BleedGopher
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Kill says Gophers will have "a great team next year", says he'll never be a HC again
per Shama:
Kill’s first season as Gophers coach was 2011 and he predicted early on it would take time to rebuild a program that had won only 11 of its last 14 games and become a Big Ten bottom feeder. “I always said six and seven (years into the program) will be good, as long as the kids work hard,” Kill told Sports Headliners.
The schedule next season doesn’t include 2015 national powers Michigan, Ohio State and TCU. The mix of a favorable schedule, along with more talented, experienced and healthier Gophers players, has Kill feeling optimistic. “They’ll have a great team,” he said.
Kill’s successor, Tracy Claeys, will have many returnees but none more important than quarterback Mitch Leidner who was the Quick Lane Bowl MVP. A senior in 2016, Leidner has become Minnesota’s best quarterback since Adam Weber in 2010 and he has silenced some critics. Criticism directed at Leidner last season and in 2014 was sometimes mean-spirited and a source of frustration for Kill.
“He’ll have a great year (2016),” Kill said. “Everybody has questioned him since the day I stuck by him. He keeps getting better and better. He’s a tough sucker.”
Kill now is intent on improving and maintaining his health. “I will never be a head coach again,” he said. “I don’t want any part of it. I actually was offered a job to coach again at a smaller level, and no way I am going to do that. I might be a consultant, or I hope I can get on a bowl committee or selection committee. I will stay close to football. …I just don’t know how much. The main thing I am focused on is getting better and (focusing on) my family. That’s the most important thing to me.”
Kill said he has yet to discuss any future role working for the University but is open to discussions. The athletic director position, however, doesn’t attract him for a couple of reasons. After working 16 hours a day or more as football coach, he thinks the AD job at Minnesota will require at least that much daily dedication and that’s not the direction he is headed. Then, too, Kill wouldn’t be comfortable with a potential conflict of interest overseeing a football program he was so close to. “I am not real fired up about being the athletic director,” Kill said. “I don’t think that’s a good thing for Minnesota.”
Kill and his wife will vacate their downtown Minneapolis residence next month and move back to the family lake home in Illinois. Eventually Kill wants to find something for the next chapter of his life he can do with passion. He is already considering some offers but didn’t provide details. “I’ve got a lot of options, more options than I ever thought I would have,” Kill said. “I just have to pick what I want to do and what my body is going to allow me to do.”
http://shamasportsheadliners.com/
Go Gophers!!
per Shama:
Kill’s first season as Gophers coach was 2011 and he predicted early on it would take time to rebuild a program that had won only 11 of its last 14 games and become a Big Ten bottom feeder. “I always said six and seven (years into the program) will be good, as long as the kids work hard,” Kill told Sports Headliners.
The schedule next season doesn’t include 2015 national powers Michigan, Ohio State and TCU. The mix of a favorable schedule, along with more talented, experienced and healthier Gophers players, has Kill feeling optimistic. “They’ll have a great team,” he said.
Kill’s successor, Tracy Claeys, will have many returnees but none more important than quarterback Mitch Leidner who was the Quick Lane Bowl MVP. A senior in 2016, Leidner has become Minnesota’s best quarterback since Adam Weber in 2010 and he has silenced some critics. Criticism directed at Leidner last season and in 2014 was sometimes mean-spirited and a source of frustration for Kill.
“He’ll have a great year (2016),” Kill said. “Everybody has questioned him since the day I stuck by him. He keeps getting better and better. He’s a tough sucker.”
Kill now is intent on improving and maintaining his health. “I will never be a head coach again,” he said. “I don’t want any part of it. I actually was offered a job to coach again at a smaller level, and no way I am going to do that. I might be a consultant, or I hope I can get on a bowl committee or selection committee. I will stay close to football. …I just don’t know how much. The main thing I am focused on is getting better and (focusing on) my family. That’s the most important thing to me.”
Kill said he has yet to discuss any future role working for the University but is open to discussions. The athletic director position, however, doesn’t attract him for a couple of reasons. After working 16 hours a day or more as football coach, he thinks the AD job at Minnesota will require at least that much daily dedication and that’s not the direction he is headed. Then, too, Kill wouldn’t be comfortable with a potential conflict of interest overseeing a football program he was so close to. “I am not real fired up about being the athletic director,” Kill said. “I don’t think that’s a good thing for Minnesota.”
Kill and his wife will vacate their downtown Minneapolis residence next month and move back to the family lake home in Illinois. Eventually Kill wants to find something for the next chapter of his life he can do with passion. He is already considering some offers but didn’t provide details. “I’ve got a lot of options, more options than I ever thought I would have,” Kill said. “I just have to pick what I want to do and what my body is going to allow me to do.”
http://shamasportsheadliners.com/
Go Gophers!!
