I think they've done just a terrific job this year. With the rules violations and last season's defection of star center Joel Przybilla, Minnesota has dealt with plenty of controversy. And as a result, NCAA sanctions are nothing more than another roadblock. They have to be very resilient, very tough-minded. Minnesota was surprisingly revitalized by the announcement of the sanctions.
People look at it and say, 'Well, they get to go to the postseason.
But we've got a lot of recruiting restrictions and depth restrictions. The sanctions have been doubly difficult because no one currently involved with the program was at fault. Minnesota's players and coaches are paying for the mistakes of their predecessors, and have been forced to play with another batch of sanctions never far away. It's not a good thing to have something that you couldn't control hanging over your head. But they've recovered well.