After Northwestern fired head coach Pat Fitzgerald amid a hazing scandal, another Big Ten football program could soon face its own reckoning.

Front Office Sports' A.J. Perez spoke with former Minnesota players and staffers who "described an environment fraught with intimidation and toxicity" under head coach P.J. Fleck.

According to Perez, the coach created the "Fleck Bank," a concept in which players got "credits" for things like completing community service and excelling academically. Two players said the "credits" were also handed out when players reported on other teammates.

"You almost wondered who was a rat and who wasn't a rat," one player said to Perez. "You always felt like you had to keep [your] guard up. They told us we could seek help with a mental health counselor, and get some therapy sessions. But our schedules were so busy that it was like, when would you do that?"

Another player said to Perez that Fleck might look past off-field indiscretions such as a positive drug test if a player had built up enough equity in the "Fleck Bank."

In a statement to Perez, Minnesota's athletic department denied the allegations and said the school's drug-testing policy was followed by the letter within the program.

Athletic director Mark Coyle told Perez the concerns players expressed in the report were never communicated to him.

"P.J. and our program are unique," he said. "They put themselves out there in new and different ways—but always in a first-class manner—and after nearly seven years, it is clear to me, that is what makes P.J. and our program so successful.

"I always encourage all of our student-athletes, including every member of our football team, to reach out to me directly if they encounter any issues. To date, I have not heard from a single football student-athlete about the allegations raised."

Perez's report painted the picture of what some called a cult-like atmosphere.

The players were allegedly told they had to clap any time Fleck entered a room and that in one instance he walked through the door multiple times because he wasn't getting sufficient adulation.

Players were also instructed to say they were "elite" when asked how they were doing. Fleck would take umbrage with any other response.

Perez wrote how the anecdotes might look a bit eccentric but harmless on their own. For the players, however, they were collectively "the underpinnings of a culture that fostered mistrust among teammates and a fear of speaking out."

Scandal surrounded the ouster of Fleck's predecessor, Tracy Claeys, in January 2017. Per Perez, people within the program didn't feel comfortable coming forward to detail the allegations during Fleck's tenure out of a belief the athletic department was "hesitant to investigate claims over fears of another scandal."

Fleck is entering his seventh season with the Golden Gophers. The team has a 44-27 record with four bowl appearances under his watch. The high-water mark so far came in 2019, when Minnesota went 11-2 and finished 10th in the Associated Press Top 25 poll after beating Auburn in the Outback Bowl.