Minnesota fires wrestling coach after athletes drug scandal

The school announced the firing on Wednesday.

The longtime coach led the Gophers to three national championships and would have been starting his 30th season leading the program.

A university investigation found that Robinson tried to prevent more than a dozen Minnesota wrestlers, allegedly involved in a drug ring, from receiving punishment.

“I have a great deal of respect for Coach Robinson and what he’s accomplished during his 30 years at the University of Minnesota”, athletics director Mark Coyle said.

Brandon Eggum of Sidney has been promoted to interim head coach for the University of Minnesota wrestling program.

The investigation began in April, when an anonymous member of the Minnesota wrestling team reported to police that teammates were using and selling Xanax on campus.

The Associated Press left messages for Robinson’s agent and attorney seeking comment.

A heavily redacted police report revealed that Robinson was interviewed by investigators, but declined to answer some specific questions, saying it was a confidential matter and he was taking care of it internally.

Coyle added that while he has a great deal of respect for Robinson and what he’s accomplished during his 30 years at the university, that respect can not excuse his conduct in this instance.

The letter states Robinson didn’t disclose information about the drug-related activity, including sales by current members of the team.

The school once investigated Robinson for forcing participants in his wrestling camp to write an anti-Title IX letter to send to elected officials.

Robinson signed a contract extension last summer that ran through 2020, paying him $146,000 annually.

“I do not intend to address each inaccuracy and/or omission in the report because there are far too many”, Robinson wrote to the university in a response provided by school officials.

Lawyers for Robins and the U have been negotiating a possible settlement for several weeks, and Coyle said he has met with Robinson face to face “multiple times”. Coyle said Robinson promised amnesty and confidentiality to wrestlers who turned in drugs, which Robinson didn’t have authorization to do. He has always been a critic of Title IX, which was enacted to provide equal opportunities for men and women on campuses, saying that women’s teams received unfair advantages over men’s teams. Coyle declined to speculate about whether Robinson could have kept his job if he had fully cooperated with the investigation. He also was investigated in 2005 after three high school athletes were treated at a hospital for heat exhaustion from a late-night workout at a hockey camp overseen by Robinson.