Thanks EG#9!
My thoughts, some highlights of Burns' podcast:
Weather played a huge part for the Gophers not showing up in Evanston. Gale force winds 25 MPH (Gale Force Warning issued for Lake Michigan 1.5 miles from stadium), sleeting...
Coaching also to blame. IMHO a big part. Offense inexcusable in turning over the ball five times to a well-coached disciplined team. The Gopher did not game plan properly and players were frustrated. Game planned for NW passing. Did not game plan for lots power running. Did not or unable to make adjustments. Fitz and NW took advantage of the weather/field conditions and knew how to attack Gophers weaknesses by gap running, using three TE formations, and counter plays. Wheather dictated their schemes.
This is a good baptism for the coaching staff. You learn the most about the character of a team in how they handle failure and what they do about it.
It shows that PJ Fleck and staff have a lot to learn about the nuances of playing every single team in the B1G. This is a big big learning experience for them at "Year Zero". B1G have been becoming increasingly competitive. One or two wins/losses can ruin a season (Maryland, Purdue games). IMHO, coaching stability and longevity is super critical. Patience required of both coaches and fans. They also have to learn to play against the three formidable foes - Wisc, Iowa, and NW. Add NE when they can figure out their coaching. Wisconsin has a stable system where they can plug in a new coach and repeat previous successes. Iowa & NW have long tenured coach and staff.
We can't continue to replace the entire coaching staff every four or five years and expect to surpass established Wisc, NW, and Iowa programs. Nebraska hopefully has figured that out.
Glen Mason was the longest tenured coach for the Gophers in modern history. He's had some successes due to coaching stability. I am not making excuses for him, but the U's inability to pay good coordinators and assistance, and the facilities made it difficult to recruit. Not improving his defense and inability to pay and hire a high caliber DC cause Maturi to run out of patience with epic melt downs after leading. I wonder what would have happened had money was made available for staff.
The stats from the last five or six years don't lie. The Gophers MUST improve drastically, or they are forever destined for a 5th place perch in B1G West. IMHO, this won't happen in four years unless they achieve break thru through smart and aggressive recruiting. TALENT LEVEL is the difference maker to move up. The recruiting rankings correlated well in how each team finished the last five or six years.
Late decommitment by Armstrong is putting the Gophers on a scramble between now and December to figure out the QB situation.
Full press on OL from IMG Dunlop? If he does make it on the airplane and commits, we have to thank his team mate Annexstad for bringing him on the airplane.
