Missouri Basketball Coach Quin Snyder Feeling the Heat--'They May Can My Ass, But I'll Feel Good About What I've Done'

Embattled Missouri basketball coach Quin Snyder lashed out today during the Big 12 Conference's preseason media event in Irving, TX, metaphorically jutting out his chin and daring someone -- anyone -- to knock him out of Columbia, Mo.

"They may can my ass, but you know what? I'll feel good about what I've done here," Gregg Doyel of CBS SportsLine.com wrote today about what Snyder said. "An arena's gone up [during my tenure], and I know how that arena got built. There's been a lot of excitement around here."

Doyel said Snyder and his staff are in the final weeks of an unusual NCAA punishment in which they weren't allowed to recruit off-campus for one year after a series of violations. The program was placed on three years' probation last fall and lost three scholarships over a two-year period, putting more pressure on Snyder after the past two sub-standard seasons.

After reaching the NCAA tournament in each of his first four seasons, Missouri went to the NIT in 2004 and '05. The Tigers had entered the 2003-04 season in the top 10, but struggled from the outset and finished 16-14.

"A lot of people expected [last year's] team to atone from the perspective that we didn't deliver the year before," Snyder said. "Guys took a lot of heat."

No one took more heat than Snyder, whose imminent dismissal was speculated about -- and in some places, called for -- by the media. Today, he struck a defiant tone against a backdrop of mostly innocuous questions.

"There's teams in our league that would take six straight postseason berths. That would take an Elite Eight. That would take four straight NCAA Tournaments," Snyder said. "Sure, I want to do better ... and I think we're [about] to take off this year. Whether you want to call it a 'stepping stone' [season] or not, our guys intuitively know what they've been through."

Snyder said his program has done its best to blot out the distractions from the periphery.

"I don't know how many wins that'll add up to, and I don't really care," he said. "I'll be happy if the players ... play their asses off."

As for the NCAA trouble, Snyder said his staff hasn't had a violation in three years.

Snyder's passionate dissertation eventually spilled out into the hall of the Harvey Hotel. He had been sitting at a table inside the interview room when a Big 12 official asked Snyder to move outside to make room for the next coach.

"Want to get me out of here? That's a common theme these days," Snyder said, smiling.

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Iowa State will get its usual two up-close and personal regular-season looks at Snyder and his Tigers on Jan. 25 at Columbia, Mo., and Feb. 28 at Ames. Both games will start at 7 p.m.

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Reservations are being accepted for the Drake men's and women's basketball Tip Off Breakfast Oct. 28 from 7 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. at the downtown Marriott.

Coaches Tom Davis and Amy Stephens will preview their upcoming season. Reservations will be accepted over the phone at the Drake ticket office at 271-DOGS or by e-mailing bulldog.rsvp.@drake.edu.

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ABC said Saturday’s Iowa-Michigan football game will be televised to almost 85 percent of the nation. The increase is a result of the postponement of the Miami-Georgia Tech game due to weather concerns.

The Iowa game, which is sold out, will go to all states except Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and most of Montana and Wyoming.

Mike Tirico, Tim Brant and sideline reporter Suzy Shuster will do the announcing for ABC. Saturday’s game marks the third time Iowa has appeared on ABC this season. It’s also the 48th straight Iowa football game to be televised.