Gopher Football
Cupito and current QB Adam Weber overlapped in ’06. Weber, like Cupito, redshirted for a year, but undoubtedly learned a lot that particular season.
GH caught up with Cupito this week.
GH: I understand you coach a 7th grade team in Bloomington … who’s a better coach — you or Tim Brewster 🙂 ?
BC: WOW! Right off the bat – I am far from a college level coach. Tony Brinkhaus (former Gophers OL) and I coach a 7th grade team in Bloomington with the playoffs taking place this week, so we will see how good we are.
GH: Take us through your specific duties with the team, and I can bet you’re having a blast?
BC: I run the offense, Tony runs the defense. It’s that simple. We have 20 kids and just the two of us coach, which makes it nice. I always thought coaching would be great and it has actually been more than I expected. The parents have been great to deal with and the players seem to be having fun, which makes it a lot more fun for Tony and me.
GH: I know you follow the Gophers as much as any former player … if you were athletic director Joel Maturi, would you give Brewster a contract extension (he’s in year No. 3 of a five-year deal)?
BC: I think Brewster has done a good job. I would give him 2 more years for sure. When I left in “˜06 we were making bowl games every year and that is where the program stands currently, so I would give him 2-3 more years to see if he can take the Gophers to the next level (at least top 4 in Big Ten). The new stadium has created a buzz and the enthusiasm has never been greater for the fans and students at the U, so it’s time to take the next step.
GH: QB Adam Weber, in all likelihood, will break your school records for career passing yards (7,446 yds) and career touchdown passes (55) … what, for the time being, do those records mean to you, especially considering you played in a run-dominated offense?
BC: I thought Adam already broke all those records. The records are good, but I always dreamed of being the QB that took Minnesota back to the Rose Bowl and that obviously didn’t happen, so hopefully Adam can get them there. I was at the U when we ran the ball a lot but when you have Marion Barber, Laurence Maroney, Thomas Tapeh, and Gary Russell, I completely understand. I had many opportunities to make more plays and didn’t, so its 100% my fault for not helping us get to that next level.
GH: Weber is working with offensive coordinator No. 3 (Mitch Browning, Mike Dunbar, Jedd Fisch) … he’s taking a ton of heat for his so-so play so far this year, but can you put into some perspective how difficult it must be for him under these circumstances?
BC: I had the same QB coach and offensive coord. for all 5 years I was there, so I can only imagine how tough it must be. I think Adam is great and a very smart guy, so he has done a very good job keeping up with the changes. I do think it will help him to have the same coaches next year because consistency only makes thing easier I think.
GH: Weber’s mechanics/throwing motion were altered by Brewster & Fisch … your thoughts on doing that to a QB this deep into his career, and how would you have reacted if Glen Mason/Tony Petersen had done that to you?
BC: I don’t know what to think on this. I don’t understand how you could do that, but obviously the coaches saw something and made it happen. I would find it very hard, but coaches get paid a lot of $ for a reason, so they know what they are doing and you trust them. I would have tried to change, but don’t think it could have happened.
GH: You would know as well as any, how much freedom does Weber have at the line of scrimmage to switch plays? — the example that comes to my mind is the 1st-and-goal from the one-yard line in the Wisconsin game … Weber tapped his left thigh, which appeared to be a signal for WR Eric Decker.
BC: I am guessing a lot being he has started for 3 years. I don’t know the exact freedom he gets with his coaches, but I am guessing he could change almost any play he wanted depending on the defense. You can never be mad he changed a play trying to get Decker the ball – I sure know I would try and get Decker the ball as much as possible.
GH: If you were Brewster, when you came in, would you have kept the Mason-style offense (run first, run second, pass third), or if you strongly believed in the Spread Coast, would you have made the switch? Second-part is, did Brewster make a mistake giving up on the Spread just two years in, and choosing to go with the pro-style?
BC: Brewster is the head coach, so he makes the decisions so I had no problem with him changing the style of the offense. I would have tried to stay with the Spread longer I guess, but he has had coaching changes which changes that, so I understand that as well. I would prefer the Spread no doubt but whatever it takes to win is understandable. I am sure Adam would tell you as well — QBs prefer the shotgun — Spread!
GH: Your first start: you went 10 for 12 for 279 yards (206 in the first quarter) and a touchdown in a 63-21 win over 25th-ranked Toledo. The Gophers also had 704 yards of total offense … is that one of your favorite Gophers’ memories?
BC: That is a great memory, but my greatest memory would be the big games. I remember every Michigan game very clearly (lost 2 and won 1) and the Iowa games, Ohio St games, Wisconsin games. I group the big games together and those meant the most to me and they are still what I think about.
GH: Rumor has it your job has taken you to Milwaukee … catch the audience up on exactly what keeps you busy professionally, and is Milwaukee now your permanent home?
BC: I work for Forest Pharmaceuticals and just got transferred to Milwaukee. Right now, I am working there Monday-Friday and coming home on the weekends to be with my family until we sell our house. We will only be 5 hours from MN and my wife’s family is in Eagan, so we will be back quite a bit. The bad part is I have to hear about the Badgers now all the time, which is terrible but more $ is almost always a good thing at this point in my life.
Talk about the Gophers football program on Brew’s Crew message board.