MINNEAPOLIS -- Richard Pitino's fourth year as the coach at Minnesota has come with significant pressure to pull up the floundering men's basketball program from the bottom of the Big Ten and help put an end to the off-the-court problems.
With the university president publicly expressing concern about Gophers players repeatedly getting in trouble, Pitino has begun a make-or-break season. Minutes after his first meeting with just-hired athletic director Mark Coyle on Thursday, Pitino sat down in his office for an interview with The Associated Press about his status and the state of the team.
"Obviously he's coming in at a time when I'm not the most popular guy right now, and I understand that," Pitino said of Coyle, who arrives from Syracuse.