Enquirer wire services

ATLANTA - Georgia coach Jim Harrick says people should "consider the source" regarding Tony Cole's charges that Georgia broke NCAA rules. But after his ESPN interview with Dick Vitale on Tuesday, others are challenging Harrick's credibility.

In the interview, Harrick said he had graduated "eight of eight" players at Rhode Island. Rhode Island spokesman Mike Ballweg said only one of the nine players Harrick recruited to Rhode Island in two years graduated. The other eight left school early.

Five of the seven players Harrick inherited from former coach Al Skinner graduated, Ballweg said.

Harrick said he graduated 23 of 27 players during his eight seasons at UCLA. Marc Dellins, a UCLA spokesman, said "the figure (Harrick) mentioned in the interview with Dick Vitale was not accurate." Dellins could not provide the accurate figure.

Harrick said he graduated 32 of 33 players during his nine seasons at Pepperdine (1980-88). Pepperdine spokesman Mike Zapolski said 31 of 36 players Harrick recruited to the school received degrees.

Harrick also said that until this week, he had no knowledge a sexual harassment suit had been filed against him by Christine King, a former clerk at Rhode Island. The school settled the suit for $45,000. King alleged she saw numerous violations of NCAA rules.

"No one ever said a word to me," Harrick told Vitale. "The first I ever heard about it was when I saw it in the paper."

But Rhode Island spokeswoman Linda Acciardo said Tuesday night that URI athletics director Ron Petro called Harrick to inform him of the lawsuit around Feb. 1, when the suit became public.

"Our athletics director spoke personally with Harrick to alert him that this was going public," Acciardo said.

Also, a reporter from the Providence Journal contacted Harrick for a reaction about the suit more than a month ago. In a story dated Feb. 1, Harrick told reporter Linda Borg that he didn't have any problems with King during his time at Rhode Island.

"We got along very well," Harrick is quoted as saying.