GopherHole.com Q&A: Cosgrove discusses Rose Bowls, Nebraska and the Gophers

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It's not like the tax collector is coming to your house, taking a check out of your hands, and putting it in Kevin Cosgrove's hands. But if you think that a significant portion of the salaries for anyone in the athletic dept. isn't paid for through taxes and donations, you're sadly mistaken.

They may be able to operate largely on their own revenues, but how did they get to that point in the first place? If it were its own corporation, like some other football programs were, that'd be a different story. But it's not.
 

Iceland12 said:
Here's the points that Nebraska gave up in the four years Cosgrove was at Nebraska:

2004 - 27.1 per game
2005 - 21.0
2006 - 18.3
2007 - 32.9

2008 - under Bo Pellini's regime - 28.5. About a Field Goal's difference from 2007 and a touchdown difference from 2005 and 2006.

What style, what opponent, etc. should be fair game. Maybe the rush of spread offenses and good Quarterbacks into the Big 12 are having an affect. To run under the "we only care about 2007" seems a rather perjorative way to go.
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That's a great point, Iceland. I want to say, that on top of the stats you already provided, his defense from 2007 ran 240 more plays than the 2008 team. That's a lot more time to be on the field.

I figured this interview would get a few reactions, but this is some great discussion, and a lot of good points have been raised. I just wanted to comment on a few:

- As far as him not wanting to comment on some things that went down a NE, I think that was more him taking the higher road as to the behind-the-scenes stuff. When a coaching staff all gets fired, there's obviously a lot going on the public doesn't know about. I think he was really just trying to stay classy. I think as far as him owning up, he flat out said he wasn't going to make excuses. To learn from your mistakes is one thing, to dwell on them is another.

- As far as his entire career, he had one really bad year, the 2007 year. He had other years that weren't spectacular, but we're really talking about one bad year. Personally, I am in sales, I know I would not want people judging me on my worst sales year, but my whole body of work.

- On a personal note - I went into this interview just about as skeptical as any one of you, but I've gotta say, he won me over. He was very honest in his responses, and I don't feel he sugar-coated anything. As far as the sacks comment, I had my tape recorder on and off for off the record stuff. But I can say I did specifically ask him about being criticized about not putting pressure on the QB - that's where that comment came from. It wasn't like he just brought that up, it seems like it from the interview, and I apologize for that.

I'm not saying that everyone has to like him, or think he's the best person for the job, but right now - he's the guy that has the job. I plan to wait and see how he does. I tell you, I do like the guy, and I want him to do well - not just for him, but because it means we will succeed as a team.
 

Good job, GopherLady. I don't read all the interviews, but when it's somebody like a new DC I'm definitely interested in what they have to say.

I think there are lots of reasons to believe Cosgrove is a good DC and can succeed at Minnesota. As others have said, it would be a mistake to judge Coach Cosgrove on what happened in his worst season. You have to look at the body of work (i.e. Murray Warmath).

Thanks and keep up the good work, GL.

:)
 


I'm not a Cosgrove fan!!!! But he is here and we must hope for the best. He is not a bad position coach technically, so hopefully now that he is back working with Coach Lee things will be OK

dpodall68, you have no clue of how the athletic dept is funded, you are just letting your IGNORANCE show!!!
 


Dear Gopher Fans,

Today my heart is heavy with grave concerns for the future of your program. Remember this day Gopher fans because this is the day Tim Brewster was fired-he just doesn't know it yet. You all will see, in short order, the glaring incompetence of Kevin Cosgrove. His defensive style is bend and break repeatedly. He employs a very soft zone, usually, a cover three, sometimes a cover four, scheme which allows even the most mediocre QB's to pick his defense apart. Former Missouri QB Chase "Booger" Daniel summed up Cos's defense the best when he said:

[Paraphrasing]It's high school stuff...
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Note: I tried to find the exact quote but couldn't. Trust me though Gopher fans Daniel said it...

Furthermore, his scheme for the defensive line is not penetration, disruption and pressure. No Cosgrove's scheme for the DL is a passive gap control which can be easily exploited by the majority of offensive lines. If a defensive lineman needs to get to his gap and he misses, or goes to the wrong gap, there will be holes wide enough to drive a semi through. All you need to do is go back and watch any Nebraska game from '07.

Oh sure Gopher fans you'll be somewhat fine this season. But you guys will get progressively worse every season that KC is your DC. I'm a Nebraska fan and I saw first hand how terrible Kevin Cosgrove is...sadly, you guys will see it as well.

I'm not bashing you guys, or your program, I'm just telling you from personal experience what you're in for the next couple of seasons. I'll leave you with some somber defensive statistics from the '07 Nebraska season, keeping in mind that '07 was Cos's 4th year with the players he recruited when they should be at their absolute best:

Rushing Defense...116th out of 119.
Total Defense 112th out of 119.
Scoring Defense 114th out of 119

And, the one "bright" spot...

Pass Efficiency Defense 75th out of 119.

http://web1.ncaa.org/d1mfb/2007/Internet/ranking_summary/2007000000463.HTML

And as teams like Ohio State and Michigan transition to more spread type offenses with mobile QB's you guys are in for a real eye opening experience.

Good luck Gopher fans...you're really going to need it.

Husker94
 


They kinda came out of no where the past few days, didn't they?
 

Reminiscent of ...

GophersInIowa said:
They kinda came out of no where the past few days, didn't they?
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(but not as bad as) the Kentucky guys complaining about Tubby. It might be interesting to know how many people are actually making these posts.
 



I think he said a lot of things posters should appreciate. Toward the end of the article he made a statement about all the negative stuff aimed at the players not being right and that they should be supportive. I basically agree with him.

Very good article, GL and way to get to the point.
 

harrys ghost said:
trolls on parade?
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Absolutely not. I'm telling you all that your team will have one of the softest and most porous defenses imaginable under Cosgrove. I know because he took the vaunted Blackshirt defense and in four seasons turned them into the laughing stock of the college football world and he'll do the same to you. Cosgrove is probably a decent enough guy, I don't know because I've never met him, but he absolutely sucks as a defensive cordinator. Failure to heed my, and other Husker fans, warnings now will only result in your failure and embarrassment later. If you want an even worse picture of what's in store for you guys, go talk to Wisconsin fans.

The one "saving" grace you guys may have is that Cos is only a "co-coordinator" and not the DC. God help you if he's ever named DC.
 

Husker94 said:
If you want an even worse picture of what's in store for you guys, go talk to Wisconsin fans.
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Actually, many Wisconsin fans on here have had positive things to say about Cosgrove. There has been some negative stuff but not nearly as bad as you're making it seem.
 

Husker94 said:
Failure to heed my, and other Husker fans, warnings now will only result in your failure and embarrassment later.quote]


And just how exactly are we message board fans supposed to "heed your warnings"?

Do you think we have a direct link.... a red phone that only sits on Brewsters desk?

Why don't you Fed ex your warnings directly to Brewster... We don't need them here.
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Cosgrove coached at Nebraska from 2004-2007. This is the defense Cosgrove inherited after the 2003 season:

- 1st in the nation in turnover margin
- 1st in pass efficiency defense
- 2nd in scoring defense
- 11th in total defense

This is the defense he left Nebraska with:

- 75th in pass efficiency defense
- 114th in scoring defense
- 112th in total defense
- 116th in rushing defense

I'm not trolling, I'm just telling you facts. This message board was linked to the Huskerpedia main page because Cosgrove finally talked about his time at Nebraska in the article, so a few of us have come over to chat with you lovely folks.

Here are a couple more facts:

1. Not all assistants were fired with Bill Callahan at Nebraska. In fact, two were retained.
2. Cosgrove will be an improvement over Minnesota's past defensive coordinators.

Good luck to you, Gophers. I am serious when I say that - I want you to succeed. Just know what you're inheriting.
 





Maverick said:
Husker94 said:
Failure to heed my, and other Husker fans, warnings now will only result in your failure and embarrassment later.quote]


And just how exactly are we message board fans supposed to "heed your warnings"?

Do you think we have a direct link.... a red phone that only sits on Brewsters desk?

Why don't you Fed ex your warnings directly to Brewster... We don't need them here.
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Maybe you could try thinking that, as Nebraska fans, we have a first hand perspective on this and we're only telling you about Cos's incompetence as a public service. No matter, you'll eventually come to realize that he's a horrible coach.

Just to give you a brief preview here's what you have to look forward to with Cos as your DC:

1. Soft practices. During the season your defense will not conduct full speed tackling drills. Instead they'll start a "shuffling wrap up, no take down drill" which will have a trickle down effect and your defense will become incredibly soft and passive.

Because as Cos has been quoted many times in the press with regards to spread offenses...

Cosgrove said:
There is only so much you can do.
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2. Zero player development. Players will actually regress under his instruction.

3. Bloated, overweight, fat, slow players. He'll have your DE's upwards of 270-280 lbs, 250-260 lbs LB's.

Finally, you guys ranked 80th nationally in total defense in '08. I know, I looked it up.

http://web1.ncaa.org/mfb/natlRank.jsp?year=2008&div=B&rpt=IA_teamtotdef&site=org

The saddest part is that you guys will probably get WORSE on defense under Cos.

Do you want a little historical perspective?

Nebraska, under Cos, was:

2006---56th in total defense.
2005---26th " "
2004---56th " "

Wisconsin, under Cos, was:

2003---92nd in total defense.
2002---63rd " "
2001---58th " "
2000---79th " "

I would've gone back even further had the stats from the site I was using listed that information. The point here is that he's a horrible football coach and the statistics back up my claim.

Good luck guys.

Edit: Oh and one last thing...his players quit on him at Wisconsin, they quit on him in 2007 at Nebraska and eventually, they'll quit on him here.

Edit x 2: Look up Wisconsin's defensive stats AFTER Cos left, that would be 2004 and beyond, and you'll see a night and day difference.
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Easy does it on the Troll label. I am Maroon and Gold through and through.......I just don't like when mediocrity is rewarded and that appears to be the case here with KC.
I have hope in the co-DC label because it will allow Brewster an out if Husker Redux occurs.
 

Husker94 said:
Maybe you could try thinking that, as Nebraska fans, we have a first hand perspective on this and we're only telling you about Cos's incompetence as a public service. No matter, you'll eventually come to realize that he's a horrible coach.

Just to give you a brief preview here's what you have to look forward to with Cos as your DC:

1. Soft practices. During the season your defense will not conduct full speed tackling drills. Instead they'll start a "shuffling wrap up, no take down drill" which will have a trickle down effect and your defense will become incredibly soft and passive.

Because as Cos has been quoted many times in the press with regards to spread offenses...



2. Zero player development. Players will actually regress under his instruction.

3. Bloated, overweight, fat, slow players. He'll have your DE's upwards of 270-280 lbs, 250-260 lbs LB's.

Finally, you guys ranked 80th nationally in total defense in '08. I know, I looked it up.

http://web1.ncaa.org/mfb/natlRank.jsp?year=2008&div=B&rpt=IA_teamtotdef&site=org

The saddest part is that you guys will probably get WORSE on defense under Cos.

Do you want a little historical perspective?

Nebraska, under Cos, was:

2006---56th in total defense.
2005---26th " "
2004---56th " "

Wisconsin, under Cos, was:

2003---92nd in total defense.
2002---63rd " "
2001---58th " "
2000---79th " "

I would've gone back even further had the stats from the site I was using listed that information. The point here is that he's a horrible football coach and the statistics back up my claim.

Good luck guys.

Edit: Oh and one last thing...his players quit on him at Wisconsin, they quit on him in 2007 at Nebraska and eventually, they'll quit on him here.

Edit x 2: Look up Wisconsin's defensive stats AFTER Cos left, that would be 2004 and beyond, and you'll see a night and day difference.
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Actually, those rankings would be an improvement over most years we've had lately.

The reason you guys are getting this reaction from Gopher fans on here is because this happened over a month ago, and all this has been discussed a lot. If Cosgrove was hired last week, that would be different. I understand this website was just brought to a lot of your attention, but it's the same exact thing others brought on this board before.

Some show Cosgrove's defensive rankings like you just did and others come back with his defensive points allowed rankings which are usually much better. He's been known to have a "bend but don't break" defense for a lot of his years.
 

ummm... I didn't post the post atttributed to me...

GophersInIowa said:
Husker94 said:
Actually, those rankings would be an improvement over most years we've had lately.

The reason you guys are getting this reaction from Gopher fans on here is because this happened over a month ago, and all this has been discussed a lot. If Cosgrove was hired last week, that would be different. I understand this website was just brought to a lot of your attention, but it's the same exact thing others brought on this board before.

Some show Cosgrove's defensive rankings like you just did and others come back with his defensive points allowed rankings which are usually much better. He's been known to have a "bend but don't break" defense for a lot of his years.
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*
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Cap TimeS Jun 26 2008 Cosgrove interview.

“I love Wisconsin football, always have, and I’m excited to support the Badgers,” he said. “It will be the first time I can go to a game and enjoy it as a fan without having any pressure on me as a coach.”
 

Sorry Maverick, don't know why that happened. It's been edited.
 

No problem...Thanks, I just don't want anybody to mistake me for a Nebraska fan.... Everytime I see one of those "Go Big Red" bumper stickers, I want to run them off the road!
 

Maverick said:
No problem...Thanks, I just don't want anybody to mistake me for a Nebraska fan.... Everytime I see one of those "Go Big Red" bumper stickers, I want to run them off the road!
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I know. Those guys are total jerks.
 

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