Snyder welcomes ethics summit despite trouble brewing at home

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Despite the controversy swirling around his program, Missouri coach Quin Snyder said he has no qualms about attending a National Association of Basketball Coaches summit on ethical concerns next week.

In response to several scandals in the past six months, the NABC is requiring NCAA Division I men's head basketball coaches to attend a summit Oct. 15 in Chicago. The summit will focus on accountability and ethical conduct of all NCAA coaches.

Missouri has appointed an engineering professor to oversee a probe into allegations former basketball player Ricky Clemons received improper academic help and financial assistance before he was kicked off the team in July.

The NCAA also is reviewing the athletic department, although the NCAA and Missouri officials have repeatedly declined to comment on specifics of the investigation.

After speaking to the Tiger Club on Tuesday in Kansas City, Snyder said he had received only calls of support from his coaching peers.

"I'm fully willing to take responsibility for the mistakes we've made," Snyder said. "I'm a 36-year-old head coach. There are some things you learn as you're coming up.

"I'm proud of my team. I'm proud of my program," he said. "I'll just be who I am (at the meeting)."

Snyder told the Missouri boosters that the basketball program is cooperating with the NCAA investigation but declined again to discuss specifics. He said he and other staff members would learn from the mistakes that had been made, correct them and move on.

"The situation is serious," Snyder said. "But it can be serious without being devastating."

Clemons, 23, was sentenced to 60 days in jail after he pleaded guilty to choking a woman and holding her against her will at his apartment in January. He was serving his sentence in a halfway house when he was injured July 4 while riding an all-terrain vehicle near the home of University of Missouri system President Elson Floyd.

Because he did not have permission to be at Floyd's home that night, his work-release assignment was revoked and Clemons served the rest of his sentence at the Boone County jail. He was kicked off the team after being released from jail in July.

The woman Clemons is accused of assaulting, Jessica Bunge, has said that he received cash, clothes and improper academic help from the university.

Snyder said he was especially disturbed about allegations of academic fraud in his program. He noted that all 10 of the players who had stayed at Missouri for the four years he has been coach had graduated and he expected four more to graduate this year.

"Every kid has different levels of ability on the court and academically," Snyder said. "We work very hard with our kids to help them maximize their abilities."

The coach said he and his assistants have been careful not to discuss the investigation with his team or with potential recruits. And he said he was "hurt" that the investigation had caused concern and discomfort for Missouri fans and his players.

"It has taken away from the guys that we have," Snyder said. "That's hard for me. I told my guys I'm not going to get distracted. We're doing everything right now and I'm going to focus on these kids."