"If this was a great job, I wouldn't be here" J. Kill

[ShushPush]

Finally talking leadership

I have to give coach Kill credit where credit is due. After taking responsibility for not having the team prepared mentally to sustain confidence during difficult times, they are actively talking to them. And, as a matter of interest, he said he was not going to throw anybody under the bus. Hallelujah Brother Kill. He is an inch closer to having me back on board.

I know. I know. Exciting isn't it.

 

[Mulligan]

Oh good. This again. Yes, I think the Gophers problems would all go away if they moved the main campus to Duluth. Or the Vikings moved to LA. Either way, instant wins.

I mean sure GT wins despite the Falcons and UGa. But it can't be done by anyone else. Except Miami. And Maryland. And BC. And Washington. And Colorado. And Arizona State. And Stanford. And Cal. And Pitt. And TCU. And Cincinnati. And USF. And even Northwestern.

Oh, ya? What about the University of Chicago? Couldn't compete with the Bears so they gave up.

Seriously, I doubt many people would argue it makes it impossible for the Gophers to have a good program; but it's another obstacle to overcome that sure doesn't make it easier. There's a lousy tradition; there's been a history of indifferent administrations; as a result, there have been some cheap hires as we keep reaching; we're a state on the edge of the Big Ten, which is bad when you don't produce many star players and you have the Dakotas and Canada on two sides; and our edge of the Big Ten has that perception of being damn cold in January.

The Vikings came when our pipeline that produced Bell, Eller, Stephens, etc. was drying up as Southern schools desegregated. Then we compounded that problem with the building of the the Metrodome and the Gophers being manipulated into moving off campus. It's already an urban campus and it became even less of a college game day experience. It doesn't have the feel of a college town and all the support that entails. The pit has been dug so deep it's going to take a lot of work, patience, the right coach, and luck to get the traction to get out.

About your list. Several schools are not in the center of that metropolitan area which the U basically is. For example, being in Boulder definitely is different than being in Denver. The football success of most of those schools is cyclical. God knows, I'd take that, but you're still not talking national powers except maybe for Stanford which has that academic thing going for it. The biggest football power on your list over the last two decades is Miami. I know you seem down occasionally on Maturi, but I certainly hope it's not because he would put the kibosh on stripper parties on yachts. I think it is significant that just about every power you can name is in a distinct college town or they're basically the only show in town.

What's frustrating is that right now even moderate success by the Gophers would result in people getting excited about them. Twins sucked. Vikings suck. The Wild are way past their honeymoon. The Wolves might not even play this year. The door is so open that average fans are actually paying attention to the Lynx, and I say that as a season ticket holder to Gopher's Women's BB. Still a lot of love for the Gophers in this town. They just have to give the common fans a reason to give it.

 

[Atl Gopher]

Not to be a jerk but we now have 4 threads in regards to one press conference.

So what? I don't understand the big deal. What are supposed to read every detail of every thread on a subject over and over again?
Do we need to go back and hunt to ensure that someone in some thread didn't discuss an issue that is important to us? I don't get it. To me this issue intimidates folks from posting.

Is this a Gopher Hole rule or a member preference and prejudice?

 

[Rosemountian]

I agree with kill on that point.

 

[bga1]

About half way through the press conference Kill said this in response to the troubles of the program and why the team wasn't getting better faster.

It was clearly a reference to the fact that Kill wasn't our first choice and the job was offered to others who turned it down...but I didn't pick up that it was Kill whining or throwing it in the face of the admin or press about him. I honestly think he was saying what we all know to be true even if we don't want to admit it...that the FB coach job at Minnesota is not a desirable position and as Kill stated, it isn't just about wins and losses. Our team has 40 years of losing, of expected failure and expected bad luck. Our fans have 40 years of disappointment, built up apathy...even a new stadium can't fix it. We were so desperate, me included, that we bought snake oil from Brewster.

After 40 years, this job is in the bottom 1/4 of the FBS and the worst in the Big Ten...worse than Indiana because they are a BB town and have almost no expectations in FB, we have 6 National Titles and 40 years of futility.

Be truthful, how many of us were really surprised when Wiscy blocked that punt, or when Northwestern intercepted that pass and ran it back for a TD? Were you sitting there like was just waiting for the bad thing to happen that would take away our hope and humiliate us yet again. I wasn't shocked when the fantom flag flew at PSU and stole our victory or when MI scored 28 in the 4th quarter to beat us or TT coming back in the Poulan Weed Whacker Futility Bowl or whatever it was called.

No, I can say I wouldn't take the job. Don't blame Al Golden from laughing at us, Brady Hoke from outing us as the incompetent fools we are, or Edsall saying yes and then realizing what a huge mistake he was making changing his mind. Lets be honest...if you were successful in your industry and someone offered you a chance to take over the worst location or operation in your industry and then didn't pay you half of what top earners in your industry make and you know that failure means you are probably done forever because nobody leaves our school and gets a job for years it seems...would you take it?

So I am going to stand by Coach Kill for the next 3 years and defend him every time he speaks and makes decisions and I will wear my maroon colored glasses with hope...hope that we finally got lucky with a guy that knows luck is earned through hard work and preparation. If 3 years from now we are back to looking for a new Coach...then I will start over again. Because I can't change where I grew up, where I went to school and who I am...I am a Gopher...regardless of where I live or how many wins we have...I will always be a Gopher.

We should be behind Kill- it's way too early to give up on him. He can get this done. However, this is an example of saying something you don't need to. Why badmouth your own situation? Words like this come back at you on the recruiting trail and perhaps with your own players. I'd rather he talks about what can be in the future- leave the past behind. There's not much to be gained by bemoaning the past or belittling the current.

 

[josh087]

Oh good. This again. Yes, I think the Gophers problems would all go away if they moved the main campus to Duluth. Or the Vikings moved to LA. Either way, instant wins.

I mean sure GT wins despite the Falcons and UGa. But it can't be done by anyone else. Except Miami. And Maryland. And BC. And Washington. And Colorado. And Arizona State. And Stanford. And Cal. And Pitt. And TCU. And Cincinnati. And USF. And even Northwestern.

Sorry, but when NCAA athletic directors gather from across the country to meet solely for the purpose of discussing ways colleges located in NFL cities can better prosper, you no longer get to say with a straight face that being in the middle of an NFL market doesn't matter.

Sure, other teams have won titles - and the Gophers were close to scrapping together a piece of the BTT under Mason too, but for the most part the teams you listed haven't exactly been dynasties over the years. Isn't that what we're all hoping for - consistency rather than the flash-in-the-pan-Zac-Kustok-type miracle season?

Furthermore, are you really comparing winning in the Big East or Mountain West to winning in the Big Ten??? Laughable at best, ignorant at worst. No way TCU, Cincy, USF, and BC even sniff the list if they're in the Big Ten.

The Vikings make it tough enough. When you combine that with conference affiliation, weather, local recruiting base, and administration apathy, the result of the equation has been absolute disaster.

 

[zambam]

Miami has won at least one NC (only one I know about, lol) and they have a nfl team...

 

[josh087]

Miami has won at least one NC (only one I know about, lol) and they have a nfl team...

Awesome news! Since Twin Cities High School football is on par with South Florida's teams and recruits, and also because Minneapolis is just as desirable a college destination for 18-year-old kids as South Beach, we should be set for a NC in the near future!

 

[Texas-Gopher]

Just remember that the job is even tougher than it has ever been for any other Coach at the U of M for Coach Kill. Nebraska has now joined the conference. That is one more decent to great, year in and year out program to jump. Good luck Coach Kill!

I say give Coach Kill a 10 year extension right now to eleminate the temptation of the media, the fans and anyone else who may have an opinion that a new coach should take over again at the three...or four...or even five year mark. This job is so tough right now that we need to give our coach tenure. Coaching the Gophers needs to be a lifelong dedicated higher calling.

As John Galt says above:"...if he ever feels he can't turn it around, he'll be the first to admit it and step down..." With Coach Kill, I would trust that would, indeed, be the case. I believe he truely is an honest man.

Let's set back inflation in coaching salaries by giving the tenure idea a try!

I really do mean this: let's try something that has only been done at the High School level and for a while at Florida State, and currently at Penn State and St. John's in Collegeville as well as at the original: Grambling with Coach Robinson. Let's grant Coach Kill tenure and trust him to be a man who will do the right thing. Let's set college football on it's ear!

How could it work out ANY worse than what has been happening here at the University of Minnesota for a very long time? Give Coach Kill tenure NOW!

Good post. Not sure I could go there with you, but a cool thought.

 

[Texas-Gopher]

not a new theory but for me the biggest mistake the U of M adminstrators made was instead of putting money into Memorial Stadium they took the program to the Metrodome.

That was a heart breaker. I used to walk by the old stadium all the time, loved it. From what I've read though the stadium was really rundown, and there really wasn't any way to modernize it. Just what I've read.

 

[Texas-Gopher]

So what? I don't understand the big deal. What are supposed to read every detail of every thread on a subject over and over again?
Do we need to go back and hunt to ensure that someone in some thread didn't discuss an issue that is important to us? I don't get it. To me this issue intimidates folks from posting.

Is this a Gopher Hole rule or a member preference and prejudice?

I agree. Our U has something like 700,000+ living alumni plus scads of fans that didn't attend, and the boards going to get overloaded and confused at times. No problemo.

 

[imthewalrus]

Why has the U of M Football Program been allowed to hit the incredible low point it is at? I'm an old guy. There is NO way I am ever going to see this program be successful if we just continue to do things the way they have been done during the past forty five years? All you have to do is to look at the history of the University of Minnesota Football Program, note the way things have been done, the hiring and firing patterns, the amount of resources dedicated to the football program or NOT dedicated to the football program, the history of professional sports and the impact of professional sports on the U of M Football Program and we will have a sure-fired blue-print for total and absolute failure.

Who among you could make an argument that the administration at the University of Minneosta has been on top of the football program problems and has done a great job of managing the football program during that time?

Doesn't the U of M have a single professor in the history department that can just lay out the history of the University of Minnesota Institutional Blue Print for FAILURE for the Football Program. The answer for the problems that Coach Kill is facing today...the seemingly impossible situation that the 2011 program is facing can be answered simply by returning to the 1960 through 1967 time frame and looking at EVERYTHING done by the U of M from 1967 going forward. The blame for everything that has been done poorly can be pinpointed within the 1967 through 2010 time frames.

You people want answers? Well just go to the history of what has been done. What happened or didn't happen from an administrative perspective during that time frame. Every time a coach started to make some progress, what did the administration do or NOT do that ALWAYS managed to returned this program right back to rock bottom of the Big Ten Conference?

Why didin't the University of Minnesota committ to excellence in ALL things the way Michigan did? What was the difference in philosophy of administrations between the U of M and THE Ohio State University? WHY and HOW did U. W. Madison make a committment to excellence in football in addition to other areas of their university? Why did the administration at the University of Minnesota NOT make committments to football as well as other areas of our university? The Big Ten Conference added PSU because it was an excellent academic institution and had a GREAT football tradition. Now Nebraska has been added because it has been considered a good fit with the Big Ten and it has an EXCELLENT football tradition. Would the University of Minnesota be considered today for admission to the Big Ten Athletic Conferece based upon our revenue sports? I'll let each of you search your souls to answer that question. Maybe...maybe not? What other than charter membership in the athletic conference does the U of M bring to the table in 2011 in terms of the sports programs that generate income for the Big Ten Network that is then shared with all other conference members? Are we the "Washington Generals" of the revenue sports scene in the Big Ten? Are we just going along to collect a big check from the Big Ten Sports Network and cartel?

PSU, OSU and Michigan are FINE institutions. How could the leadership at the University of Minnesota NOT want to join the Michigan's of the world during the past forty years?

What do you really smart people think? WHO was/is responsible? HOW is this EVER going to change? Do we need to just keep right on doing what we have been doing? Do we need to just fire coaches until someone wins big? Isn't that what happened with clem haskins and the men's hoops program. Are we all just waiting for another clem haskins to come in and cheat his program's way toward the top? Where was the adminisration while haskins was cheating his way towards the top?

Yes, I am an old guy and most likely won't live long enough to see the Gophers Football Program back where it was when I was a young guy. I saw a National Championship team when I was 13 years old.

Unless the University of Minnesota makes some DRASTIC changes, you young guys/gals are just going to continue to keep seeing the same old bottom of the Big Ten Conference results in football, men's hoops and men's hockey.

I feel pretty sad for ALL of us if the University of Minnesota keeps doing things exactly the way they have done things in the past forty years.

For God's sake U of M leaders: DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT...and for God's sake: U of M football fans: DO SOMETHING other than what we have always done. Don't just sit there and take it. Rattle some cages. Make some noise. Or, just sit back and take what ever the administration gives us.

 

[Sir Tipsy McStagger]

Attn: ATL Gopher

see above thread (posted by walrus, aka Wayne Wrendahl) if you truly want to know what keeps people from posting here)

Also, one of the moderators is a thief and will inhale your cheeseburgers like a vacuum if you are not paying attention.

 

[50PoundHead]

Sir T., nice to see you stop in!

 

[imthewalrus]

What keeps people from posting here? Try the 55-0 and 58-0 headbashings inflicted upon our football team. The state of the program is pretty depressing. Have you been at any games? Do you like what you have seen?

Blame me, if you will, but I am no more the problem than you or any of your few friends are.

 

[GoAUpher]

I have to give coach Kill credit where credit is due. After taking responsibility for not having the team prepared mentally to sustain confidence during difficult times, they are actively talking to them. And, as a matter of interest, he said he was not going to throw anybody under the bus. Hallelujah Brother Kill. He is an inch closer to having me back on board.

I know. I know. Exciting isn't it.

Weird, you jumped ship already? I would have never guessed. Do us all a favor, stay off the bandwagon and the board (ya know, like you "promised").

 

[wait!what?]

Aside from Yudof, our presidents have been subpar.

 

[gopherguy05]

Weird, you jumped ship already? I would have never guessed. Do us all a favor, stay off the bandwagon and the board (ya know, like you "promised").

People always complain about the youth screwing things up. This board is the complete opposite. Two of the oldest posters on this board OOG and wren seem to be the annoyances.....

 

[RodentRampage]

You would think that given his name, OOG was one of the oldest posters on the board, but says he is 49, which isn't very old at all.

 

[imthewalrus]

gopherguy05: What do you think the problem with the Gopher Football Program is? What will ever change it? Is it merely bad coaching?

 

[littlebigboy]

Birdy, I've disagreed and agreed with you over the yrs. and You are right on this note. I have heard, but not researched the new Pres. understands the place for athletics at a major U. As well proven at Mich and Penn St. when the football, especially, and the BB teams have great success the overrall revenue, gifts and donations increase dramatically. This U. has never gotten that message. Lets hope the new Pres. does.

 

[mnsports1]

I like Jerry Kill and believe he can get the job done if given enough time. Problem is that most fans continue to say that after year three we will know if he is the right guy. Well folks, in this day and age regarding a college football program like Minnesota's you better be willing to give a coach at least five years to gauge where he can take the program. After three years at Minnesota my guess is that Kill's team will start to show improvement and be moving in a positive direction but will still be in the bottom half of the BIG.

I guess it depends on what each individuals expectations are after year three. If you think he should have the Gophers winning 9-10 games and playing on New Years Day you are not being realistic. If you can accept a team only winning 4-5 games but improving and being very competitive in most if not all BIG games, building depth for the future and playing fundamentaly sound and not making many mental errors then you are giving the coach a chance. I don't claim to be a college football genious but I firmly believe this program will take 5-6 years to really turn the corner, and that is assuming some positive things happen, administrative support from the top, coaching stability, decent but not unrealistic recruiting and player buy in, etc. etc. After 5-6 years of one system we can then judge if the coach on hand is our guy.

Sorry, I thought that was kind of funny.

I'm on board with giving Killer the time he needs!

 

[Cayman]

I'd rather he talks about what can be in the future- leave the past behind. There's not much to be gained by bemoaning the past or belittling the current.

Brewster tried that, and a lot of people seemed to hate him for it. Apparently there's something wrong with being confident and optimistic.

Kill, on the other hand, says "We've sucked for awhile, we suck right now, and we'll suck for a little while longer, but I'll do my best to make this program good again, and maybe, just maybe, we'll start to have some level of success a few years down the road, but then maybe we won't, but I'll do everything I can."

Some don't like seeing the program painted in a negative light like this, and others turn harsh at promises of success. Brewster didn't say, "Maybe we'll be good again in awhile, I don't know," he said, "I WILL turn this program around, we WILL be successful once again." And now that he didn't succeed, people take personal shots at him, call him a used-car salesman and a liar and a dirtbag, and act like he intentionally drove this program into the ground.

Kill says, "We're not very good, we've got a long road ahead of us, and we're going to work hard, and not take any shortcuts." Every time he told the media that the team was not talented and to have low expectations, they would just eat it up, they loved it.

Don't get me wrong, I love Coach Kill, and I like what he says about building a foundation on concrete, not on sand, and I want him to succeed just as much as I wanted Brewster to succeed, but going by media reactions, people much prefer to be told that the program is in a horrible state of disarray rather than that respectability is within reach and we ARE going to get there.

 

[RodentRampage]

If Brewster had been able to pull it off and turn the Gophers around, no one would have objected in the slightest to his enthusiasm. But there's no stomach for that now, and that's understandable.