgeous. He's a star!"

Missouri's athletic director, Mike Alden, said in an interview after the rally that more than four years remain on the renegotiated five-year contract Snyder signed last summer.

"Any time you have success, you're going to find other people are going to come and take a look," Alden said. "I don't have any reason not to believe Quin will be here."

The contract keeps Snyder at Missouri through the 2005-2006 season, guaranteeing him at least $815,000 a year, plus bonuses tied to his team's performance.

The contract includes a $100,000 bonus for Snyder if his team reaches the Final Four, or $250,000 for winning the national championship.

Snyder, who played his college basketball at Duke, came to Missouri in 1999 after four years as an assistant coach under Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski.