From CNNSI.com

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- LSU football coach Nick Saban separated himself from a university investigation into accusations of cheating football players, saying he does not know of any academic improprieties among his players.

"I'm not concerned at all about this investigation," Saban said Thursday. "I don't lose one wink of sleep at night concerned about academic integrity because I know we're doing things the right way."

LSU is investigating various allegations of academic improprieties involving the Academic Center for Athletes. The allegations center on a number of football players and include charges of plagiarism, improper use of note takers, tutors and academic center employees providing too much help, athletes taking unsupervised tests and superiors pressuring instructors to let improprieties continue.

"We don't need to circumvent the system to be successful," Saban told a group of reporters. "I've never had any knowledge of anything being done that wasn't supposed to be done, and if I did, I would have done something about it."

The investigation began in January when Roger Grooters, who was named academic center director last summer, discovered possible violations. The NCAA will use LSU's report to decide if it needs its own investigation.

LSU instructor Tiffany Mayne and graduate assistant Caroline Owen filed lawsuits against the university, alleging that they were told to change the grades of players who plagiarized papers to keep the players eligible for the 2000 Peach Bowl. Those lawsuits are in federal court in Baton Rouge.

"It's not my job to figure it out. It's a personnel issue," Saban said, noting that the lawsuits weren't NCAA issues.

Saban said he and most head coaches around the country place high importance on academics, as well as athletics. He pointed to $14 million invested in building renovations and technology for the Academic Center for Athletes.

Saban said the building should be finished in September, complete with computer terminals, classrooms, a 1,000-seat auditorium and a special needs area for athletes with learning disabilities.

The university also started a 'summer bridge program' for incoming athletes who don't meet certain academic qualifications to get them better prepared for college, Saban said.

"Why would I go raise money all around this state for this program, for this academic center if I was going to go tell the dean to just give this kid a grade?" he said.

"What's right is right. It's no different for my kid, your kid or a football player."