Minnesota head coach Tracy Claeys to donate $50,000 to sexual assault victims

In the days following Minnesota football players leading and subsequently ending a boycott in protest to 10 players being suspended from the team following a sexual assault investigation by the school, head coach Tracy Claeys has spoken. His team announced the football boycott on Thursday evening, but then announced an end to it on Saturday morning.

Claeys, who was called into a players-only meeting Thursday prior to the boycott announcement, said via ESPN in a recent interview with WCCO Radio that he informed his players of the ramifications of a boycott, including that it would be viewed as “pro-sexual assault.”

On Sunday, Claeys told WCCO Radio that he and his team met before the players decided on the boycott. He said he told them “about all the different fallouts. One was that we might not be able to play in the bowl game. Two is that we knew that there was going to be a group who took the stance that we were being pro-sexual assault, which we’re not. And then I told them there’s a great chance I could lose my job over this.”

Claeys also told the radio station that he would be donating $50,000 to the victims of sexual assault. As far as a clear motive for the boycott itself, Claeys says his players believed their suspended teammates were denied due process, which he said was “pretty easy” to support them on. He added that the boycott was not a way of condoning sexual assault or harassment in any way.

Claeys tweeted a message on Thursday evening supporting his players, by saying, “Have never been more proud of our kids. I respect their rights & support their effort to make a better world!”

The boycott initially came in response to 10 players on the team being suspended ahead of the Dec. 27 Holiday Bowl matchup against Washington State. Four of the players were already suspended earlier in the season, and the other six were added after being tied to a September incident that included an allegation of sexual assault:

Ray Buford Sr., a 17-year law enforcement official in Michigan, told the Pioneer Press that the suspensions are tied to an early-morning incident on Sept. 2 where four players — Buford, Hardin, Dior Johnson and Tamarion Johnson — were “mentioned” in a Minneapolis Police report that included a woman’s allegations of sexual assault. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office declined Oct. 3 to press charges, citing insufficient evidence.

Buford said the new suspensions are the result an investigation by the University’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action (EOAA) and were relayed at 5 p.m. Tuesday. Buford said “some” of the players were recommended for expulsion from the university, and he added that will be met with appeals.

“The closer you were to the lady, the harsher the recommendation,” Buford said.

The school’s 80-page report on the incident includes many graphic and disturbing allegations.

Initially, the players said that they would boycott the game if “need be,” but with it being over, the team has returned to practice on Sunday to prepare for Washington State without the 10 suspended players.

“We’ll go out there, and whoever we have, we’ll play extremely hard,” Claeys said via ESPN. “It’s all about now representing the team and the university, all our alums in a first-class manner.”