Minnesota Coach Tracy Claeys Comments on Players' Decision to Boycott

Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach Tracy Claeys again defended his players after they threatened to boycott the 2016 Holiday Bowl following the suspension of 10 players resulting from a sexual assault investigation.

"As kids, they have no problems being held to a higher standard than the university requires and should require," Claeys said Sunday, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "This is all about the due process."

The coach had already tweeted a message of support Thursday:

The school announced Tuesday it had suspended 10 players for the bowl game, a decision that resulted from an alleged sexual assault that occurred on Sept. 2 after the Golden Gophers' first game of the season.

Reaction from the team and its supporters was swift.

Former NFL cornerback Antoine Winfield, whose son, Antoine Jr. was among those suspended, said he planned on pulling his son out of the school if athletic director Mark Coyle and school president Eric W. Kaler remained at their posts, per the AP's Jon Krawczynski.

In a statement, Golden Gophers wideout Drew Wolitarsky said he and his teammates would refrain from participating in football activities until the suspensions were lifted, per the Star Tribune's Joe Christensen. The players also asked for apologies from Coyle and Kaler.

However, the team walked back the protest on Saturday. Christensen reported that the full 80-page report from the investigation changed the players' attitudes:

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Sources said the release of the report and the players getting a chance to read the results of the investigation were the biggest factors in the decision to end the boycott. "Once they read the report," one source said, the "narrative" of the boycott changed.

Facing heavy national criticism, the Gophers players knew they were losing negotiating leverage.

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Having ended the boycott, Minnesota will play Washington State on Dec. 27.