…….and as soon as I type that Croft goes 60 yards for a TD!
But the garbage time run by Croft aside, Rhoda managed the game well tonight. Made some good throws, and some throws that won’t show up in the stats as penalties brought them back.
Nice road win for the Gophs!
Row the boat!
Ski-U-Mah
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
What did that have to do with the only game that was on the boob-tube today?
Hawkeyes beat The Cylcones!
Go gophers!
Gophers look beast mode…. Iowa… needed O/T to beat the clones… 
Gophers will go 3-0 in NC… 1-8 in the BIG. Book it
Gophers will go 3-0 in NC… 1-8 in the BIG. Book it
Yeah, I am not ready to claim a 10 win season for the Gophers, but they are certainly a better team than 4 wins.
Fleck is a bit much to take in large doses, but I think he could be the magic elixir this program needed.
They beat a team they played last year at HOME by 30 more points. Last year’s team was also full of Seniors so they did it with young guys. To me that is impressive and speaks a lot of the coaching this staff is doing.
Say what you want, we haven’t had a great run on coaches here in MN, but Fleck is the first coach to win his debut since Lou Holtz I believe and we have played some real cupcakes along the way.
For what they have spent on coaches and facilities the last few years these wins are worth about $30 million each. 
Rhoda Boat!!!
Say what you want about Fleck (I know I was skeptical at first), but I think he relates well to this generation and what he says has a ton of research and development behind it. Basically he is the polar opposite of Brewster, despite sounding superficially similar imo. Also, I expect a very good season this year, as Claeys/Kill left the program in GREAT shape talent-wise. Get on board early before the boat picks up steam!
Have any of you guys seen “Being PJ Fleck”? I think it was awesome and really gained my appreciation for the guy and what he does. Honestly I couldn’t relate to him, but I agree, he probably relates very well to this generation.
yep.. Rhoda boat !
917-140.jpg
Well Rhoda is now for sure, now that Croft is out for personal reasons. 
i just read an article in the star and trib………..i get the sense it may be acedemics………..strictly my opinion based on the article!!!!!!:?::?:
Fleck is a bit much to take in
largeeven small doses, but I think he could be the magic elixir this program needed.
There. I fixed that for you.
Maybe it’s no longer possible to just have a decent football team WITHOUT a whole bunch of scandals and Players Behaving Badly incidents? That’s all I want.
Grouse
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>CaptainMusky wrote:</div>
Fleck is a bit much to take inlargeeven small doses, but I think he could be the magic elixir this program needed.There. I fixed that for you.
Maybe it’s no longer possible to just have a decent football team WITHOUT a whole bunch of scandals and Players Behaving Badly incidents? That’s all I want.
Grouse
Well, UM does have tougher academic restrictions that the majority of schools in the NCAA so if Croft’s issue is academic I would certainly not consider that a scandal. Besides, its not like he was the starter, neither of these guys started more than 1 game before.
Rhoda is kind of a neat story since Claeys basically told him he was losing his scholarship. Guess who was one of the first guys Fleck called after getting the job? Rhoda.
Maybe it’s
no longerNEVER BEEN possible to just have a decent football team WITHOUT a whole bunch of scandals and Players Behaving Badly incidents? That’s all I want.
There I fixed it for you 
. It’s never been possible we just hear about every one now, these are 17-23 year old boys after all.
After watching “Being PJ Fleck” I’m totally bought in on him. In a radio interview the other day he talked about why the players always hand the ball to the official, they never leave it on the field. Respect for the ball, the game, which relates to never fumbling. He said you had to practice what you want the kids to accomplish and he takes that to an extreme, but the message is loud and clear. Respect the ball, don’t lose it, and the wins will follow.
Row the Boat
Be Elite
I was totally sold on the Shamwow guy too… Fleck = Shamwow guy
Lets not crown the guy yet. He has beaten nobody and recruited 3 & 4 star players. Lets see him get a 1 or 2 star kid. He is the perfect coach for the smoke and mirrors approached needed. They have the cost of a new stadium and the athletic village they need to justify. Every successful program runs off players and suspends players for meaningless games to show what a “clean & tough” program they run.
But lets face it. When you pay bonuses based on attendance only one thing matters……winning. For a national title the administration would fill the roster with convicts from death row if they thought they could get away with it and the guy could play. In todays pro college sports you have 2 options…win at all costs or be the school that gets paid to play the schools that want to win at all costs.
Todays question is……do you want the U to win or be a .500 program? There is no grey ground there.
With 128 teams in Div 1, only 1 will be National Champions each year. Does that mean 127 teams are average, not hardly. I would like to see them get a bowl bid every year… it takes time to build a program that Elite Student Athletes seek out. I am looking for Fleck to Field the best possible squad he can, that play together and play hard. I also am realistic that this is Kill’s team yet (recruit wise) Yes it is a lot of fun to win, but moreso, the atmosphere at a collegiate game is electrifying. Watching and listening to the student section is entertainment in itself !!! 
Todays question is……do you want the U to win or be a .500 program? There is no grey ground there.
Just gimme value one way or the other.
I’d be fine with being a .500 program if they ran it like one and paid the coach accordingly.
I’d be fine with what we’re paying the coach if he makes us real winner.
We don’t have a great track record for finding that sweet spot, but I’ll reserve judgement on Fleck. Let’s see how things look in November.
G you are correct. Nothing is like a college atmosphere. Thats why I like the college hockey.
Lets not crown the guy yet. He has beaten nobody and recruited 3 & 4 star players. Lets see him get a 1 or 2 star kid.
FYI 3 & 4 stars are considered better players than the 1 & 2 stars…and Corey Davis (WR Fleck recruited and coached at Western Michigan) was a 2 star recruit, that developed into the first Wide Receiver taken in the draft and #5 overall pick.
Go tell Saban to start getting 3 & 4 star guys.
Alabama is predominately 3 & 4 star guys, with a handful of 5 stars mixed in each year. There are not a ton of 5 star guys, and a lot don’t work out, just like top draft picks.
Point being, when all you get is the mid level players thats all you will ever be is mid level. Talent wins, guys that can play and can’t spell cat get recruited.
Well, UM does have tougher academic restrictions that the majority of schools in the NCAA so if Croft’s issue is academic I would certainly not consider that a scandal. Besides, its not like he was the starter, neither of these guys started more than 1 game before.
That was an overall comment, not in reference to the Croft situation in particular. And I’m talking about players AND administration. Naughty Norwood, J. Robinson, Signing Cleys, then firing Cleys and buying him out.
IF Fleck is the guy that’s great. I just want to see an end to the hurky-jerkey, which-way-are-we-going-today situation in Gopher Athletics. Coyle has “his guys” in now and it came at massive taxpayer expense. No more excuses!
Grouse
Point being, when all you get is the mid level players thats all you will ever be is mid level. Talent wins, guys that can play and can’t spell cat get recruited.
I agree, but especially in college how you develop players is as important as their # of stars coming in. Fleck has a ton of 3 & 4 star guys coming in, and also gotten recruits from Alabama and Oregon to flip to the U. That is top end talent, if developed well.
We don’t have a great track record for finding that sweet spot, but I’ll reserve judgement on Fleck. Let’s see how things look in November.
Regardless of how things look this November, you cannot judge the success or lack thereof of a first year coach and coaching staff in the first year. No matter who it is. Even if they are 2-8, he should still be allowed to build or rebuild with his own recruiting and philosophy. Barry Alvarez at Wisconsin had one or two wins his first season and perhaps 3 or 4 in his second year. And we all know how that turned out.
Point being, when all you get is the mid level players thats all you will ever be is mid level. Talent wins, guys that can play and can’t spell cat get recruited.
Not always true…
Having outstanding head coach and coaching staff is more important when it comes to player development and working with and getting the most out of the talent that you have. Without high level coaching, 4 and 5 star recruits can play like walk-ons and make stupid mistakes on (or off) the field. Whereas mid-level players that are well coached, fundamentals, discipline, the game itself managed properly, getting these players to “play above their heads” is what builds a successful program. And once the program gains more success (wins) and earns the more “preferred” prime time bowl games, this is when more of the 4 and 5 star recruits take notice and then consider that program.
This is just how Barry Alvarez built the Badger football program back in the early 90’s, and now look at where they still are today…
Minnesota will never be Wisconsin in football.
Minnesota will never be Wisconsin in football.
Now if the UMN brass could accept that and budget accordingly.
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