Oklahoma City ? Oklahoma State athletic director Mike Holder subscribes to the theory that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.

Even if it means your All-America wide receiver is no longer eligible.

The school put Dez Bryant on the sidelines this week for lying to the NCAA, just the latest in a series of hardships that have hit the team since its return to national prominence. As the 15th-ranked Cowboys (3-1) have been selling more season tickets than ever and christening a stadium that’s received a $286 million overhaul, the good times have been marked by injuries and discipline issues — and now a run-in with the NCAA.

“Maybe we’re getting stronger through all this,” Holder said Friday in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.

Holder said he stands behind Mike Gundy as the program navigates through some choppy waters, complimenting the fifth-year coach on being compassionate but tough.

“I think this will be a good test for our coaches. Mike Gundy, he’s going to learn a lot from this adversity,” Holder said. “It’ll make him a better person and a better coach. … I think he’s been a real stabilizing force for the team.”

Oklahoma State ruled Bryant ineligible Wednesday because he “failed to openly disclose to the NCAA the full details of his interaction with a former NFL player” believed to be Deion Sanders, now retired. Sanders told The New York Times he met with Bryant over the summer at a Texas athletics center and had him over to his house for dinner.