short ornery norwegian
Well-known member
- Joined
- Feb 9, 2011
- Messages
- 19,908
- Reaction score
- 13,661
- Points
- 113
Gopher FB Coach PJ Fleck appeared on the Sports Huddle on WCCO with Sid, Dave and Max.
Sid: How many camps do you run and go to? Do you find good players at camps?
PJ: I put a lot of value, a lot of stock in camps. June has become the busiest month of the year with the rules changes about summer visits. You need to see players at camp. get to verify what you see on film. get to see them live. our donors, supporters help provide opportunities for us to attend camps. sometimes we'll hit 3 in a day. we've got 11 commits for next year, working on #12.
Sid: did you find players at camps last year?
PJ: we find players every year. our staff has found players at every camp we've been to. we get to areas we feel comfortable about. got to go around to find them. all over the country. like to go places where we know our brand is big. rules on summer visits have changed the game. like to get kids to come to MN, experience our climate -the lakes, the environment, the cities, see what MN is all about. like to tell them it's always like this (laughs). people in MN love the 4 seasons. MN loves their weather. we're Midwest people. it's nice to show off. show kids the beautiful times of the year
Sid: are you finding a lot of recruits for 2020, 2021?
PJ: 2020 is taking shape. actually, we're almost done. we've got 3 commits for '21. our players have done a great job hosting recruits. Look at Rashod Bateman - he started out as a 3-star player, and look where he's at now. we are a developmental program. want to get guys we've seen live- guys we know will eventually be 4-star players, NFL draft picks. bring them in and develop them.
Sid: who gets invited to camps?
PJ: camps are beneficial. they benefit both parties. benefits players - they don't have to leave the city to go to a camp, be looked at by coaches from as many as 50 schools. incredible for parents - saves money. you get so many eyes on each person. we can do same thing with our own camps. you can see 1000 kids at a camp. especially if they have separate morning and afternoon sessions. we might only be looking at 10 or 20 of them. lots of players to evaluate. we also have camps on our campus - it's important to get kids who we're interested in onto our campus
Mona: how do you evaluate recruits from Europe?
PJ: there are services these young people connect with. they bring them over to the U.S., do a camp circuit. Penn State had players from Germany at their camp. A lot of players come down from Canada. some international players are very talented and may get overlooked. some of these services, we've gotten to know them. we want to find the best ones. We will have some international students, possibly. very excited about that.
Sid: only 12 seniors on this team
PJ: next year, we're only going to have 11 seniors. this team is still 80% FR and SO. excited about the future, but the future is now. they're working hard on and off the field. team has a record GPA. 3.17 of the whole deal. 3.20 fall semester. 3.17 spring semester, and that's when they tend to take harder classes. I like the leadership of the team. excited for future.
Max: what is the most important thing to do in off-season - advice for HS players?
PJ: lot of people -when it's camp time - they compare themselves to everyone they go against. I think that's one of the worst things you can do. you need to compare you to yourself - what you did yesterday versus what you do today. work on your skill set, footwork, academics. try to be a little bit better today than you were yesterday. too many kids are working on getting scholarships. you need to compare to yourself -not other people. Also, try to do a lot with your team. don't isolate yourself. go to team camps, 7 on 7 tournaments. get together with your teammates, and go to the pool, the lake. connect to your team. doesn't matter how good you are as an individual - matters how good you are as a team.
Mona: do you ever get kids off unsolicited video?
PJ: absolutely. happens more than you think. we get a lot of video. get videos from twitter, facebook, instant messaging. we'll look into it, and if it looks promising - give it to recruiting department. next thing, the kid is at camp. 90% of the players we already know about. the others come from areas we don't recruit heavily. we might get a tape from Denver, CO. we'll say, let's look at this. now we might have someone recruiting Denver.
Sid: are there RS FR who got into 4 games last year and will help this year?
PJ: Braelin Oliver ready to step in. Spann-Ford. excited about him - now 270, 6'7". one of biggest athletes we have. Dunlap - excited about. I could go on and on. also, some of new incoming FR will be getting your attention. James Gordon from FLA. LB - really like him. Tyler Nubin - CB from Illinois. Cam Wiley - RB from Vegas. very impressive young man. 6'2", 200 lb true FR. I know a lot of people will be excited about this class.
Sid: lot of great ticket plans. cheaper than last year. going to have great year. Murray's
PJ: RTB, Ski-U-Mah. (puts son Harper on phone, and he says "Row the boat." everybody laughs)
Sid: How many camps do you run and go to? Do you find good players at camps?
PJ: I put a lot of value, a lot of stock in camps. June has become the busiest month of the year with the rules changes about summer visits. You need to see players at camp. get to verify what you see on film. get to see them live. our donors, supporters help provide opportunities for us to attend camps. sometimes we'll hit 3 in a day. we've got 11 commits for next year, working on #12.
Sid: did you find players at camps last year?
PJ: we find players every year. our staff has found players at every camp we've been to. we get to areas we feel comfortable about. got to go around to find them. all over the country. like to go places where we know our brand is big. rules on summer visits have changed the game. like to get kids to come to MN, experience our climate -the lakes, the environment, the cities, see what MN is all about. like to tell them it's always like this (laughs). people in MN love the 4 seasons. MN loves their weather. we're Midwest people. it's nice to show off. show kids the beautiful times of the year
Sid: are you finding a lot of recruits for 2020, 2021?
PJ: 2020 is taking shape. actually, we're almost done. we've got 3 commits for '21. our players have done a great job hosting recruits. Look at Rashod Bateman - he started out as a 3-star player, and look where he's at now. we are a developmental program. want to get guys we've seen live- guys we know will eventually be 4-star players, NFL draft picks. bring them in and develop them.
Sid: who gets invited to camps?
PJ: camps are beneficial. they benefit both parties. benefits players - they don't have to leave the city to go to a camp, be looked at by coaches from as many as 50 schools. incredible for parents - saves money. you get so many eyes on each person. we can do same thing with our own camps. you can see 1000 kids at a camp. especially if they have separate morning and afternoon sessions. we might only be looking at 10 or 20 of them. lots of players to evaluate. we also have camps on our campus - it's important to get kids who we're interested in onto our campus
Mona: how do you evaluate recruits from Europe?
PJ: there are services these young people connect with. they bring them over to the U.S., do a camp circuit. Penn State had players from Germany at their camp. A lot of players come down from Canada. some international players are very talented and may get overlooked. some of these services, we've gotten to know them. we want to find the best ones. We will have some international students, possibly. very excited about that.
Sid: only 12 seniors on this team
PJ: next year, we're only going to have 11 seniors. this team is still 80% FR and SO. excited about the future, but the future is now. they're working hard on and off the field. team has a record GPA. 3.17 of the whole deal. 3.20 fall semester. 3.17 spring semester, and that's when they tend to take harder classes. I like the leadership of the team. excited for future.
Max: what is the most important thing to do in off-season - advice for HS players?
PJ: lot of people -when it's camp time - they compare themselves to everyone they go against. I think that's one of the worst things you can do. you need to compare you to yourself - what you did yesterday versus what you do today. work on your skill set, footwork, academics. try to be a little bit better today than you were yesterday. too many kids are working on getting scholarships. you need to compare to yourself -not other people. Also, try to do a lot with your team. don't isolate yourself. go to team camps, 7 on 7 tournaments. get together with your teammates, and go to the pool, the lake. connect to your team. doesn't matter how good you are as an individual - matters how good you are as a team.
Mona: do you ever get kids off unsolicited video?
PJ: absolutely. happens more than you think. we get a lot of video. get videos from twitter, facebook, instant messaging. we'll look into it, and if it looks promising - give it to recruiting department. next thing, the kid is at camp. 90% of the players we already know about. the others come from areas we don't recruit heavily. we might get a tape from Denver, CO. we'll say, let's look at this. now we might have someone recruiting Denver.
Sid: are there RS FR who got into 4 games last year and will help this year?
PJ: Braelin Oliver ready to step in. Spann-Ford. excited about him - now 270, 6'7". one of biggest athletes we have. Dunlap - excited about. I could go on and on. also, some of new incoming FR will be getting your attention. James Gordon from FLA. LB - really like him. Tyler Nubin - CB from Illinois. Cam Wiley - RB from Vegas. very impressive young man. 6'2", 200 lb true FR. I know a lot of people will be excited about this class.
Sid: lot of great ticket plans. cheaper than last year. going to have great year. Murray's
PJ: RTB, Ski-U-Mah. (puts son Harper on phone, and he says "Row the boat." everybody laughs)