LITTLE ROCK -- A judge had to admonish Oklahoma State
basketball coach Eddie Sutton to calm down when Sutton responded
heatedly Thursday to questions about his son being named as his
eventual successor at the head of the Cowboys' program.
Lawyers briefly turned their attention to Oklahoma State's
basketball program Thursday during trial of Nolan Richardson's
discrimination lawsuit against Arkansas, with Richardson's lawyer
saying that some policies prevented black coaches from getting
ahead.
The Cowboys had announced Wednesday that Sean Sutton would
replace his father, a former Arkansas coach, when the elder Sutton
decides to retire.
Sutton, who coached at Arkansas for 11 years, appeared to be
bothered by Richardson attorney John Walker's suggestion that
Oklahoma State wasn't giving black coaches the chance to apply for
his job.
Richardson says Arkansas fired him in 2002 because he is black
and outspoken. Arkansas says it fired the longtime coach because
they believed he had lost faith in the program by saying publicly
the school could buy out his contract.
Under cross-examination by Walker, Sutton became upset and was
told by U.S. District Judge William R. Wilson to restrain himself
from speaking out of turn. During a break, Sutton apologized to
Wilson and to Walker for his outbursts. Under further questioning
by University of Arkansas lawyer Phil Kaplan, Sutton had a chance
to explain why he was upset:
"I've had six assistant coaches that have gone on to be a head
coach, and three of them are African-American," said Sutton, who
has coached four teams to a total of 25 NCAA tournament
appearances. "I have great compassion for African-American
coaches."
Sutton said Oklahoma State spent a year consulting with other
schools and coaches before deciding his son could succeed him.
Oklahoma State athletic director Harry Birdwell said at
Wednesday's news conference that he had undertaken a nationwide
search looking for Sutton's successor, but determined that Sean
Sutton was the best candidate. Birdwell said Sean Sutton was almost
head coach already, having taken a growing role in his 11 years on
the Cowboys' bench.
Oklahoma State spokesman Steve Buzzard said Thursday there were
several minority coaches among the candidates Birdwell considered
for the job.
In his testimony, Sutton told Wilson that he has not had a
university-provided Mercedes-Benz since he was at Arkansas, and
testified that he made a mistake in saying in 1985 -- after leaving
the Razorbacks for Kentucky -- that he would have left Arkansas on
his hands and knees and crawled to take the Wildcats' job.
"That was a bad statement. I haven't lived it down yet. The
people of Arkansas treated me so well. I know it was hurtful to a
lot of people and I regretted saying it," Sutton said.
When Richardson made his remarks about leaving Arkansas, he was
still the coach, but was fired less than a week later.
Sutton said he made his 1985 remark out of frustration over his
relationship with Arkansas athletic director Frank Broyles, who is
a target of Richardson's lawsuit. Sutton said he and Broyles have
since resolved their differences.
Also in his testimony, Sutton said that, in retrospect, Kentucky
wasn't the best place to serve as head coach.
"I think most coaches, from the outside looking in, (would say)
it would be a great place to coach basketball," Sutton said.
"Once you get there, it's a little different than most places."
When Walker asked how, Sutton replied, "It's just different."
Sutton also said there was a difference between winning games in
the Southwest Conference and the Southeastern Conference. Sutton
coached Arkansas when it was in the SWC. Richardson coached in both
leagues; Arkansas moved from the SWC to the SEC in 1992.
"Winning a lot of games in the Southwest Conference is
different than winning SEC games," Sutton said. "The quality of
play in the SEC is better."
Two of Richardson's four 30-win seasons were in the Southwest
Conference. In a two-year run, Arkansas went 64-9 and advanced to
the Final Four. Arkansas won the national championship in 1994 as a
member of the SEC.