As Ralph Friedgen became visibly frustrated at times while trying to explain sanctions from last week’s bar fight to several reporters Friday, Athletics Director Debbie Yow sat off to the side in the Gossett Team House Auditorium with more evidence that she made the right choice when she hired the Terrapin football coach after the 2000 season.

With a police investigation in its preliminary stages and no players charged with a criminal offense, Friedgen was not forced to suspend three players he learned to be involved in a physical altercation Nov. 1 at Cornerstone Grill and Loft. But he felt it necessary to make a statement.

“The fact that Ralph decided to suspend three players, even though those players insisted that they acted in self-defense, should give you a pretty clear indication of how serious we are about ensuring that our players get the message – in all 27 teams and all 700 athletes – that they have to do the right thing,” Yow said.

A handout given to reporters at Friday’s press conference outlines the department’s goal to respond with integrity to breaches of its desired student-athlete culture.

“No system or policy can guarantee that there will be no isolated instances of inappropriate choices by student athletes,” it read. “As such, the Athletics Department has in place a specific process for reporting and managing any alleged violations of the ‘Student-Athlete Code of Conduct’ to ensure that any inappropriate behaviors are addressed with consistency and integrity.”

And it’s under those guidelines that Friedgen chose to hand down sanctions before the police finished their investigation.

Friedgen uncovered as much information as he could by interviewing players and witnesses with Director of Character Education Kevin Glover.

“When all the facts come out, it happened so fast that, because they were in that situation, it was unavoidable,” Friedgen said. “Yeah, it probably isn’t fair, because if they’re regular students, nothing is said on this whole deal. But they’re not. They’re not regular students – they’re special.”

Friedgen likened the players to his three daughters, who he said are ridiculed when the Terps aren’t playing well. It isn’t necessarily fair, he said, but it’s what they should expect considering the benefits they have as daughters of a college football head coach.

Similarly, Friedgen said he feels the players need to be held to a higher standard than many of their peers because they receive benefits not available to most students.

Friedgen indicated many members of the team were upset with his decision to suspend four players – including one who admitted to underage drinking. The Terps are entering a three-game stretch that will decide whether they improve on last season’s finish and become eligible for postseason play.

“This is not happening at the beginning of the year where there’s some easy non-conference game we can win,” Yow said. “North Carolina looms before us as well as Boston College and N.C. State, with the need for two additional wins to be bowl-eligible. That makes me very proud that he’s willing to make the very tough decision for all the right reasons, and unfortunately and unintentionally further disadvantage us in those opportunities. That shouts integrity as far as I’m concerned.”

Yow and Friedgen met before the sanctions were handed down, and Yow said she gave the coach the option to spread out the suspensions to help the team’s chances of winning.

The team is not expected to announce its schedule for suspending players, as their names will not be released so as to comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

Friedgen said he reminded his entire team after Friday afternoon’s practice to make smart decisions. He said he has tried to continually reiterate the team rules – which include an 11:30 curfew on weeknights and a no-drinking rule during the season – ever since attending a conference where coaching legend Bill Walsh spoke of the importance of such repetition.

“I don’t think there’s another coach in the country that works as hard as I do at trying to cover the bases,” Friedgen said. “But you can’t be with these kids 24 hours a day. They have to make decisions, and hopefully they make good decisions.”

And even as Friedgen feels they didn’t last week, Yow said she was pleased with the way the coach dealt with the situation.

“I’m glad I’m not the athletic director of a program where I’m going toe-to-toe with a football coach who doesn’t want to discipline the players because we have three games left and we’re two short for a bowl,” Yow said. “That’s what’s so great about [Friedgen]. He is everything I thought he would be in that regard.

“So as unpleasant as the situation is, there is for me a bright spot, and that is, under pressure, seeing that he really is who I thought he was, and he’s willing to stand behind everything he says. You don’t know if someone means what they say until they’re under real pressure and they have something to lose.”

Contact reporter David Selig at dseligdbk@gmail.com.