The Minnesota Gophers are going ahead with their bowl game, but some turmoil remains around the situation that nearly caused a boycott.
Minnesota President Eric Kaler stepped behind the podium and began to speak, a crisis averted after seven Golden Gophers football players announced that the team would not boycott the upcoming Holiday Bowl against Washington State because 10 of their teammates had been suspended in a sexual assault case.
“I listened to their concerns,” said Kaler, who had negotiated with the players. “I was able to explain our point of view around the actions that we took. It was a very frank and candid conversation. I’m glad it led to this resolution.”
Listening from another room in the team’s football building, players fumed. They thought Kaler was taking credit for solving an impasse even though he left the talks the previous night without a deal, a group of four that included players and other people involved in the talks told The Associated Press. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because of a team-wide agreement not to speak publicly about the case to keep a focus on the bowl game in San Diego on Tuesday.
The interviews revealed a lingering divide between an administration trying to actively investigate allegations from a woman who says she was pressured into sex with multiple football players and a team that was concerned about the fairness of the process.
