To me, the reasons for P.J. to stay are pretty obvious:
— It's a B1G job. You can't move up much beyond the B1G. Maybe the SEC; but I think Fleck's a Midwestern boy.
— It's a perfect situation from the point of view of someone who, like Fleck, wants to truly put his own stamp on a Power 5 program, and build it in his own way. He's certainly doing that.
— It's a great area to raise a family. I know that gets said often, but it's true.
— He will get a statue. By the way, Warmath should have a statue, and so should Bierman.
— Name me another job that would be a step up, that would meet all the above criteria, and would have an opening in the near future. Go on; I dare ya!
The only way I see him leaving is if a school like Notre Dame calls, and even then I doubt it would tempt him all that much; he'd be just another coach in a long line of coaches who have had success there. At Minnesota, he can be our Alvarez... and more. That opportunity doesn't exist at Notre Dame, at least not in the same way.
The only worry I have is our own Minnesota Scandinavian stoicism, which almost becomes ritualistic. Some Minnesotans have a weird need to forecast only gloom, and then when faced with real success to minimize it rather than go all-in on celebrating. It's like they have a hard time allowing themselves to feel really happy. I'm talking about the whole, "Ya, not too bad, could be worse" Minnesota thing. I could see that sort of mentality becoming a little bit irritating to a guy like Fleck, over the long haul.
