Clemson’s Brad Brownell weighs in on college basketball scandal

Clemson men’s basketball coach Brad Brownell was not surprised by the scandal that rocked the college basketball world in late September.

Brownell told reporters at the Reserve at Lake Keowee on Wednesday afternoon that he was aware that shoe companies were involved with coaches and recruits well before the FBI’s investigation uncovered the corruption in the sport.

“The state of the game on the court is as good as it’s ever been. Certainly, the scandal that’s rocked the college basketball world puts a major stain on our game,” Brownell said. “We know these kinds of things have been going on, and they’ve been going on for a long time.”

Brownell added that he has recruited against other programs that have used shady tactics, and he knows the Tigers have missed out on players because of others doing illegal activity.

“What’s hard about that is it certainly makes it extremely difficult for those of us that are trying to do things the right way,” Brownell said. “There’s no question there’s been some kids we recruited that we know some things have happened and it’s been a reason why we haven’t gotten them to Clemson.”

At no point did Brownell consider changing the way he recruits to begin using illegal tactics, he said.

“You can work really hard and not bear the fruit of your work, and that’s frustrating when you lose in a way that is unethical. Having said that, you never want to compromise the principles of your program, what you’re trying to do.”

Brownell is frustrated that the scandal is all that is being talked about in the college basketball world.

He would rather the focus be on college basketball players’ graduation rates, life experiences they receive, life lessons they learn, how they are prepared for life after basketball and the opportunities they get with basketball.

“Sometimes, these are the only kinds of things that really everyone wants to talk about when there’s a lot of really good things happening,” Brownell said. “Those are things that can both be frustrating in different ways.”

Former Clemson basketball player Merl Code was charged in the fraud case, but Brownell is not worried that others might try to connect the Tigers’ program with Code.

“You know, I don’t really worry about what other people think. I think the people that follow us and know us consistently know how we go about our business,” Brownell said. “The head coach doesn’t know everything that’s going on in every program. You’re responsible but you can’t know everything that everybody’s doing. Having said that, I feel very comfortable and confident in our staff and the way we do things and the way we approach day to day work.”

This story was originally published October 18, 2017 at 7:05 PM with the headline "Clemson’s Brad Brownell weighs in on college basketball scandal."