Mount Rushmore of gopher coaches

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MNfootballfan said:
Huh?

Quick Comparison:
Seasons: Mason - 10 years, Fleck 9 years (with one year being a Covid season)
Record: Mason 64-57, Fleck 66-44
Big Ten Record: Mason 32-48, Fleck 39-40
Record vs. top 25: Mason 8-32, Fleck 12-21
Record vs. Iowa/Wisconsin: Mason 3-17, Fleck 6-12

Mason took over a rougher program but it wasn't like Fleck walked into a great situation.
The way Mason ran the program has no effect on Kill and/or Fleck's successes.

I like Mason, but PJ is better in pretty much every category, except Mason had one more win vs. Iowa.
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I am pro PJ in this argument but Mason did beat Iowa four times, 98,99,00,06. So that would put him 6-14
 

MNVCGUY said:
The incompetence Kill followed was not even close to what Mason followed.....it just wasn't.

Mason took over a program that had been a laughingstock of college football for decades before he got there. Kill just had to overcome one terrible hire and short dip before returning the program back to Mason levels. Every coach has work to do when they replace a fired coach but the work Mason had to do was significantly higher than anything Kill or Fleck had to do when they took over.

When Mason took over they could barely give student tickets away. Pretty sure a student season ticket was like $36 or something crazy like that.

I am not trying to say Mason was a great coach but he was instrumental in pulling the U of M out of the basement of the conference where the coaches before him had all failed to do so. I get it though, when people think of Mason they will think more about how it ended as opposed to how it was when he got here.
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Mason did a lot for the program. Really did a good job in so many ways. If it weren't for some/several incredibly agonizing losses accomplished by blowing sizable leads, Mason would definitely be "Rushmore worthy."
 

MNfootballfan said:
I would like to elaborate on Fleck inheriting a program on solid footing. There was a boycott, star players publicly saying they were leaving, and a major sexual assault case hanging over the football team.

Fleck inherited a team that was better skill wise, but he didn't walk into a great situation.
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Very few coaches walk into a perfect situation......but I still stand by my opinion that Mason had it way tougher than Fleck or Kill in terms of the state the program was in when they took over.
 

MNVCGUY said:
The incompetence Kill followed was not even close to what Mason followed.....it just wasn't.

Mason took over a program that had been a laughingstock of college football for decades before he got there. Kill just had to overcome one terrible hire and short dip before returning the program back to Mason levels. Every coach has work to do when they replace a fired coach but the work Mason had to do was significantly higher than anything Kill or Fleck had to do when they took over.

When Mason took over they could barely give student tickets away. Pretty sure a student season ticket was like $36 or something crazy like that.

I am not trying to say Mason was a great coach but he was instrumental in pulling the U of M out of the basement of the conference where the coaches before him had all failed to do so. I get it though, when people think of Mason they will think more about how it ended as opposed to how it was when he got here.
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Yep, Mason is why I am a Gopher among other factors. He was hired December 14, 1996...so a little over 30 years ago.

So I thank him for the joys and utter despair that I have relished each fall since then.

Concur with both VCG and Walrus he should be on the rock too for pulling Minnesota out of three decades of non-relevance in the modern era.
 










UpAndUnder43 said:
I still hear Mason from time to time but I don’t listen as much anymore. Usually catch him on my way to or from stuff for 8 minutes
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It was good radio and probably still is. My commuting hours shifted a bit later so just not in the car to flip it over to KFAN.

On a parallel note, I thought he was great on the Big Ten Network and was sorry that they could not make a deal when that contract ended.

Also glad he got over the how he was treated by the U (at least in his mind) and actually has been to TCF over the years.
 

Some guy said:
Another thread triggered this question to me.
I feel it will be nearly unanimous for two.
I feel a third SHOULD be unanimous but he may be discounted due to his era.
No idea who the fourth is.

Unanimous
Bierman
Nearly unanimous:
Warmath
Probably should be unanimous
Williams


Who is number 4
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Williams did win a National Title, so there's that.
 

Gold Rush said:
Glen Mason would have been an easy choice if he would have had the defense that Fleck had but for whatever reason never was able to get enough good defensive players in. His offense was really good, though.

Fleck is probably going to have the longevity to amass a lot more wins and you would have to give him the nod when all is said and done.

Lou Holtz was only here for 2 years and the turnaround he was able to accomplish was amazing. He was the best coach we have had over the last 50 years and went on to win a national championship, albeit at a different school. If he had stayed, there is no doubt he would be on that top 4 list. Things would have been a lot different for Gopher football in the 1980's and 1990's that's' for sure. (That is assuming they would have been able to stay away from a probation or the death penalty!!)
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If OSU committed an infraction, that would have been our destiny. ;)
 



BilldGopher said:
It was good radio and probably still is. My commuting hours shifted a bit later so just not in the car to flip it over to KFAN.

On a parallel note, I thought he was great on the Big Ten Network and was sorry that they could not make a deal when that contract ended.

Also glad he got over the how he was treated by the U (at least in his mind) and actually has been to TCF over the years.
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He’s great radio and tv. Even if you dislike Dan (which many do) he’s a good interviewer and they have fun conversations.
 

Many of the heavy hitters on the 2019 team PJ inherited from Kill/Claeys.
Mason was instrumental in getting a stadium on campus but did not have the benefit of playing on campus.
Maybe we just spend a little more money and put 5 guys up there.
 

Gopher Mac said:
I would say Fleck maybe Cal Stoll with Mason coming behind both.
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Cal Stoll. The 1977 season was magical.

Each Gopher coach including Bierman faced headwinds. Bierman had WWII to contend with, and couldn't keep Charles "Bud" Wilkinson on staff.

Skipped George Hauser and Wes Fesler. Others car to chime in?

Warmath kicked open closed doors and provided opportunities for many players (Yes MSU and Notre Dame we were first!). Vietnam War, Desegregation, and decline in interest from the Administration were all head winds he couldn't overcome.

Stoll. Beat both Rosebowl participants including Warren Moon lead Washington in one season.

He was coaching in the Big Two little eight era, but held his own against the little eight and the Pac-Ten. His headwinds were fewer bowls, disinterested Administration, and insanely large rosters of the big guys (Michigan, OSU, USC, Alabama...) in addition to fewer bowls.

Joe Salem actually had a good season when he had the "Throwin' Samoan. He ran a very progressive offense. Mike Shanahan, and Mike Martz amongst other assistant coaches during his era. Top assistant coaches left and his pass heavy O was figured out. Down went Salem.

Gutekunst (Sp?) Solid defenses, and overall decent teams, but sanctions seemed to take their toll. Support for the program started to walk away just like Lou Holtz did.

Jim Wacker. Ran a clean program, but... Still wonder what would have happened had they beat MSU his final season. Would it have been enough (kind of glad we didn't have to find out)? Anyway, if he could have only hired a better group of assistant coaches*.

Glen Mason. Marched us back to respectability. Many great memories. Probably the greatest Running back trio the Gophers ever had. Bad breaks and going the cheap route on DC's (Young David Gibbs was the exception-cheap, but great) pretty much did him in. Texas Tech and the game we don't mention come to mind.

Tim Brewster. Rather than rail on him (very much of it deserved) I will acknowledge that he could sell Minnesota. If not anything else he presented a good case for Minnesota having great potential.

Jeff Horton. Never had a chance to become a Full time head coach, but he gave us a heck of a win vs Iowa!

Jerry Kill. Health, Health, Health, and Mega Tongue.

Tracy Claeys. Scandal, and New AD. The guy was one of the best DC's we've had in some time though.

PJ Fleck. Coyle knocked it out of the park here. The book is still open here, but there is so much hope. Fleck knows how to find assistant coaches* that can get the job done. I know there are question marks around the current DC, but I expect this season to be better. And if not, I think PJ will do what is best for the program.
 

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