Broomfield, Colo. ? Insisting his program didn’t condone sexual misconduct, suspended University of Colorado football coach Gary Barnett said Tuesday that everyone made poor decisions at a boozy, off-campus party where two women say they were raped by athletes.

Barnett was questioned for nearly five hours by members of a panel investigating recruiting practices at Colorado. Some sought details of the 2001 party that is at the heart of the recruiting scandal engulfing the school.

There were 10 people at the party, including four football athletes, Barnett said.

“There is no question in my mind that inappropriate behavior occurred,” he said. “There is no question that the behavior of the 10 young people involved was the result of their own poor decisions and under the influence of alcohol.”

Two women have said they were raped by players or recruits at the party, and a third said she was sexually assaulted in a dorm room not long afterward. All three have sued the school in federal court, seeking unspecified damages for what they say was the school’s failure to protect them in violation of gender-equity law.

At least eight women since 1997 have accused Colorado football athletes of rape. No charges have been filed, but the attorney general is heading a separate investigation, and the university is pursuing its own internal probe.

Barnett’s testimony was the most dramatic yet before the Board of Regents’ panel investigating whether Colorado uses sex and alcohol to entice recruits to the Boulder campus.

Dressed in a suit and tie and occasionally raising his voice, Barnett said there was no truth to that allegation, which was made in a deposition last year by Boulder County prosecutor Mary Keenan.

Barnett told the panel only they could “can restore accurate public perceptions about our dignity and our integrity.”

Barnett said he felt responsible for his players’ performance on the field and their behavior in the community. He said he “goes to extremes” to teach character and values and tries to make the young men understand they have no more rights or privileges than other students.

But he said there was only so much he and other coaches could do.

“I have 48 that I have held accountable over the last five years,” he said, referring to disciplinary actions he has taken against players. “I can’t live their lives for them.”

Barnett was put on paid leave for comments he made about two of the alleged rape cases, including that of Katie Hnida, a former place-kicker who said she was raped by a Colorado teammate in 2000. He called her an “awful” player as he answered questions about why she left Colorado to enroll later at the University of New Mexico.

Barnett waded into the controversy again, telling the panel he spoke with Hnida’s friends, former teammates and a rape counselor who spent time with the young woman, and none heard her talk about harassment or assault.

“I couldn’t find anybody to substantiate one single claim, and I was looking to substantiate it,” Barnett said.

He repeated his belief that Hnida wasn’t a good player, but said he wanted to give her a chance to fulfill her dream of playing college football.

“I didn’t care how awful she was, I wanted her on the team,” Barnett said.