PJ Monday presser

[forever a gopher]

I fully expect Morgan to stick with PJ as a graduate assistant in the years to come. I think there are a lot of coaches and fans searching for answers to a year that did not go as we hoped or planned. Sticking with Morgan through all this goes completely against his "next man up" philosophy Fleck is always talking about. The WR's can share some of the responsibility, but not all of it, that's for sure.

The coaches ARE trying different things and the game plan was a lot better than the one we saw vs. Illinois and Bowling Green. I think the Gopher coaches thought Illinois (and Bowling Green) would be an easy game so their plan was to just ram it down their throat. This cost them bigtime on both occasions. You never take an opponent for granted until AFTER you see what you are up against. Also -- you have got to be able to react and adapt your game plan after seeing what they are trying to do.

I hate saying this but many times Fleck looks like a rookie coach out there this year. He has been outcoached on several occasions with inferior talent than what he has and that is disturbing. For the first time it looks like the mistakes are piling up on him and he is constantly making the wrong decision. I know coaching is not easy, but to be one of the good ones, you have got to make the right call a lot more often than Fleck has made this year.

PJ talks a big game on the "next man up philosophy". Based on precedent, I think he is merely talking about injury, not ineptitude. Remember when Annexstad was hobbled and barely able to play? He was the starter, and PJ was going to stick with him hell or high water. Nevermind Morgan was able to come in and be a viable QB when given the chance. Likewise, he has been keen on running his RB's into the ground. But it's obvious there is a lot of talent at that group, and Mo, Williams, Potts, Irving, Thomas all could be getting reps. But he came out in the OSU game and rode Mo with little reprieve. If Mo wasn't injured, we probably would have seen little of Potts and almost none of Irving and Thomas. By his own admission, our WR group has struggled at times. Yet guys like Boyd have seen little playing time.

 

[beavergopher]

I had a very similar reaction as you did to this press conference. Fleck is working really hard to shield Morgan and putting way too much on the WR. An example of this is the 3rd down overthrow to CRAB in the second half. That one is not on CRAB at all, he was wide open, there was no tight window to deal with, Morgan just sailed the pass.

The Fleck/Morgan dynamic has become very similar to the Frost/Martinez dynamic. In both cases, those coaches are going to be in an interesting position if the QB elects to come back again next year.

All that said, it is silly to get too worked up about what is said in press conferences, especially ones immediately after and within a few days of a tough loss.

I have faith that Fleck can see the issues that are plaguing this team and is working hard with the staff to fix them, regardless of what may or may not be said in a press conference.

Coaches are work-a-holics who spend countless hours watching film and evaluating all aspects of the program. For as disappointed as the fans are in how this season has gone there is no doubt in my mind that the disappointment/frustration level at the football complex is significantly higher.

They get paid for this crap and we fork over good money to be terminally frustrated.

 

[PMWinSTP]

Well 4 times 2 is 8 fee...... Wait a minute, I don't even have an 8 foot Christmas tree! What's he talking about?

Have you seen his homes?

 

[Boomtime]

WTH? Why should we care what PJF says?

The important thing...man, that guy's a flashy dresser. Look at that suit.

 

[CentralGopher]

I'm curious as to which games (and you did say a couple..?) that we won which weren't expected wins? I totally agree with your other point that we lost a couple we were expected to win.

Purdue and also didn’t expect to win both Nebby and Maryland games since I thought we’d drop one of those two. Wasn’t based on any media predictions or anything though.

 

[MennoSota]

Did I miss hear? Did PJ claim we are young this season?

 

[MplsGopher]

Yup, this is the key. Fleck can say whatever he wants to the media for all I care...it has zero impact on what happens on the field. All I care about is what's happening behind the scenes to actually fix real issues with this team. A full post-mortem needs to be done after the season, but I hope they're working their butts off to patch things up NOW and give the team a real chance to beat Wisconsin.

Also maybe he thinks that he doesn't want to do any harm to Morgan's confidence, until/if it's time to pull the plug. Might seem artificial, but as you say it's just the media and fans. We don't step onto the field and have to perform. We just sit back and judge.

 

[Boomtime]

It's weird, when I watch his pressers, I think of the movie "Pinocchio".

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

I read a transcript of this earlier today and was just incredibly disappointed with PJ. He continued with his garbage from the post game about getting "closer" to Iowa. While he didn't repeat his BS about Iowa being a top 15 team, he did mention they were no. 2 at one point like that matters at all. This same Iowa team got routed at home by Purdue, trailed at the half to Colorado state, Kent State was inside the 5 with a chance to make it like a 2 point game in the 3rd quarter, Penn State was in the process of boat racing them before their QB got hurt. You are in year 5. I'd argue you've had the better team the last 3 years, but certainly in 2019 and 2021. You are now are 0-5...and Iowa isn't Wisconsin much less the Alabama clone you are making them out to be PJ. Then you have PJ bring up scoring 22 points against such a great defense...but not mentioning giving up 27 to an awful offense with a QB making his first start. You also have PJ talk about missing the kick...like he didn't put a kid who has never attempted (to my knowledge) a college FG out there to attempt a 53 yarder and a "bad" sky punt as keys in the game...News flash your special teams suck and have sucked for most of your tenure. If any part of your hope to win the game was out executing Iowa on special teams, that's really alarming.

The talk about "drops" and "catch radius" in a game where Morgan struggled again, was baffling. I don't want PJ to throw Morgan under the bus, but deflecting the blame for Morgan's poor play on to others is worse than saying Tanner didn't play well.

The overall defense of the decision making by the coaching staff in the game has me pretty pessimistic about the chances of things being better next year. The risk taken to try that 53 yard FG was absolutely off the charts for what little gain would have been received. On the flip side things like bringing in Kramer to run if up the middle on 2nd and 9 in the red zone or not throwing a single pass on the drive before the end of the half are so wildly conservative that you should only find them in Facebook groups.

I would have loved for one of the reporters to ask this follow up question of PJ after he tried to talk about getting "closer" in year 5: "PJ you talk about getting closer yet you defeated Illinios 40-17 and 41-14 in the prior two years, how was a coach able to get over the hump of beating you in his first year?"

I guess PJ forgot to tell Bielema about Year 0.

There seems to be some hypocrisy inherent in his stated belief that expectations are the same as everyone, but then his willingness to criticize players differs on who it is. I could respect the stance of "I'm going to protect my players by not calling them out in press conferences," but that isn't what he does. If you are his golden boy at QB, you are immune.

Also agree with the take that I don't actually care that much about what he says at press conferences. My frustration is his poor coaching decisions against Iowa, not his poor explanations for them after the fact.

 

[WorkingMyTailOff]

PJ talks a big game on the "next man up philosophy". Based on precedent, I think he is merely talking about injury, not ineptitude. Remember when Annexstad was hobbled and barely able to play? He was the starter, and PJ was going to stick with him hell or high water. Nevermind Morgan was able to come in and be a viable QB when given the chance. Likewise, he has been keen on running his RB's into the ground. But it's obvious there is a lot of talent at that group, and Mo, Williams, Potts, Irving, Thomas all could be getting reps. But he came out in the OSU game and rode Mo with little reprieve. If Mo wasn't injured, we probably would have seen little of Potts and almost none of Irving and Thomas. By his own admission, our WR group has struggled at times. Yet guys like Boyd have seen little playing time.

Very true. Another example being Curtis Dunlap. Fleck trying to reward him for coming back but he wasn’t right.
One different example is Walley replacing T Smith. Maybe these decisions are made more by the assistants with the exception possibly being QB. If I am Sanford though and I want to be here next year, I would fight to replace Morgan if I believed it would give the team a better shot.

 

[Dakota2]

Very true. Another example being Curtis Dunlap. Fleck trying to reward him for coming back but he wasn’t right.
One different example is Walley replacing T Smith. Maybe these decisions are made more by the assistants with the exception possibly being QB. If I am Sanford though and I want to be here next year, I would fight to replace Morgan if I believed it would give the team a better shot.

Fleck does not interfere with defense. He gives Rossi a free hand with personnel.

 

[Some Day...Maybe]

Just what are your expectations for next year without Sanford? Without many of the offensive linemen? Without #47? Sometimes too many expectations kicks the crap out of a good fan who has great expectations.

And: just what was your expectation for this 2021 Gopher Team.

Too bad you didn’t stick around to see how this 2021 season will end. I mean, would 7-4 after the Indiana game help or hurt your disappointment with this season?

A win over Indiana does nothing. My expectations were 9 wins. My expectations next year will be a little lower due to the loss on the O line. I hope Fleck can find a good OC. I think Ciarocca was great, one of the best, but I don’t think he’s coming back. PJ needs to find a really good OC. This program has regressed significantly since Ciarocca left.

 

[Some Day...Maybe]

I read a transcript of this earlier today and was just incredibly disappointed with PJ. He continued with his garbage from the post game about getting "closer" to Iowa. While he didn't repeat his BS about Iowa being a top 15 team, he did mention they were no. 2 at one point like that matters at all. This same Iowa team got routed at home by Purdue, trailed at the half to Colorado state, Kent State was inside the 5 with a chance to make it like a 2 point game in the 3rd quarter, Penn State was in the process of boat racing them before their QB got hurt. You are in year 5. I'd argue you've had the better team the last 3 years, but certainly in 2019 and 2021. You are now are 0-5...and Iowa isn't Wisconsin much less the Alabama clone you are making them out to be PJ. Then you have PJ bring up scoring 22 points against such a great defense...but not mentioning giving up 27 to an awful offense with a QB making his first start. You also have PJ talk about missing the kick...like he didn't put a kid who has never attempted (to my knowledge) a college FG out there to attempt a 53 yarder and a "bad" sky punt as keys in the game...News flash your special teams suck and have sucked for most of your tenure. If any part of your hope to win the game was out executing Iowa on special teams, that's really alarming.

The talk about "drops" and "catch radius" in a game where Morgan struggled again, was baffling. I don't want PJ to throw Morgan under the bus, but deflecting the blame for Morgan's poor play on to others is worse than saying Tanner didn't play well.

The overall defense of the decision making by the coaching staff in the game has me pretty pessimistic about the chances of things being better next year. The risk taken to try that 53 yard FG was absolutely off the charts for what little gain would have been received. On the flip side things like bringing in Kramer to run if up the middle on 2nd and 9 in the red zone or not throwing a single pass on the drive before the end of the half are so wildly conservative that you should only find them in Facebook groups.

I would have loved for one of the reporters to ask this follow up question of PJ after he tried to talk about getting "closer" in year 5: "PJ you talk about getting closer yet you defeated Illinios 40-17 and 41-14 in the prior two years, how was a coach able to get over the hump of beating you in his first year?"

This is a great post. Loved when PJ talked about how great Iowa’s defense is. Look at the offenses Iowa has played, most not very good. Penn St. had 14 points in the first quarter and then had to put a terrible QB in.

 

[Pompous Elitist]

Just watched it and this was light years better than the post-Illinois presser. Everything he said is true, from a certain POV. They really were a few botched defensive plays away from victory. The offense did really well on the ground against an elite level defense. The WRs have not played well this year and have been horribly inconsistent. They did not acquit themselves well on Saturday.

He didn’t come down hard on TM2 which I suppose is the issue for many of you. In fact he gave a strong show of support. It’s clear he will ride him to hell or high water this season. TM2 did not play well. He was clearly not processing well, was off target. PJF likely looks at him as a project he needs to nurse back to health.

The question is whether that involves a new perspective on coaching. Jury is out.