Doogie: Q&A with Gophers DC Tracy Claeys: "I want them to have a fresh start"

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I love these guys more every day.
 

After our second winning season, another school offered him a job, so Southern offered him more money. He said he wouldn't take another dime until the assistants were taken care of. Sure enough, he got us a really nice raise.
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Best part.
 

I bet our DL is itching to get going and play in Claeys agressive defense. A huge change for the guys who played under Cosgrove.
 

Defense is a big puzzle, and as long as everyone fits together -- we spend a lot of time on, 'if you miss a tackle, force the ball a certain way' -- so kids know where their help is just in case they don't make the play.
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I found that interesting. It's like, you know sometimes you'll miss tackles, but if you at least funnel them to help, you can prevent some of the HUGE gains we gave up last year. So often, a missed tackle or two led to TDs. Perhaps this philosophy can help turn a 50 yard run into a 10 yard run. Obviously, I'd hope the tackling just improves lol, but still, interesting.
 


Can anyone point out any other staff that moved together from job to job so completely?
 

Winnipegopher said:
Can anyone point out any other staff that moved together from job to job so completely?
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coach_240.jpg
 

Someone asked if any other new head coach anywhere moved so much of his entire staff with him as Kill has. I think Hayden Fry came very close when he went from North Texas State to Iowa in the late 1970s.

The comparison to Fry is a very compliment to Kill. One of Fry's assistance at North Texas State was Bill Snyder. He was Fry's offensive coordinator at Iowa before becoming the head coach at Kansas State. Snyder will be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame some day.

This is a great article. Fry brought new things to the Big 10 when he went to Iowa. Prior to his coming, Ohio State and Michigan completely dominated the conference with "three yards and a cloud of dust" offenses. Fry introduced a sophisticated passing game to the Big 10.

Jerry Kill is going to put in an offense patterned after the one at Boise State and a defense that will look like the one at TCU. THAT will be different in the Big 10.
 

Excellent interview. I like the specificity of some of it. When you are used to the generalizing b.s. of most coaches, this is refreshing. But don't expect wonders in the first game - which will be tough and on the road. As the season goes on, we should see some real Gopher improvement. These guys are very encouraging.
 



I like the defensive philosophy he brings. It takes good discipline to make it work, but letting opposing quarterbacks sit back there and wait five, six or seven seconds for a receiver to get open is an absolute morale killer. I think being a d-lineman in this system will feel a lot more like football, and less like stationary vertical wrestling.
 

Kill has shown me the values needed to be successful at this level. The Gophers will be fine.
 

Awesome interview, love the direction they're headed in. It's going to be interesting to see the starting lineup for both offense and defense.

Although, it did surprise me that Claeys said the coaches needed updated offices.
 

4four4 said:
Kill has shown me the values needed to be successful at this level. The Gophers will be fine.[/QUOTE

Are you saying the only coaches who succeed in Division I are great guys with sold gold American values who never cheat?
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Go4Broke said:
4four4 said:
Kill has shown me the values needed to be successful at this level. The Gophers will be fine.[/QUOTE

Are you saying the only coaches who succeed in Division I are great guys with sold gold American values who never cheat?
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Yeah, I'm sure that's exactly what he was saying. Seriously, how or why would you even interpret it that way?
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LonelyIowaGopher said:
Someone asked if any other new head coach anywhere moved so much of his entire staff with him as Kill has. I think Hayden Fry came very close when he went from North Texas State to Iowa in the late 1970s.

The comparison to Fry is a very compliment to Kill. One of Fry's assistance at North Texas State was Bill Snyder. He was Fry's offensive coordinator at Iowa before becoming the head coach at Kansas State. Snyder will be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame some day.

This is a great article. Fry brought new things to the Big 10 when he went to Iowa. Prior to his coming, Ohio State and Michigan completely dominated the conference with "three yards and a cloud of dust" offenses. Fry introduced a sophisticated passing game to the Big 10.

Jerry Kill is going to put in an offense patterned after the one at Boise State and a defense that will look like the one at TCU. THAT will be different in the Big 10.
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I love the last paragraph!!!!!!!!! I have never seen a Gopher Defense kick butt!!! I hope this will change with the coaching!!!! Go Go Gophers!!
 

I've been nothing but impressed with the coaching team since the day Kill was hired, I really think Joel stumbled onto something good this time.
 

Go4Broke said:
4four4 said:
Kill has shown me the values needed to be successful at this level. The Gophers will be fine.[/QUOTE

Are you saying the only coaches who succeed in Division I are great guys with sold gold American values who never cheat?
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At Minnesota you can't cheat or people within the university will turn you in.
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