The drama surrounding Charlie Strong’s job status reached the Longhorn players over the weekend. According to the Austin-American Statesman, numerous Texas players are “considering boycotting this week’s regular season finale against TCU.”

Texas athletes swarmed to Strong’s defense over Twitter since reports of his presumed dismissal surfaced on Saturday.

“Letting this man go is equivalent to losing a father,” senior defensive lineman Poona Ford said on Twitter. “He has done wonders for all of the players on the team and we want him to continue that.”

Letting this man go is equivalent to losing a father.he has done wonders for all of the players on the team and we want him to continue that pic.twitter.com/n90csrPa6n

— Poona Ford (@PoonaF_95) November 21, 2016

Both the Statesman and HornsDigest reported over the weekend the Texas administration had chosen to fire Strong following the burnt orange’s 24-21 loss to Kansas on Saturday. But athletic director Mike Perrin refuted those reports on Sunday evening, releasing a statement.

“There are a number of rumors out there about the status of Coach Strong,” Perrin said. “I’ve said it all along, we will evaluate the body of work after the regular season … We’ll discuss where things stand after that.”

Monday’s report only complicates an already sticky situation for Texas brass. A source “close to the Texas football program” told the Statesman “Some of the team is threatening to boycott the TCU game. Older players are trying to settle things down.”

The Longhorns will hold their season finale against TCU on Friday. Kickoff is slated for 2:30 p.m.