As they read last week published allegations about Marlene Stollings and her staff at Texas Tech, former Gophers women’s basketball players Jasmine Brunson and Taiye Bello immediately believed much of it.
The reason was simple: Both said they had experienced similar things while playing for her at Minnesota.
“The culture sounded familiar because all of that is true,” said Brunson, who was recruited by Stollings out of New York and played two seasons for her at Minnesota before finishing her Gophers career with two seasons under Lindsay Whalen.
Added Bello, who is from Michigan and was in the same graduating class with Brunson this past spring: “The first thing that came to my mind when I read the article was, ‘that sounds about right.’ ”
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Brunson and Bello said players met with Dan Beebe — a consultant hired by the U athletic department who specializes in risk management — after both the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons. They shared their concerns about their experiences under Stollings and her staff, though it is believed those were raised during the meeting in 2018 after Stollings had already left for Texas Tech.
No school administrators or coaches are present during meetings between Beebe’s group and athletes, but the group can then share information with the athletic department if concerns are raised.
In response to a Star Tribune question about the involvement of Beebe’s group and the general handling of player concerns, a Gophers athletics spokesperson provided this statement: “The Athletics Department retained the Dan Beebe Group to evaluate and recommend ways to improve human relations across the Department. While the University cannot comment on specific personnel information received by the Dan Beebe Group from staff or student-athletes, the Athletics Department can confirm its good faith in addressing any concerns brought to its attention.”
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