Buoyed by the support of many parents of Baylor basketball players, John Lucas now must decide whether to pursue the challenge of revitalizing the program following a summer of tragedy and turmoil.

Sources have told ESPN.com's Andy Katz that Lucas, a former NBA coach whose son plays for Baylor, has been mentioned as a candidate to serve as interim coach.

"This would truly be a difficult spot for any coach, but there probably isn't a better guy to handle it than John," Lawrence Roberts II, the father of Baylor's all-Big 12 forward Lawrence Roberts, told the Waco Herald-Tribune. "If he's interested in the job, I'd support him. If there was one coach capable of keeping the players here in this situation, it would be John."

Lucas told the Herald-Tribune on Saturday night that it's too early to think about the job.

Former coach Dave Bliss resigned Friday after school investigators discovered violations within the program involving improper financial aid and drug tests that were not properly reported.

Bliss has acknowledged being directly involved in improper tuition payments for two players, The Dallas Morning News reported in Sunday's editions.

According to the report, Baylor president Robert Sloan told four regents on Friday that Bliss had admitted earlier in the day to making the improper payments.

One of the players reportedly was the late Patrick Dennehy. The other player given improper tuition payments was not identified to the board, regents said, but the player was described as a current member of the team.

Bliss' resignation, along with that of athletic director Tom Stanton, came a day after the memorial service for Dennehy, whose body was found last month near a rock quarry, about six weeks after he was last seen. His former teammate and roommate, Carlton Dotson, has been charged with his murder.

Three other coaches have expressed interest in the head coaching job through intermediary sources, Katz reports: Southwest Missouri State's Barry Hinson, Texas-Pan American's Bob Hoffman and Sam Houston State's Bob Marlin.

Longtime Bliss assistant Doug Ash reportedly is serving as interim coach, but John Lucas III said Saturday he hasn't heard from him since just before Bliss resigned. And while Katz reported Friday night that assistant coach Rodney Belcher had also resigned, no official at Baylor could confirm that.

Lucas' son and his teammates are still trying to cope with the turbulence of the summer. Dotson is jailed in Maryland while awaiting an extradition hearing.

"I just want John III to be happy right now and try to put some closure to things," Lucas told the newspaper. "We all still need a few minutes to heal."

Lucas III has said he would love to play for his father, but also said that each player must make their own decision whether to stay at Baylor or not.

ESPN.com has learned that Sloan will meet with the team Monday to discuss the school's self-imposed sanctions, as well as the turnover in the coaching staff, the search for a new coach and the options now available for the players.

Information from ESPN.com's Andy Katz and The Associated Press was used in this report.