Brewster

[maxwellsmart]

A couple things about Brewster. First off, he did not come in with strong credentials, like Tubby Smith did. Most fans gave him the benefit of the doubt from day one (not guys like Loon or Wren, though.) He talked a great game about going to the Rose Bowl (eventually) but he lost a lot of people with an immediate 1-11 team. Pretty soon, his talk about the players playing a tremendous game fell on deaf ears because it was unrealistic. Minnesota fans will give guys like Tubby a little more leeway because they have respect for him - that respect was earned by a lot of wins and a national championship at Kentucky, one of the top programs in the nation.

I don't think the fans have very much respect for Brewster - he certainly hasn't deserved much so far. I think most fans still don't know whether he can coach or not. I know he can recruit, but so can every other Big Ten coach, and that goes all the way down to Indiana who hauled in some nice pickups. That means you sure as hell better be able to coach in this league or you will wind up in the broadcast booth in a hurry if you can't recruit or coach with the rest of them.

Brewster might have the respect of the players, but in all honesty do did John Gutekunst. The players all backed Gutey as their coach and we lost out on a guy who won a national championship a few years later, Bobby Ross. That was a mistake - Gutey hasn't been a head coach since and Ross was a pretty good coach.

Brewster talks a great game and he can recruit, but he has a lot more in common with Jim Wacker than he does with Lou Holtz, at least so far. His window is starting to close and he will be on the hot seat to start winning very soon, if he isn't already. I am pulling for him to do well as that means the Gophers will be successful, but I don't see him as "our guy." He would leave us the first chance he could for more money and I doubt if he has much loyalty here at all. The rumblings and feelers for the Kansas job backfired and I know the first good team that came after him could get him if they wanted him.

I get the feeling we are really going to know what needs to be done after this year and this will be his make or break season. Either he will be successful and sign a meaningful contract or he will be looking for TE jobs in the NFL again.

If you're statement that he lost a lot of support after the 1-11 season is correct, it says more about the fans we lost than the coach we still have.

 

[denguegopher]

couldn't agree more I roll my eyes so much when listening to him speak...its like really come on maybe that line worked 2 years ago BUT NOW!?!? after that season we just had!!!

If you are not winning much the coach gets nailed if they talk a lot (as pointed out above) or they get nailed if they talk little (the coach has no enthusiasm and gets no one excited). Like others have said, if he wins his communication style doesn't matter.

 

[MNCH]

"I know he can recruit, but so can every other Big Ten coach, and that goes all the way down to Indiana who hauled in some nice pickups. That means you sure as hell better be able to coach in this league or you will wind up in the broadcast booth in a hurry if you can't recruit or coach with the rest of them."


That's the little secret nobody wants to acknowledge around here. Brewster's No 1. asset (in many people's opinon) is his recruiting. Yet our recruiting classes have slipped from 17th to 39th to 50th. We're right back into the middle or bottom of the Big Ten. Why the decline? Why are we missing out on Michael Floyd, Bryce McNeal, Seantrel Henderson?

 

[tikited]

He comes off as a joke to the public who wants to see the team do good on the field, and doesn't want to hear about "recruiting".

What do you want to hear about? Actually, don't answer that, I don't care what you want.

 

[50PoundHead]

I think "sleazy" is the wrong adjective. I don't see anything sleazy about the guy in the least. He's energetic and this town has never really gone for energetic. It's that simple. Problem is, the college game is centered on energetic and flamboyant coaches in this era.

I don't like everything Brewster has done here, but he knows a lot more about football than I do and I don't think he just throws things at the wall or consult a Magic 8-Ball on the sidelines.

He doesn't need to be an X-and-O guy. It's nice, but it's more important that the head coach hire solid X-and-O guys. The head coach runs the program. If we ever maintain some level of consistency on the staff, I think good things will happen. Problem for Brewster is that if it doesn't happen in the next year or so, he won't get to be around for those good things.

I like the guy. I think he's been honest and forthright about what needs to happen here and if he's done anything wrong, it's that he's sugar-coated it a bit. This has been a middling program with a couple of performance spikes during Mason's ten years that should be better than a middling program. Everyone has to pull the rope in the same direction if we are going to get out of that mire.

 

[littlebigboy]

The guy is getting most of the states top recrits, nobody will get them all. He still needs thru the 2011 season to show if he has built the program. He has a plan and should be allowed to finish it. A goal without a plan(ie. talk) is just a wish, he has laid out his plan which will work or hang him.

 

[eag35]

He doesnt have to be a great x's and o's guy? Are you people nuts? Have you ever been to a practice and seen a top level head coach work? they do not just stand around with their fingers up their bunghole...they actually COACH! They are correcting, they are instructing, they are in the faces of players that need it. The head coach better know what he is talking aobut when he does address the team and makes adjustments.
Ridiculous statement.

 

[Hates Monikers]

"I know he can recruit, but so can every other Big Ten coach, and that goes all the way down to Indiana who hauled in some nice pickups. That means you sure as hell better be able to coach in this league or you will wind up in the broadcast booth in a hurry if you can't recruit or coach with the rest of them."


That's the little secret nobody wants to acknowledge around here. Brewster's No 1. asset (in many people's opinon) is his recruiting. Yet our recruiting classes have slipped from 17th to 39th to 50th. We're right back into the middle or bottom of the Big Ten. Why the decline? Why are we missing out on Michael Floyd, Bryce McNeal, Seantrel Henderson?

I'm disappointed in this year's class, too, but I think it's very natural. A new coach comes in and can give a message of change and excitement to recruits. Recruiting gets a bump for a year or two, then they want to see results on the field. Unfortunately, the guys the new coach brings in are sophomores (at most) on the field, with most of them freshmen or redshirt freshmen. You don't win that way. (In that vein, I think the Illinois win killed us. Win that game, and Brewster could factually claim progress, with a better conference record.) The recruting can turn around again next year, but it will mean wins -- as it should at this point.

Having said all that, most of the Minnesota kids who are five stars getting recruited by OSU, USC and Notre Dame still aren't coming here for a while. It's just really hard to turn that down. That's not unusual for five star kids in many stats.

 

[dpodoll68]

That's the little secret nobody wants to acknowledge around here. Brewster's No 1. asset (in many people's opinon) is his recruiting. Yet our recruiting classes have slipped from 17th to 39th to 50th. We're right back into the middle or bottom of the Big Ten. Why the decline? Why are we missing out on Michael Floyd, Bryce McNeal, Seantrel Henderson?

It's not a secret at all. Surely you're not serious with this question, are you?

You say "we're right back into the middle or bottom of the Big Ten" in recruiting. NEWS FLASH: We've been in the middle or bottom of the Big Ten, on the field, every year since 1967!! Do you even watch the games? Are you aware of the perpetual mediocrity-at-best of this team?

And you expect Brewster to walk in and recruit like frickin' Mack Brown? NEWS FLASH #2: He's recruiting to Minnesota. Not Texas. Not Florida. Not Penn St. Not USC. Not even Washington or Tennessee. And you expect him to be able to recruit at the level of those programs?

The fact that he's even recruiting at a "lowly" #50 ranking is amazing in and of itself. That's a full 15 or 20 spots ahead of our ranking on the field. Two years ago, he had a program that was completely gutted, and he had playing time and a brand-new stadium on the horizon to sell. That was why he was able to recruit 100 places above our on-the-field ranking.

Now, the roster is as deep and talented as it has been in at least 6-7 years, and the novelty of the new stadium has diminished, if only a little. Anyone who knows anything about recruiting, and how these cycles work, knew exactly what was coming this year. He didn't have the aforementioned things in his back pocket to sell to recruits. The only way our recruiting could have been better is if Brewster pulled a miracle and won 10 or 11 games this year against one of the toughest schedules in the country. Unsurprisingly, he didn't. But, apparently surprisingly to some, he still recruited far above his lot in life.

There is a veritable plethora of things that are legitimate gripes regarding Brewster and how he runs this program. But his recruiting is not one of them. Not even close. Basically, what I'm saying is: get a clue.

 

[Maverick]

It's not a secret at all. Surely you're not serious with this question, are you?

You say "we're right back into the middle or bottom of the Big Ten" in recruiting. NEWS FLASH: We've been in the middle or bottom of the Big Ten, on the field, every year since 1967!! Do you even watch the games? Are you aware of the perpetual mediocrity-at-best of this team?

And you expect Brewster to walk in and recruit like frickin' Mack Brown? NEWS FLASH #2: He's recruiting to Minnesota. Not Texas. Not Florida. Not Penn St. Not USC. Not even Washington or Tennessee. And you expect him to be able to recruit at the level of those programs?

The fact that he's even recruiting at a "lowly" #50 ranking is amazing in and of itself. That's a full 15 or 20 spots ahead of our ranking on the field. Two years ago, he had a program that was completely gutted, and he had playing time and a brand-new stadium on the horizon to sell. That was why he was able to recruit 100 places above our on-the-field ranking.

Now, the roster is as deep and talented as it has been in at least 6-7 years, and the novelty of the new stadium has diminished, if only a little. Anyone who knows anything about recruiting, and how these cycles work, knew exactly what was coming this year. He didn't have the aforementioned things in his back pocket to sell to recruits. The only way our recruiting could have been better is if Brewster pulled a miracle and won 10 or 11 games this year against one of the toughest schedules in the country. Unsurprisingly, he didn't. But, apparently surprisingly to some, he still recruited far above his lot in life.

There is a veritable plethora of things that are legitimate gripes regarding Brewster and how he runs this program. But his recruiting is not one of them. Not even close. Basically, what I'm saying is: get a clue.

/\ /\ /\

 

[91 CLA Grad]

If you're statement that he lost a lot of support after the 1-11 season is correct, it says more about the fans we lost than the coach we still have.

+1

 

[Bo Darville]

If you look at the records, except the 1-11 season, he's done about the same as Mason did and his best players are still pretty young.

http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/bigten/minnesota/index.php

Also, it's kind of interesting to note that this official college football information source calls us "The U".

 

[MNCH]

It's not a secret at all. Surely you're not serious with this question, are you?

You say "we're right back into the middle or bottom of the Big Ten" in recruiting. NEWS FLASH: We've been in the middle or bottom of the Big Ten, on the field, every year since 1967!! Do you even watch the games? Are you aware of the perpetual mediocrity-at-best of this team?

And you expect Brewster to walk in and recruit like frickin' Mack Brown? NEWS FLASH #2: He's recruiting to Minnesota. Not Texas. Not Florida. Not Penn St. Not USC. Not even Washington or Tennessee. And you expect him to be able to recruit at the level of those programs?

The fact that he's even recruiting at a "lowly" #50 ranking is amazing in and of itself. That's a full 15 or 20 spots ahead of our ranking on the field. Two years ago, he had a program that was completely gutted, and he had playing time and a brand-new stadium on the horizon to sell. That was why he was able to recruit 100 places above our on-the-field ranking.

Now, the roster is as deep and talented as it has been in at least 6-7 years, and the novelty of the new stadium has diminished, if only a little. Anyone who knows anything about recruiting, and how these cycles work, knew exactly what was coming this year. He didn't have the aforementioned things in his back pocket to sell to recruits. The only way our recruiting could have been better is if Brewster pulled a miracle and won 10 or 11 games this year against one of the toughest schedules in the country. Unsurprisingly, he didn't. But, apparently surprisingly to some, he still recruited far above his lot in life.

There is a veritable plethora of things that are legitimate gripes regarding Brewster and how he runs this program. But his recruiting is not one of them. Not even close. Basically, what I'm saying is: get a clue.

The topic is recruiting so do I watch the games? No, mostly I do not watch the high school games recruits are playing in. Do I watch Gopher games? I was pretty much there in person for the entire Metrodome era and you can throw in a few Stoll/Salem games as well.

My point is, Brewster is supposed to be a master recruiter (waiting for a poster to chime in about Vince Young anytime now...) and its partially why he got the job at Minnesota. In year one (I won't count the 2007 class), he delivers the 17th-ranked class in the country. Bravo! Year two, we've slipped back to 39th. Hmm. And with this class, its down to 50 and right back to 6th to 10th-place recruiting finish in the Big 10, depending on the recruiting source you want to use. So why are we back to the status quo in recruiting if that's Brewster's No. 1 asset? Why are we not landing the Top 25 recruiting classes? He somehow accomplished a Top 25 in the middle of a 1-11 season, so why didn't it happen this year when the team went to a bowl game?

Mason was delivering similar recruiting classes and was selling the Metrodome. Brewster can sell a brand-new stadium to his recruits and is getting the same recruiting results. Many posters around here stated for fans to have patience and just wait until we got into our own stadium and then we would compete with the top of the Big 10 for recruits. Well, we're now in our new home and the excuses have run out. Yet the same results. Why?

 

[dpodoll68]

The topic is recruiting so do I watch the games? No, mostly I do not watch the high school games recruits are playing in. Do I watch Gopher games? I was pretty much there in person for the entire Metrodome era and you can throw in a few Stoll/Salem games as well.

My point is, Brewster is supposed to be a master recruiter (waiting for a poster to chime in about Vince Young anytime now...) and its partially why he got the job at Minnesota. In year one (I won't count the 2007 class), he delivers the 17th-ranked class in the country. Bravo! Year two, we've slipped back to 39th. Hmm. And with this class, its down to 50 and right back to 6th to 10th-place recruiting finish in the Big 10, depending on the recruiting source you want to use. So why are we back to the status quo in recruiting if that's Brewster's No. 1 asset? Why are we not landing the Top 25 recruiting classes? He somehow accomplished a Top 25 in the middle of a 1-11 season, so why didn't it happen this year when the team went to a bowl game?

Mason was delivering similar recruiting classes and was selling the Metrodome. Brewster can sell a brand-new stadium to his recruits and is getting the same recruiting results. Many posters around here stated for fans to have patience and just wait until we got into our own stadium and then we would compete with the top of the Big 10 for recruits. Well, we're now in our new home and the excuses have run out. Yet the same results. Why?

Seriously, did you even read my post? I've already answered every single question you asked, and you just ignored them and restated the exact same questions.

It's obvious that, despite all logic and reason to the contrary, you're just going to believe what you want to believe regardless of the facts. I'm done wasting my breath on you.

I lied. I had to point out this blatantly incorrect fact in your post:

"why are we back to the status quo in recruiting"

2002 Big Ten 9th overall 55th
2003 Big Ten 4th overall 37th
2004 Big Ten 9th overall 58th
2005 Big Ten 10th overall 55th
2006 Big Ten 9th overall 62nd
2007 Big Ten 9th overall 57th
2008 Big Ten 3rd overall 17th
2009 Big Ten 6th overall 39th
2010 Big Ten 6th overall 50th

In other words, outside of the anomaly of 2003 (following a 10-win season), Mason's best finish was 9th. Brewster's worst finish is 6th. In other words, Mason had the school's first 10-win season in 98 years, and he managed to basically finish in the same place nationally as Brewster's "horrible" 2009 class. And this year's "horrible" class still was better than every Mason class except one, which, I will repeat, followed a season with the most wins in school history since 1905.

You seriously need to stop talking when it comes to recruiting. It is beyond obvious that you have no idea what you're talking about.

Find something else to rip Brewster about. There is plenty. You simply have absolutely no shot of winning the "Brewster is a poor recruiter" argument.

 

[GophersInIowa]

Of course. The football coach is a representative of the University. It matters to me that he does that well, in addition to winning football games.

I'm not saying using 8 adjectives is the end of the world, but to answer your question in a general sense, of course it does.

So Brewster talking about big goals of winning the Big Ten Championship and going to the Rose Bowl is not a good way to represent the Universiy? Maybe his personality is different than the average joe in the upper midwest but that doesn't mean he's a bad representative of the university.

As long as he's not doing "Lane Kiffin" kind of stuff, I don't really care how he words things in his press conferences. It all comes down to wins and losses.

 

[RodentRampage]

So Brewster talking about big goals of winning the Big Ten Championship and going to the Rose Bowl is not a good way to represent the Universiy? Maybe his personality is different than the average joe in the upper midwest but that doesn't mean he's a bad representative of the university.

As long as he's not doing "Lane Kiffin" kind of stuff, I don't really care how he words things in his press conferences. It all comes down to wins and losses.

A gopher football coach being optimistic and setting high goals makes the local media angry.

 

[Halsey Hall]

Every year I've gone to the recruiting party. This year I had zero interest. Brewster has turned me off big time. We give him an extension so he can recruit and look what he winds up with. He wastes a scholie on JD PRide for god sakes. The guy can barely throw a 10 yard pass. We give him a ride so we can get Seantrel. What a dumb move. Brewster is all hat and no cattle. Reusse and Souhan are right. If he loses this year, which he will, he's gone. Good riddance.

 

[Clyde Tester]

2002 Big Ten 9th overall 55th
2003 Big Ten 4th overall 37th
2004 Big Ten 9th overall 58th
2005 Big Ten 10th overall 55th
2006 Big Ten 9th overall 62nd
2007 Big Ten 9th overall 57th
2008 Big Ten 3rd overall 17th
2009 Big Ten 6th overall 39th
2010 Big Ten 6th overall 50th

dpodoll, I have no stake in the current purse-fight that is going on , but I'm wondering what the numbers look like if you use Scout instead of Rivals? Is Scout ALWAYS below Rivals, or is that just what happened this year? As I've state before, I'm not a recruiting expert so I don't know how Scout and Rivals typically compare, nor do I now how Scout has rated past Gopher classes (I only know the Rivals numbers thanks to your above post). Any thoughts?

 

[Iceland12]

Every year I've gone to the recruiting party. This year I had zero interest. Brewster has turned me off big time. We give him an extension so he can recruit and look what he winds up with. He wastes a scholie on JD PRide for god sakes. The guy can barely throw a 10 yard pass. We give him a ride so we can get Seantrel. What a dumb move. Brewster is all hat and no cattle. Reusse and Souhan are right. If he loses this year, which he will, he's gone. Good riddance.

I only really remember back to Stoll. What were the recruiting parties like under Henry Williams?

 

[BrewsterBooster]

A Classic

I only really remember back to Stoll. What were the recruiting parties like under Henry Williams?

LMAO at that one. I have this image in my head of some of the whining fans sitting on the john with their faces contorted in pain trying to push through their constipation. Good gosh almighty.

 

[RodentRampage]

Imagine losing a recuit to USC. Who loses recuits to the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain of all places. Oh, it's not that USC? Well, imagine losing a recruit to the University of the Southern Caribbean‎. Not that USC either? Then surely it must have been the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia, right?

Oh, it's that USC. I'm disappointed he didn't come here too, but basing a negative assessment of Brewster's recruiting on not beating out USC is pretty harsh.

 

[Gopherprof]

While I agree that judging Brewster to a non-existant standard of excellence is unfair, I also reject comparing him to Mason as a recruiter.

Mason was a TERRIBLE recruiter, and coached primarily in a era where it was still somewhat acceptable to be so, at least among mid-tier programs. The guy both didn't care and didn't believe in heavily pursuing kids. Therefore, to say that Mason is the normative as it pertains to recruiting, at least in 2010, is unfair, and I think it gives Brewster far too much credit.

Yes, Brewster has improved the recruiting, but he improved it above levels that were far more pathetic than they ever needed to be, and with the added help of a brand new stadium. Point being, getting rid of Brewster would not return us to Mason-era recruiting standards, unless we hire an equally inept recruiter.

 

[Costa Rican Gopher]

I'm sick of people with an axe to grind using the terms "Snake oil salesman" & "Used car salesman" with the intebntion of undermining the man's integrity & insinuating he's a liar or fraud who doesn't actually believe in the product he's selling. Even his biggest critics admit he's 100% sincere so it's a lame duck argument that just "outs" the user as having an agenda. Brew does not sell "snake oil" or "used cars", he sells the U of M, a product we should all be proud of.

Now, call him a "motivational speaker" or "salesman" and I'd agree with you, but of course both of those things are positive.

 

[GopherinPhilly]

My take on Brewster...FWIW

First, let me say that I am a Gopher fan and a U of M graduate. I also don't really care who our coaches are...just that they do a good job and represent my school well. That being said...here is my take on Brewster...

He is the first coach we have had since Sweet Lou stuck it in our backsides that I believe has any hope of getting us to the next level...Period.

Our talent, our atheletes, our coaching staff, our program is in its best shape in 30 plus years and Brewster works hard every day to improve it. Couldn't say that about Mason or Gute and Holtz was a sleaze and whore...not just talked like one.

Brewster earned his extension not with wins but by changing the environment of our program. I believe we can and will be average for several more years as we stabilize our coaches and coordinators...but with consistent recruiting and deeper talent...we will get better. As we become a top 50 team instead of a top 90 team...Brewster will continue to recruit above our rank and give us top 25 talent...guess what happens 2-3 years after that...we are a top 25 team and the possibilities are endless after that. Who else could we have hired that would have done the work, put in the time, stayed the course, recruited his ass off and gave it all up for our Gophers? We have been through 6 guys in 40 years that didn't, couldn't or wouldn't.

I appreciate and respect the job Brewster has done and am excited that he has 3 more years to grow into the job and develop our athletes.

5 years from now I believe we will be like Oregon or Cal...top 25 and can compete with the best in their conference...maybe no every year...but compete and win some.

 

[harrys ghost]

dpodoll, I have no stake in the current purse-fight that is going on , but I'm wondering what the numbers look like if you use Scout instead of Rivals? Is Scout ALWAYS below Rivals, or is that just what happened this year? As I've state before, I'm not a recruiting expert so I don't know how Scout and Rivals typically compare, nor do I now how Scout has rated past Gopher classes (I only know the Rivals numbers thanks to your above post). Any thoughts?

FWIW, Scout numbers are:

2002 Big Ten 10th overall 67th
2003 Big Ten 8th overall 53th
2004 Big Ten 9th overall 58th
2005 Big Ten 10th overall 56th
2006 Big Ten 9th overall 62nd
2007 Big Ten 10th overall 59th
2008 Big Ten 5rd overall 28th
2009 Big Ten 6th overall 46th
2010 Big Ten 11th overall 70th

 

[Costa Rican Gopher]

"dpodoll, I have no stake in the current purse-fight that is going on , but I'm wondering what the numbers look like if you use Scout instead of Rivals? Is Scout ALWAYS below Rivals, or is that just what happened this year? As I've state before, I'm not a recruiting expert so I don't know how Scout and Rivals typically compare, nor do I now how Scout has rated past Gopher classes (I only know the Rivals numbers thanks to your above post). Any thoughts?"

Scout graded a lot of our players without having seen film on them. Rivals graded most of those same players after actually watching their film (I think Rivals missed 3 total, 1 of whom was at an All-Star game all week for Rivals to evaluate, so it's really 2 players). That kind of sums it up I think.

Also interesting is Scout grading the bulk of our players they haven't seen film on as 2* while the Wisconsin recruits they haven't seen film on, who hold similar offers are 3* players. Ryan James had an interesting post on this subject on another site.

Bottom line is Rivals = Coke, ESPN = Pepsi, Scout = RC Cola.

 

[tikited]

First, let me say that I am a Gopher fan and a U of M graduate. I also don't really care who our coaches are...just that they do a good job and represent my school well. That being said...here is my take on Brewster...

He is the first coach we have had since Sweet Lou stuck it in our backsides that I believe has any hope of getting us to the next level...Period.

Our talent, our atheletes, our coaching staff, our program is in its best shape in 30 plus years and Brewster works hard every day to improve it. Couldn't say that about Mason or Gute and Holtz was a sleaze and whore...not just talked like one.

Brewster earned his extension not with wins but by changing the environment of our program. I believe we can and will be average for several more years as we stabilize our coaches and coordinators...but with consistent recruiting and deeper talent...we will get better. As we become a top 50 team instead of a top 90 team...Brewster will continue to recruit above our rank and give us top 25 talent...guess what happens 2-3 years after that...we are a top 25 team and the possibilities are endless after that. Who else could we have hired that would have done the work, put in the time, stayed the course, recruited his ass off and gave it all up for our Gophers? We have been through 6 guys in 40 years that didn't, couldn't or wouldn't.

I appreciate and respect the job Brewster has done and am excited that he has 3 more years to grow into the job and develop our athletes.

5 years from now I believe we will be like Oregon or Cal...top 25 and can compete with the best in their conference...maybe no every year...but compete and win some.

Well put!

 

[Clyde Tester]

Bottom line is Rivals = Coke, ESPN = Pepsi, Scout = RC Cola.

Unfortunately this hurts because I love RC Cola! Dang.

 

[Costa Rican Gopher]

"Unfortunately this hurts because I love RC Cola! Dang."

Buy stock, make some sweet moolah!!

 

[WAGopher]

Bottom line is Rivals = Coke, ESPN = Pepsi, Scout = RC Cola.

How dare you disrespect RC Cola this way? I've had RC Cola and it's a damn fine drink. I would compare Scout with Tab. Tab says it's a cola, and it looks like a cola, but anyone that's drank it knows it's not a cola.