After a weeks-long internal review of the Oklahoma State football program and coach Mike Gundy, the man who has been at the helm of it since 2005, athletic director Mike Holder and university president Burns Hargis are standing by their man.

"We have spent the past couple of weeks reviewing our program and talking with current and former players," Holder said.

"Our internal review found that Coach Gundy needs to invest more time in building stronger relationships with his student-athletes.

Hargis echoed Holder in a similar statement, saying in a post on Twitter that the investigation -- led by Holder and OSU's deputy AD Chad Weiberg -- determined that the "underlying issue was a lack of personal relationships between the head coach and players rather than anything racial.".

"After meeting with both Mike Holder and Mike Gundy, I believe they are committed to taking steps to strengthen the relationships, which will improve communications and the program.".

The investigation was conducted by Oklahoma State after several players -- including All-American running back Chuba Hubbard -- threatened to boycott the program after a photo of Gundy last month surfaced showing him wearing a One America News Network T-shirt during a fishing trip.

"There have been a lot of teachable moments for me here recently," Gundy told Yahoo Sports after being asked about his lack of relationships with his players

It's pretty rare for a university president and an athletic director to publicly push a head coach in a certain direction, especially a path as seemingly simple as developing more relationships with players

But this should end what was otherwise a tumultuous month in Stillwater as Oklahoma State preps for a 2020 season in which, on paper, it has one of its best teams in nearly a decade -- and the firepower to potentially get Gundy his second Big 12 title