Former Minnesota Player Pushes Back After P.J. Fleck’s Denials

INDIANAPOLIS: One of the former starters for the University of Minnesota football team took issue with some of head coach P.J. Fleck’s defense of the program during Big Ten Media Days on Thursday.
The player remarked, “The fact he is saying he has never used workouts as punishment is such bull.”
The former athlete was not one of the six former athletes that Front Office Sports spoke with; these players and former staff members described accusations of a toxic work environment under Fleck. The athlete requested anonymity when they first contacted hours after the story on Wednesday was published because they were afraid of what would happen to their career if they spoke out.

Fleck acknowledged the existence of the Fleck Bank, which FOS claimed was a way to track participants in the program, but he referred to the report as “baseless.” According to a number of former players, Gophers players who had sufficient credit in the Fleck Bank were spared from punishment for breaking team policies, which included testing positive for drugs.
The Fleck Bank, which was primarily utilized in 2017 and 2018, was an analogy Fleck used in a team meeting to illustrate the idea that the more money you put into a program, the better results you will get, he said. As a head football coach, the guys that perform exceptionally well will have an amazing experience, even if you don’t know anyone. If you don’t complete all of the

Nobody was ever spared from punishment for that. Just so everyone is aware, our athletic department has taken over our disciplinary-type actions when it comes to punishing our football team. At the University of Minnesota, we don’t punish our players with physical force. Furthermore, we’ve never done that.
Seven former players have now confirmed to FOS, in addition to the most recent source, that Fleck Bank existed from the time of Fleck’s arrival in 2017 until the 2021 season. One of his current players shared his thoughts on the Fleck Bank’s current situation on Thursday.

When FOS asked redshirt senior tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford how it works, he responded, “I wouldn’t say it works for me.” “It’s an analogy that talks about how we give back to the community and should pour into the program the way that it has poured into us. Our resources are boundless, and as a result, we are expected to contribute positively to the community.
Spann-Ford claimed that during his five years at Minnesota, he had never been subjected to workout sanctions, which are against NCAA and school policy.
The most recent former player claimed that the exercises were referred to as “culture” workouts early in Fleck’s tenure. Additionally, a former player claimed they were finished after the 2021 season, despite sources telling FOS they became less common.

Following the June 2018 death of Maryland football player Jordan McNair, who collapsed on the practice field and passed away two weeks later, the NCAA tightened its rules regarding coaches utilizing harsh workouts as penalties.

Following McNair’s passing, ESPN revealed that the Maryland football team, led by coach D.J. Durkin at the time, had a “toxic” culture.

Players who were late or skipped workouts were made to perform “Jesus Walks,” in which they used a stair stepper for up to “one hour with a PVC pipe across their shoulders,” according to an independent investigation published in September 2018.