ABC10: Minnesota Gophers Football: Has PJ Fleck Hit A Ceiling with the Gopher Football Program?

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Yeah I don't like to repeat gifs but ...

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I would say that the answer is yes.
The ceiling is probably being an 8-11 win team consistently and being a game or two from championships

Hopefully we break through at some point. I am content living in the neighborhood another 5 years or so
 






Chucklehead said:
No way will he be happy with that. Hes not glen mason. But this is the tough part- going from middle of the pack to the upper echelon.
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Correct.
Takes time.
And harder than ever to win the big ten.

You used to be able to win the big ten by being in a 4 way tie where you beat 0 or 1 of the other teams in the tie…and there were only 10 other teams
 



If 29 wins over the last three full seasons is the ceiling I would be happy with that. As for the Mason comparison Fleck is better. His best season is better and his worst seasons are better. I don’t think he get enough talent to win 52-54 games in a five year period, but winning 45 to 48 would be great.
 




Plato said:
Everyone continues to use the total wins instead of the more important metric, conference wins to judge PJ's record to date.
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True.
First time since the 60s with 3 winning big ten seasons out of 4

He is above what our ceiling had been for 40 years
 

If we can have sustained success at 8-10 wins over the course of his career, that's amazing and I'll never be upset. I'll be upset with particular losses, sure, but the body of work is more important. And the big ten is getting a lot more complicated with our upcoming new additions plus more that will likely come after.
 

mngg11 said:
If we can have sustained success at 8-10 wins over the course of his career, that's amazing and I'll never be upset. I'll be upset with particular losses, sure, but the body of work is more important. And the big ten is getting a lot more complicated with our upcoming new additions plus more that will likely come after.
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My expectation is that we win a conference title at some point. If Fleck continues to consistently be between 8 and 10 wins, I'd like our chances with him breaking through and winning it than I would with an unknown commodity.
 

Also for the Mason comparison, Fleck has never had a trauma-inducing defeat (squandering a giant lead). X 3 and two in Bowl Games…

1. I was at the Michigan game
2. Watched the Texas Tech debacle bowl game
3. Watched the humiliating NC State bowl game

Why can’t we have nice things for once???

I like our current situation, but as someone mentioned, the Big Ten will become even more difficult.
 

PTSD@Dome’03MI said:
Also for the Mason comparison, Fleck has never had a trauma-inducing defeat (squandering a giant lead). X 3 and two in Bowl Games…

1. I was at the Michigan game
2. Watched the Texas Tech debacle bowl game
3. Watched the humiliating NC State bowl game

Why can’t we have nice things for once???

I like our current situation, but as someone mentioned, the Big Ten will become even more difficult.
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Agree with that. My only complaint is Iowa and bowling green with fleck
 

gopherbadgerman said:
Agree with that. My only complaint is Iowa and bowling green with fleck
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Totally agree regarding Fleck’s disappointing losses. Especially IA.

But Mason’s were like prolonged agony and when the opposing team came within a few scores, it seemed inevitable and a torture to bear (especially since it had happened before and we had some bad defenses then).
 

PTSD@Dome’03MI said:
Totally agree regarding Fleck’s disappointing losses. Especially IA.

But Mason’s were like prolonged agony and when the opposing team came within a few scores, it seemed inevitable and a torture to bear (especially since it had happened before and we had some bad defenses then).
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Totally agree, which is why I think Fleck is well above Mason. He’s done the best with this program for most of all of the people here lifetimes. Since the 1960s for sure. That’s a long fucking time
 

Plato said:
Everyone continues to use the total wins instead of the more important metric, conference wins to judge PJ's record to date.
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Playing in the West has afforded PJ a lot of "winnable" type conference games. To his credit, he has won a good deal of those in 2019, 2021, and 2022.

His record against "difficult" conference games is still where the gap exists, and to be fair is where the gap exists for all coaches who aren't already at the top of the pile.
 





Some guy said:
I would say that the answer is yes.
The ceiling is probably being an 8-11 win team consistently and being a game or two from championships

Hopefully we break through at some point. I am content living in the neighborhood another 5 years or so
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The answer is no. A ceiling isn't a range, it is an upper control limit. The current number is 15 - 12 regular season games, conference championship, CFP semi-final and CFP final. When the field expands, it will go to 16 or 17. That is the ceiling, and he hasn't hit it yet.

The flip side of this article is "PJ Fleck has established consistency for a program mired in 50 years of futility". But that doesn't get the clicks that a negative hit piece does, and most news outlets need revenue. Always consider the source.
 


The Gophers are better under Fleck.

having said that, I remember having similar discussions/debates when Brewster replaced Mason, Kill replaced Brewster, and then when Fleck replaced Claeys.

and it always gets back to the same question - what is a "reasonable" expectation for Gopher Football?

Like any fan, I would be thrilled to see the Gophers win a Conference title and play in the Rose Bowl - or now, make the expanded CFP playoffs. But, at the same time, if it doesn't happen, I can live with that. it's not the end of the world. Just give me a competitive team.

and realistically, with the B1G going to 16 teams and likely dropping the divisional format, winning a conference title is going to be even more difficult.
 

Gophers_4life said:
Playing in the West has afforded PJ a lot of "winnable" type conference games. To his credit, he has won a good deal of those in 2019, 2021, and 2022.

His record against "difficult" conference games is still where the gap exists, and to be fair is where the gap exists for all coaches who aren't already at the top of the pile.
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His lack of wins against ranked teams hurts too. I like him and he’s good but if I’m correct he has maybe 4 wins total against ranked teams. PSU, Auburn, Wisconsin and maybe one other
 

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