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American Morning

Interview With Bob Creighton

Aired February 23, 2004 - 07:35   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A story we were starting to follow last week. With a university football program reeling from allegations of rape, parents of some Colorado players are now defending suspended head coach Gary Barnett.
Several dozen parents held a news conference yesterday to support the team and its beleaguered coach, who they say is a man of the "highest integrity" and "moral standards."

Among the parents was Bob Creighton. He's the father of a C.U. football player, Paul Creighton, and he joins us this morning from Denver, Colorado.

Nice to see you, sir.

Thanks for being with us.

BOB CREIGHTON, FATHER OF C.U. FOOTBALL PLAYER PAUL CREIGHTON: Good morning.

O'BRIEN: Why did you and the other parents decide to come forward right now?

CREIGHTON: Well, we, to this point we had been a very silent group, quiet in a way to protect our children, to watch out for them and let this story unfold and let the committee begin their investigation to get to the truth in this matter.

O'BRIEN: I know that you have said that this entire situation is bizarre. In addition, you've said that you consider the coach a mentor to your son.

Do you think that the coach is being treated unfairly by the university, by the media, by both?

CREIGHTON: I think that, first, the media has made and perpetuated the allegation that is bizarre, at best, that you would think that Gary Barnett would promote excessive alcohol and sex to lure athletes, student athletes, to the University of Colorado. It just cannot and is not true.

The university is trying its best to protect the entire student body and its faculty. There are 28,000 students there, good students, and those people we need to hear about and hear about them more often.

O'BRIEN: At the same time, it seems like some of the coach's own words were what seemed to lead the university president, Hoffman, to take the action of suspending the coach with pay, for example, his comments about Katie Hnida, as you well know.

What did you think of those comments when you heard them?

CREIGHTON: Well, first of all, I thought it was important that you take the entire comment in its total context. Gary Barnett's a football coach. I was, frankly, surprised that he was able to stand up for 18 days and take the constant barrage of the media and press, both locally and nationally, without making a mistake. And I think Gary would say that he wished he could have those words back, but he also would say I wish they'd take the entire comment in its complete context.

O'BRIEN: In addition, we've heard from at least one mother of another player who said that her son can't even walk around wearing a sweatshirt or anything, really, with the C.U. insignia because of the harassment that he gets.

What's your son been telling you about what's going on at the school and his experience?

CREIGHTON: Well, I had a chance to visit with that mother yesterday and it's true, the student athlete walking across campus is picked out and is singled out. I know a large number of the student athletes on campus, the football players, have been receiving e-mail threats consistently, phone message, text mail threats and words to criticize them as responsible young men and citizens. They are first students and second athletes, and contributing members of that community. And we as parents -- all parents would want this -- we as parents specifically want the community to know our student athletes are important to us and important to that community.

O'BRIEN: There have been six allegations of rape since 2000. No criminal investigation, we have to add, is under way at this point into any of those.

Do you have a theory, then, about what's going on? Do you think the women in these cases are making it up? Do you think the women in these cases are out to malign members of the football team? What do you think is going on?

CREIGHTON: If the facts quoted in the local media are correct, there have been nearly 500 sexual assaults on the University of Colorado campus since 1997. You referred to five or six of those relating to the football program, to the entire athletic program at C.U. That's a small, small minority.

Understand that we feel zero tolerance is absolutely necessary, that these things are unacceptable on a college campus anywhere, that they happen throughout this country and it has to stop. And we support any action any university would take to help stop those assaults against all people.

O'BRIEN: Bob Creighton is the father of Paul Creighton, a C.U. player.

Thanks for being with us this morning. We certainly appreciate your time.

CREIGHTON: You bet.

Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired February 23, 2004 - 07:35   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A story we were starting to follow last week. With a university football program reeling from allegations of rape, parents of some Colorado players are now defending suspended head coach Gary Barnett.
Several dozen parents held a news conference yesterday to support the team and its beleaguered coach, who they say is a man of the "highest integrity" and "moral standards."

Among the parents was Bob Creighton. He's the father of a C.U. football player, Paul Creighton, and he joins us this morning from Denver, Colorado.

Nice to see you, sir.

Thanks for being with us.

BOB CREIGHTON, FATHER OF C.U. FOOTBALL PLAYER PAUL CREIGHTON: Good morning.

O'BRIEN: Why did you and the other parents decide to come forward right now?

CREIGHTON: Well, we, to this point we had been a very silent group, quiet in a way to protect our children, to watch out for them and let this story unfold and let the committee begin their investigation to get to the truth in this matter.

O'BRIEN: I know that you have said that this entire situation is bizarre. In addition, you've said that you consider the coach a mentor to your son.

Do you think that the coach is being treated unfairly by the university, by the media, by both?

CREIGHTON: I think that, first, the media has made and perpetuated the allegation that is bizarre, at best, that you would think that Gary Barnett would promote excessive alcohol and sex to lure athletes, student athletes, to the University of Colorado. It just cannot and is not true.

The university is trying its best to protect the entire student body and its faculty. There are 28,000 students there, good students, and those people we need to hear about and hear about them more often.

O'BRIEN: At the same time, it seems like some of the coach's own words were what seemed to lead the university president, Hoffman, to take the action of suspending the coach with pay, for example, his comments about Katie Hnida, as you well know.

What did you think of those comments when you heard them?

CREIGHTON: Well, first of all, I thought it was important that you take the entire comment in its total context. Gary Barnett's a football coach. I was, frankly, surprised that he was able to stand up for 18 days and take the constant barrage of the media and press, both locally and nationally, without making a mistake. And I think Gary would say that he wished he could have those words back, but he also would say I wish they'd take the entire comment in its complete context.

O'BRIEN: In addition, we've heard from at least one mother of another player who said that her son can't even walk around wearing a sweatshirt or anything, really, with the C.U. insignia because of the harassment that he gets.

What's your son been telling you about what's going on at the school and his experience?

CREIGHTON: Well, I had a chance to visit with that mother yesterday and it's true, the student athlete walking across campus is picked out and is singled out. I know a large number of the student athletes on campus, the football players, have been receiving e-mail threats consistently, phone message, text mail threats and words to criticize them as responsible young men and citizens. They are first students and second athletes, and contributing members of that community. And we as parents -- all parents would want this -- we as parents specifically want the community to know our student athletes are important to us and important to that community.

O'BRIEN: There have been six allegations of rape since 2000. No criminal investigation, we have to add, is under way at this point into any of those.

Do you have a theory, then, about what's going on? Do you think the women in these cases are making it up? Do you think the women in these cases are out to malign members of the football team? What do you think is going on?

CREIGHTON: If the facts quoted in the local media are correct, there have been nearly 500 sexual assaults on the University of Colorado campus since 1997. You referred to five or six of those relating to the football program, to the entire athletic program at C.U. That's a small, small minority.

Understand that we feel zero tolerance is absolutely necessary, that these things are unacceptable on a college campus anywhere, that they happen throughout this country and it has to stop. And we support any action any university would take to help stop those assaults against all people.

O'BRIEN: Bob Creighton is the father of Paul Creighton, a C.U. player.

Thanks for being with us this morning. We certainly appreciate your time.

CREIGHTON: You bet.

Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com