Claeys said handful of players apologized and said they'd be more prepared next game

[BleedGopher]

per the STrib:

The players danced and sang in the locker room, whooping it up good and loud after Saturday’s 39-38 victory over Purdue. Beneath that noise were the sounds of Gophers coaches sighing in relief.

They had entered as two-touchdown favorites, and the defense’s usual hunger and focus weren’t there for the first half.

“A handful of them apologized and said they would be more prepared and ready to play the next game,” defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys said Sunday. “And I said, ‘I don’t want any apology.’ I just want their best effort. I think for the last 25 minutes, we got their best effort. But we’ve got to have it for 60.”

http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/279730102.html

Go Gophers!!

 

[Jeshurun]

Claeys said handful of players apologized and said they'd be more prepared ne...

per the STrib:

The players danced and sang in the locker room, whooping it up good and loud after Saturday’s 39-38 victory over Purdue. Beneath that noise were the sounds of Gophers coaches sighing in relief.

They had entered as two-touchdown favorites, and the defense’s usual hunger and focus weren’t there for the first half.

“A handful of them apologized and said they would be more prepared and ready to play the next game,” defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys said Sunday. “And I said, ‘I don’t want any apology.’ I just want their best effort. I think for the last 25 minutes, we got their best effort. But we’ve got to have it for 60.”

http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/279730102.html

Go Gophers!!

Great learning experience for the young men to see what happens when you don't give your all preparing for each and every game - good lesson in humility and really cool that the players took personal responsibility by apologizing.

 

[Too Long in the Wasteland]

Great learning experience for the young men to see what happens when you don't give your all preparing for each and every game - good lesson in humility and really cool that the players took personal responsibility by apologizing.

We aren't good enough (yet) to take anyone for granted. Glad we got that out of our system. It'll be interesting to see the intensity vs. IL

I read in the StP paper that one of the coaches (not sure if it was Claeys or Kill) said that PU hit us with a bunch of personnel sets and formations that we hadn't seen on film. So some of the first half debacle is on the coaches, not the players. Nice adjustments at halftime, though.

 

[DoubleAlum]

What I find really interesting here is this: had a blogger suggested that the players didn't prepare themselves properly for Purdue, he or she would've taken a great deal of crap from fellow bloggers. Yet, here are players suggesting that indeed they didn't prepare adequately. I wonder how much of this is true? I'd like to hear from some former players whether you actually made a conscious decision from week to week how hard you were going to prepare yourself for an opponent. I just can't imagine myself walking around on campus talking with my teammates and thinking that I don't have to prepare too hard for this game given the opponent. The thought of blowing an expected win for my teammates and coaches and whatnot would bother me too much. They've all played alot of sports and I'm sure they've encountered the pain of an upset before. Thinking that pain would be a good reminder of how they never want to feel that way again. Yet, I've long forgotten what it's like to be 20 years old. And I never knew what it was like to be a premier athlete. So, I probably can't even relate.

 

[killme]

Yeah, in a lot of ways persevering and learning a lesson in a thrilling win, not a crushing loss, has value. And, we can put it in practice right away this weekend. Then put the lesson away since there's no way we'll have an intensity let down the last four games. I think I've seen enough this season to believe when we're on, we can beat anybody. It really isn't too far-fetched to imagine winning out!

 

[Iceland12]

per the STrib:

The players danced and sang in the locker room, whooping it up good and loud after Saturday’s 39-38 victory over Purdue. Beneath that noise were the sounds of Gophers coaches sighing in relief.

They had entered as two-touchdown favorites, and the defense’s usual hunger and focus weren’t there for the first half.

“A handful of them apologized and said they would be more prepared and ready to play the next game,” defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys said Sunday. “And I said, ‘I don’t want any apology.’ I just want their best effort. I think for the last 25 minutes, we got their best effort. But we’ve got to have it for 60.”

http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/279730102.html

Go Gophers!!

Better than saying "We stuck with the man-to-man coverage way to long in the 1st Half" I guess.

 

[Okie]

I'm torn between feeling better about the Illinois game because of the Purdue game kind of being a "wake-up call" and feeling worse about it because we only beat Purdue by 1 at home...

 

[Ole]

Purdue's got speed at the skill positions, which tested our defensive players' angles of pursuit. Several players took bad angles/missed reads/missed tackles on those big gainers.
It's a great thing for those players to have been scared like that, it shouldn't happen again.
I trust our defense, an amazing revelation for a gopher fan.

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

What I find really interesting here is this: had a blogger suggested that the players didn't prepare themselves properly for Purdue, he or she would've taken a great deal of crap from fellow bloggers. Yet, here are players suggesting that indeed they didn't prepare adequately. I wonder how much of this is true? I'd like to hear from some former players whether you actually made a conscious decision from week to week how hard you were going to prepare yourself for an opponent. I just can't imagine myself walking around on campus talking with my teammates and thinking that I don't have to prepare too hard for this game given the opponent. The thought of blowing an expected win for my teammates and coaches and whatnot would bother me too much. They've all played alot of sports and I'm sure they've encountered the pain of an upset before. Thinking that pain would be a good reminder of how they never want to feel that way again. Yet, I've long forgotten what it's like to be 20 years old. And I never knew what it was like to be a premier athlete. So, I probably can't even relate.

I certainly can't imagine they consciously thought "Purdue stinks, so I am not going to focus and prepare hard this week." Rather, I think the line of thought would have been "Purdue stinks, and we are going to hammer them, but I am still going to work hard like I always do" and then when a bad team took it to them in the first half, it dawned on them and they thought "oh crap, looking back on it, I really didn't take them as seriously as I should and should have prepared harder."

 

[Hammer em']

I continue to be amazed at the coaching staffs ability to make halftime adjustments. It's been a long time since we've had a coach who can do that.

 

[killme]

Another thing that I think may have contributed to the letdown might be that after 4 plays on defense we were up 14-0 with two picks, one a pick 6. The offsides killed the momentum and Perdew got a big lift. Next thing you know we have a ball game. It really looked like our energy and intensity was down the rest of the half. But, it was obviously back the final 25 minutes.

 

[Golden Elephant]

I certainly can't imagine they consciously thought "Purdue stinks, so I am not going to focus and prepare hard this week." Rather, I think the line of thought would have been "Purdue stinks, and we are going to hammer them, but I am still going to work hard like I always do" and then when a bad team took it to them in the first half, it dawned on them and they thought "oh crap, looking back on it, I really didn't take them as seriously as I should and should have prepared harder."

This is exactly right. It's not a conscious thing. It's just a natural human tendency. We can't always be on high alert, we like to relax. After 2 weeks in a row of being on high alert/high motivation against Michigan and then Northwestern (who thankfully showed us in their 2 prior weeks that they were NOT a team to take lightly), we played Purdue. Purdue last year had one of the worst Big 10 seasons in a long team by any B1G team. Then this year they get crushed by C Mich and lose at home to Iowa by 14. They did look much improved against Ill & MSU, but players could still rationalize those performances (Ill is bad, MSU kept getting up big on Purdue and then relaxing).

Anyway, Illinois appears to be in full coach-firing mode. It's always possible that teams can have "players-only meetings" or somehow or other get their act together over a bye week, but that's the only hope they have. We should be able to show up just as half-assed as we showed up against Purdue and still win. Now, I certainly hope we don't, because Illinois could somehow get their act together and/or this new soph QB could be unexpectedly good and we could have a few bad breaks and find ourselves in a real dogfight like we did against Purdue.

So, hopefully Purdue was a wake-up call and we're hungry and excited for this game, looking to give our all before the bye week.

 

[Sparlimb]

I'm torn between feeling better about the Illinois game because of the Purdue game kind of being a "wake-up call" and feeling worse about it because we only beat Purdue by 1 at home...

Correct. We feel good about the Purdue game because we found a way to win. It possibly should scare the hell out of us that we weren't much better than Purdue in that game.

 

[e.bigelow]

per the STrib:

The players danced and sang in the locker room, whooping it up good and loud after Saturday’s 39-38 victory over Purdue. Beneath that noise were the sounds of Gophers coaches sighing in relief.

They had entered as two-touchdown favorites, and the defense’s usual hunger and focus weren’t there for the first half.

“A handful of them apologized and said they would be more prepared and ready to play the next game,” defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys said Sunday. “And I said, ‘I don’t want any apology.’ I just want their best effort. I think for the last 25 minutes, we got their best effort. But we’ve got to have it for 60.”

http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/279730102.html

Go Gophers!!

I love the bold statement by Claeys.

 

[MNVCGUY]

Correct. We feel good about the Purdue game because we found a way to win. It possibly should scare the hell out of us that we weren't much better than Purdue in that game.

Really this is the story of the Big Ten this season. There is very little separation from the top of the conference to the bottom of the conference. You have the clear cut favorites (MSU, OSU, maybe NEB) but after that I honestly feel like anyone can beat anyone on any given Saturday and even those top teams don't come across as untouchable the way they used to.

 

[Iceland12]

Really this is the story of the Big Ten this season. There is very little separation from the top of the conference to the bottom of the conference. You have the clear cut favorites (MSU, OSU, maybe NEB) but after that I honestly feel like anyone can beat anyone on any given Saturday and even those top teams don't come across as untouchable the way they used to.

This.

 

[BarnBoy]

What I find really interesting here is this: had a blogger suggested that the players didn't prepare themselves properly for Purdue, he or she would've taken a great deal of crap from fellow bloggers. Yet, here are players suggesting that indeed they didn't prepare adequately. I wonder how much of this is true? I'd like to hear from some former players whether you actually made a conscious decision from week to week how hard you were going to prepare yourself for an opponent. I just can't imagine myself walking around on campus talking with my teammates and thinking that I don't have to prepare too hard for this game given the opponent. The thought of blowing an expected win for my teammates and coaches and whatnot would bother me too much. They've all played alot of sports and I'm sure they've encountered the pain of an upset before. Thinking that pain would be a good reminder of how they never want to feel that way again. Yet, I've long forgotten what it's like to be 20 years old. And I never knew what it was like to be a premier athlete. So, I probably can't even relate.

I think there are two things going on here:

1. Actual preperation. Were they listening in practice? Did they know what they were supposed to do on key assignments?
2. Mental preperation. Did they underestimate Purdue and not come out with enough intensity?

I suspect more #2. The coaches have nothing to do with that. Only the player can put himself into a good mental position to come out with intensity and compete.

My guess.

 

[Too Long in the Wasteland]

This is exactly right. It's not a conscious thing. It's just a natural human tendency. We can't always be on high alert, we like to relax. After 2 weeks in a row of being on high alert/high motivation against Michigan and then Northwestern (who thankfully showed us in their 2 prior weeks that they were NOT a team to take lightly), we played Purdue. Purdue last year had one of the worst Big 10 seasons in a long team by any B1G team. Then this year they get crushed by C Mich and lose at home to Iowa by 14. They did look much improved against Ill & MSU, but players could still rationalize those performances (Ill is bad, MSU kept getting up big on Purdue and then relaxing).

Anyway, Illinois appears to be in full coach-firing mode. It's always possible that teams can have "players-only meetings" or somehow or other get their act together over a bye week, but that's the only hope they have. We should be able to show up just as half-assed as we showed up against Purdue and still win. Now, I certainly hope we don't, because Illinois could somehow get their act together and/or this new soph QB could be unexpectedly good and we could have a few bad breaks and find ourselves in a real dogfight like we did against Purdue.

I agree with the first bolded statement. Us older guys sometimes forget that we're talking about a bunch of 20-22 year old (or younger) kids. Expecting them to stay focused week in and week out would be ridiculous. They start reading about themselves on the ESPN BT blog or btn.com and then think "yeah, we'll just coast past Purdue". Obviously they needed a kick in the azz, which the first half provided. Credit the coaches for the halftime adjustments, too.

As for your 2nd bolded statement, if we come out half-azzed, we can easily lose to Illinois. As several posters have pointed out, they are in full-on desperation mode. Tim Beckman is one loss away from having to paint his house in neutral colors. Now if we come out focused, there's no reason we shouldn't win by 2 scores. As I said in an earlier post, we had some crappy football to get out of our system. Let's hope this past Saturday took care of that.

 

[MrGopher]

I'm torn between feeling better about the Illinois game because of the Purdue game kind of being a "wake-up call" and feeling worse about it because we only beat Purdue by 1 at home...

I see what you're getting at here, but you wait and watch Purdue surprise someone: they have a bye, @Neb, wisky, NW, @Ind. This is a Purdue team on the rise.

 

[DoubleAlum]

I agree with the first bolded statement. Us older guys sometimes forget that we're talking about a bunch of 20-22 year old (or younger) kids. Expecting them to stay focused week in and week out would be ridiculous. They start reading about themselves on the ESPN BT blog or btn.com and then think "yeah, we'll just coast past Purdue". Obviously they needed a kick in the azz, which the first half provided. Credit the coaches for the halftime adjustments, too.

As for your 2nd bolded statement, if we come out half-azzed, we can easily lose to Illinois. As several posters have pointed out, they are in full-on desperation mode. Tim Beckman is one loss away from having to paint his house in neutral colors. Now if we come out focused, there's no reason we shouldn't win by 2 scores. As I said in an earlier post, we had some crappy football to get out of our system. Let's hope this past Saturday took care of that.

Having a dear mother who recently passed away, and having to get her nice home ready for sale and updated beyond 1970's shag carpeting and foiled wall paper, I find your statement above that I bolded to be absolutely priceless. You should be a full time comedian brother!!

 

[Spoofin]

I think there are two things going on here:

1. Actual preperation. Were they listening in practice? Did they know what they were supposed to do on key assignments?
2. Mental preperation. Did they underestimate Purdue and not come out with enough intensity?

I suspect more #2. The coaches have nothing to do with that. Only the player can put himself into a good mental position to come out with intensity and compete.

My guess.

My guess as well.

 

[killme]

Having a dear mother who recently passed away, and having to get her nice home ready for sale and updated beyond 1970's shag carpeting and foiled wall paper, I find your statement above that I bolded to be absolutely priceless. You should be a full time comedian brother!!

Condolences on your loss. It's nice to have something positive happening like the Gophers, eh? I certainly have received a lift the past three weeks when I really needed it.

 

[DoubleAlum]

Condolences on your loss. It's nice to have something positive happening like the Gophers, eh? I certainly have received a lift the past three weeks when I really needed it.

Thank you killme. It was definitely a difficult few months. And you're right, the Gophers have put some joy in my heart again.

 

[GophersInIowa]

Another thing that I think may have contributed to the letdown might be that after 4 plays on defense we were up 14-0 with two picks, one a pick 6. The offsides killed the momentum and Perdew got a big lift. Next thing you know we have a ball game. It really looked like our energy and intensity was down the rest of the half. But, it was obviously back the final 25 minutes.

I don't think the pick 6 happens without the offsides. Looked to me that Appleby knew he had a free play and just the ball go before he got hit.

 

[Too Long in the Wasteland]

Having a dear mother who recently passed away, and having to get her nice home ready for sale and updated beyond 1970's shag carpeting and foiled wall paper, I find your statement above that I bolded to be absolutely priceless. You should be a full time comedian brother!!

My condolences as well. At least you have Gopher football to cheer you up. I went thru the same thing about 4 years ago, so I had the Brewster era to keep me company. I hope your mom wasn't a pack rat like my parents were!

 

[50PoundHead]

I want to make it clear I'm not ripping on anyone, but I thought the problems in the first half could be traced to the players and the schemes. Claeys dials it up on every play and I started noticing during the Northwestern game that teams are counter-punching us and using our aggressiveness against us in some instances. It think that was really clear on both of Mostart's long runs. Things got better in the second half when we started to mix in some zone coverage and having the LBs read instead of just firing out.

I really like Claeys. He's a great coach and I think his making adjustments shows how great a coach he is. As much as we have improved athletically on defense since Kill has been here, I don't think we're quite where we need to be if we are going to have a no-holds-barred "blow everything up" approach on defense.

Again, don't get me wrong. I love Claeys and how he coaches and I love this set of defensive players. I think we just have to play a bit more constrained at times.

 

[Spoofin]

I want to make it clear I'm not ripping on anyone, but I thought the problems in the first half could be traced to the players and the schemes. Claeys dials it up on every play and I started noticing during the Northwestern game that teams are counter-punching us and using our aggressiveness against us in some instances. It think that was really clear on both of Mostart's long runs. Things got better in the second half when we started to mix in some zone coverage and having the LBs read instead of just firing out.

I really like Claeys. He's a great coach and I think his making adjustments shows how great a coach he is. As much as we have improved athletically on defense since Kill has been here, I don't think we're quite where we need to be if we are going to have a no-holds-barred "blow everything up" approach on defense.

Again, don't get me wrong. I love Claeys and how he coaches and I love this set of defensive players. I think we just have to play a bit more constrained at times.

Agreed. If Claeys gets a HC job it will be because of his incredible ability to make impact adjustments.