SMU has not specifically ruled out former Colorado head coach Gary Barnett, but he seems like a long shot to get the job using one set of criteria the school is using in its search for a new football coach.

SMU President R. Gerald Turner said no one has been ruled out yet, but that potential candidates are in two groups: those who have had problems in past jobs and those who haven’t. SMU wants to hire from the group of coaches who have not had problems.

“We would prefer to have individuals where there’s no controversy in respect about how they’ve run those programs,” Turner said Monday.

The comments are the first from an SMU representative regarding the state of the search to replace fired head coach Phil Bennett, and using that set of criteria would rule out some of the leading candidates for Bennett’s replacement.

While coaching at Colorado in 2004, Barnett found himself embroiled in scandal amid allegations that the school used alcohol and sex in the process of recruiting football players. An investigation concluded that the allegations were true but not sanctioned by any Colorado officials.

Barnett also found himself in hot water when he said kicker Katie Hnida, who alleged she was raped during her time on the team, was an “awful” player who “couldn’t kick the ball through the uprights.” At the time, Barnett said the quotes were taken out of context.

Barnett expressed interest in the SMU job in a Dallas Morning News story a week and a half ago.

Another potential candidate, Rick Neuheisel, was fired from the University of Washington in 2003 after officials said he lied to them about a job interview with the San Francisco 49ers and for participating in a men’s college basketball pool. He later successfully sued the school and the NCAA for $4.5 in a wrongful termination suit. During the trial it was found that a compliance officer said it was OK for him to participate in off-campus basketball pools.