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Friday, April 25 Updated: April 30, 10:26 AM ET Van Breda Kolff to plead case in Buffalo and New York Associated Press |
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BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Jan van Breda Kolff, dismissed last week as St. Bonaventure's coach, is ready to give his side of the scandal that abruptly ended the Bonnies' season last month. In a press release issued Friday, van Breda Kolff scheduled two press conferences next Tuesday during which he intends to correct misperceptions and address the "culpability of the St. Bonaventure administration not previously disclosed." The press conferences, one in New York City and the second in Buffalo, will be van Breda Kolff's first opportunity to speak publicly since the Atlantic 10 Conference sanctioned the program last month for using center Jamil Terrell, who was ruled ineligible. The Bonnies were stripped of six league victories and barred from postseason play. The sanctions prompted the team's players to boycott the final two games of their season. Van Breda Kolff was placed on administrative leave before being fired last week. "I think he's very eager to be able to tell what he's not been able to talk about for almost 50 days," said Holly Sharp, who's acting as van Breda Kolff's spokeswoman. Sharp added that the two press conference sites were chosen because reporters in both communities have expressed the most interest in speaking to van Breda Kolff. Buffalo is located about 70 miles north of Olean, where St. Bonaventure is located. School president Robert Wickenheiser, who took responsibility for approving Terrell's transfer, and athletics director Gothard Lane have both resigned. Assistant coach Kort Wickenheiser, the president's son, also resigned. In a report submitted last week, a committee investigating the Bonnies program found no direct evidence indicating that van Breda Kolff knowingly allowed Terrell to play while ineligible. The committee did find that van Breda Kolff "was clearly a strong advocate for Terrell's eligibility during the period when the young man's eligibility was at issue." Previously, van Breda Kolff's only public statement on the troubled program came in a press release issued by the school on March 6, three days before he was placed on leave. In the statement, van Breda Kolff welcomed an investigation and noted he had never had an NCAA infraction or violation in his 17-year coaching career. Van Breda Kolff was completing his second season at St. Bonaventure, and had four years left on his contract, worth about $900,000. The Bonnies intend to hire a new coach before the end of the month. |
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