Big Ten grades for 2025 season: Penn State gets 'F-' for collapse, Indiana earns 'A+' as conference champion

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MisterGopher

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https://www.cbssports.com/college-f...5-college-football-season-penn-state-indiana/

Minnesota​

It was a quintessential P.J. Fleck season more or less. The Golden Gophers reached bowl eligibility yet again, giving them a chance to extend Fleck's perfect 6-0 postseason record with the program. They also held their own in rivalry play, winning two of three matchups, including convincing victories over both Nebraska and Wisconsin. Grade: B
 


I assumed it was going to be a C. Must be grading on a curve... :)
 




MNVCGUY said:
I assumed it was going to be a C. Must be grading on a curve... :)
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Seems like they were treating the 3 rivalries as equal. Losing to Iowa is much worse than the positive of beating Nebraska. Especially getting blown out. 😟
 

Whoever wrote that blurb didn't even look at the Gophers' season. There was one game all season to be really proud of (Nebraska) and they got bombed each time they played a really good team.

To earn a B they would have had to win nine games. Winning seven in the fashion they did is a D at best.
 

everybody knows my name said:
Whoever wrote that blurb didn't even look at the Gophers' season. There was one game all season to be really proud of (Nebraska) and they got bombed each time they played a really good team.

To earn a B they would have had to win nine games. Winning seven in the fashion they did is a D at best.
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I think Wisconsin was a solid win. They weren't great but had beaten a couple of solid teams before they played us.
 

Word said:
I think Wisconsin was a solid win. They weren't great but had beaten a couple of solid teams before they played us.
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I see your point, but I can't fully agree with it. Wisconsin was a decisive win, but even with a couple of upset wins, they came in 2-6 in conference. A decisive win was to be expected.
 
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everybody knows my name said:
Whoever wrote that blurb didn't even look at the Gophers' season. There was one game all season to be really proud of (Nebraska) and they got bombed each time they played a really good team.

To earn a B they would have had to win nine games. Winning seven in the fashion they did is a D at best.
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You can't use the same grading scale for all teams. If you did that, grades would be meaningless to evaluate relative performances because Ohio State would always get an A and Minnesota would usually get a C with an occasional B.

This was one of Fleck's lesser teams in terms of talent and experience. Yet, they won 7 games. There's something to be said for a team that isn't very good but still wins 7 games. I agree with those who said this team overachieved.
 

everybody knows my name said:
I see your point, but I can't fully agree with it. Wisconsin was a decisive win, but even with a couple of upset wins, they came in 2-6 in conference. A decisive win was to be expected.
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Right but they were very much trending upwards.
 





TwistingMyMelon said:
You can't use the same grading scale for all teams. If you did that, grades would be meaningless to evaluate relative performances because Ohio State would always get an A and Minnesota would usually get a C with an occasional B.

This was one of Fleck's lesser teams in terms of talent and experience. Yet, they won 7 games. There's something to be said for a team that isn't very good but still wins 7 games. I agree with those who said this team overachieved.
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Say the team overachieved, that's fine. I'll grant you that the team had problems. They definitely lacked offensive options and the O-line was a shambles. And the defense didn't live up to its talent level.

But those problems are all a result of 1. what parts the coaching staff brought in 2. how those parts were assembled, and 3. how the team was coached schematically and strategically.

Don't forget that Fleck himself expected the team to be better, and he presumably knows its makeup and abilities better than anyone.

No, this outcome - winning close games against mediocre opponents and getting your doors blown off by good opponents - this outcome is a D, and no better.

Having said all that, I'm not hanging and burning the coach in effigy. I'm still flying the Gophers flag. I just think we have to be honest about the team's performance this year. I refuse to take the pollyana route.
 

everybody knows my name said:
Whoever wrote that blurb didn't even look at the Gophers' season. There was one game all season to be really proud of (Nebraska) and they got bombed each time they played a really good team.

To earn a B they would have had to win nine games. Winning seven in the fashion they did is a D at best.
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To get a B they needed a top 5 season since 1970?

9-3 (6-3) would be that.
 

It's a "B" in the eyes of media almost everywhere because if you remember most of them had us pegged in the bottom 4 in the B1G. I remember all of our protest for not trust Lindsay, our OL, WR's and CB.

It is a "C" in the eyes of us fans because we got what many of us expected them to be at or the bottom of what we expected. In the end we were right about our QB, but our OL, WR's and CB's were not where we expected them to be based upon PJ's track record of filling in the gaps with transfers and development.

In the end we will be return a ton of talent (I assume) and with a few key additions could have a special year next year. If things stay the same, the same result will not produce a B for the media or for fans alike.
 

The issue is low expectations as some have noted. Low expectations by this writer and others. No need to bring out the Dink-O-Meter 3000. Not dink territory at all.

Going into Year of Our Coach (YOC) 8 the fans legitimately had higher expectations. C season at best before the bowl. Convincing W over the Lobos will show we can win on the road at least once this year. Going 7-0 in bowls and keeping The Chair and The Axe can make it a B.

Getting to 9 YOC is entering new territory. Time to check the status of the seat warmer. Just a brief test for AD Coyle just to confirm it's working. It's time. Would love for it to stay icy cold due to many more Ws than losses for years to come. We shall see starting in 2026.
 

TwistingMyMelon said:
This was one of Fleck's lesser teams in terms of talent and experience. Yet, they won 7 games. There's something to be said for a team that isn't very good but still wins 7 games. I agree with those who said this team overachieved.
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I thought Fleck said this was probably his most talented team yet. 7-5 required come from behind wins against the very worst of the conference, a pedestrian MAC win, and a high school team. Nebraska win was very solid and Wisconsin was showing some fight at the end of the season but they were incredibly depleted. So 1.5 good wins since Wisky is a big rival, and 3 bad losses with Iowa loss being very very bad the way that unfolded.
 

TwistingMyMelon said:
You can't use the same grading scale for all teams. If you did that, grades would be meaningless to evaluate relative performances because Ohio State would always get an A and Minnesota would usually get a C with an occasional B.

This was one of Fleck's lesser teams in terms of talent and experience. Yet, they won 7 games. There's something to be said for a team that isn't very good but still wins 7 games. I agree with those who said this team overachieved.
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Good take. The ppl on this forum who constantly live in a state of suck don't want to hear it but it's true. Our talent level this year was pretty damn low, Swiss cheese O Line and we got to 7. I'd say this was one of our best seasons relative to talent. Year before this was probably one of our worst. That team underachieved. This one didn't.

Have to give credit when it's due.
 

Losing to Cal and Northwestern then getting curb stomped by Iowa nets them a B makes no sense.
 


Saying we beat two of our three "rivals". I get that WI and IA are rivals (border our state, and play them annually) But how did NE become our third rival, any more than say MI or NW or IL, etc?

Does the Bits of Broken Chair trophy make them a rival?
 


C
You only beat the teams you should beat, lose two to teams you should have beaten, and get blown out by the ranked teams you play, the grade can't be above a C. C IS a passing grade.
 

GopherJack said:
Saying we beat two of our three "rivals". I get that WI and IA are rivals (border our state, and play them annually) But how did NE become our third rival, any more than say MI or NW or IL, etc?

Does the Bits of Broken Chair trophy make them a rival?
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They were a Big Ten West team. The Big Ten West lives on in spirit. Furthermore, since they're one of the teams we've played most often in recent years and have beaten most often, why would we not claim them as a rival?
 


GopherJack said:
Saying we beat two of our three "rivals". I get that WI and IA are rivals (border our state, and play them annually) But how did NE become our third rival, any more than say MI or NW or IL, etc?

Does the Bits of Broken Chair trophy make them a rival?
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I think this stems from the Frost and PJ interactions—culture vs. Skill.
 

GopherJack said:
Saying we beat two of our three "rivals". I get that WI and IA are rivals (border our state, and play them annually) But how did NE become our third rival, any more than say MI or NW or IL, etc?

Does the Bits of Broken Chair trophy make them a rival?
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This was actually the most interesting part of the article to me
 

TwistingMyMelon said:
Obviously, he was wrong. Is that so surprising?
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Could someone please link me to this story. People are claiming he said this and I’ve never seen the sources where he said that.

If you don’t have the link don’t go looking. Maybe someone has it handy
 

I actually agree.

I don't think we had "the developed talent" on the roster to start the season that some thought.

Add in new play callers on D and O, and a 7-5 record with wins against nebraska and wisconsin equals a B in my book.
 

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