Kansas State coach Bill Snyder defended on Thursday his decision to deny a transfer request from wide receiver Corey Sutton, revealing that Sutton has failed two drug tests. The decision, and his explanation Thursday, have led to criticism for the 77-year-old coach.
Sutton announced plans to transfer last month. He submitted to Snyder a list of 35 schools to which he wanted a release, and was denied on all 35, he told the Wichita Eagle this week. It's relatively common for coaches to deny transferring players a release to a school within the same conference, and some will also deny releases to non-conference schools on future schedules. According to Sutton, however, none of the 35 schools are in the Big 12 or on Kansas State future schedules, and some are FCS or Division II programs.
Snyder defended the decision at a booster event, and said Sutton had failed two drug tests as he explained his stance on the matter.
"If you're a No. 2, you probably want to be a No. 1," Snyder said, per KCTV. "If you have the option to leave, and you have 22 No. 2s on your team leaving, you don't have much of a team left.
"... This young man's been in trouble twice, tested positive twice. I've never kept a player in our program who's tested positive twice. We have some rules in the athletic department that allowed that to happen this time."
Those two statements seem to be in conflict where Sutton is concerned; if Snyder doesn't want a player who has tested positive twice, then why prevent a transfer?
Sutton caught four passes for 54 yards as a true freshman last year. NCAA rules allow players to transfer absent a release, but they can't immediately go on scholarship at the destination school without a release, and Sutton said he couldn't afford not to be on scholarship.
It's not a good look for Snyder, but for now, he's not budging.
UPDATE: Snyder changed course on Friday, releasing Sutton to transfer and apologizing for his Thursday comments.
Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter *@ChaseGoodbread*.