Post Game Thread: OSU Blows Out Minnesota

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semnfan said:
It's time to be done with being ok to being mediocre. I really thought PJ was the guy. He's nothing but a modern Glen Mason. We are going backwards. It's either step up to the plate and play with the big boys or admit we're 2nd to 3rd tier team.
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MN has been a 2nd or 3rd tier team since the 1970’s, that ain’t changing. The one year they were a tier 1 team was 2019.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Look, this goes back to the same argument that Gopher fans have been having for decades: what are the reasonable expectations for this program?

Under Mason, Kill and Claeys, the Gophers generally won 7 or 8 games most seasons and went to a mid-level bowl. Mason had a 10-win season. Claeys had a 9-win season. but some fans (not all fans) said MN should be able to go to "the next level" - which included playing for or even winning a conference title, and playing in the Rose Bowl or another Bowl game of similar stature.

I will stipulate that Fleck has had a higher winning % and has produced two 9-win season and an 11-win season. But - he has not played for a conference title or won a conference title. He did play in a New Year's Day bowl game. (so did Jerry Kill)

So MN got a taste of what the Next Level might be - and now it appears the program is slipping back to the old level of Mason, Kill and Claeys.

that's what stings - to have the promise of something better dangled in front of our eyes, only to see it fade away like a mirage in the desert. so people are upset.
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Brewster was a disaster but the other three coaches you mentioned here while on paper not as good as PJ put a product on the field and a strategy relative to games that was way more fun than this nonsense. I keep coming back to that but even when we win a lot of times, the games suck ass to watch.
 

WayOfTheGopher said:
Pretty much went how we all expected.
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I honestly though the final score was going to be worse. But no realistic person thought we'd win this game. Just frustrated with the lackadaisical offense to start, try to get some momentum and see if you can make it halfway fun to watch by taking a shot or two, not running on third down in decent territory in the first quarter.
 


Not much to say after that. Ohio State much better on both sides of ball. Don't think we get inside their 35, and Stroud misfires were among our best defensive plays.
 


Reserving judgment on this one until after next week. The two outcomes will very much be connected.

Watching Bucky vs Nebbie now and this is a very beatable Wisconsin team. Unfortunately so are we.

If this team can't buy into the "one game championship season" versus each opponent and be up for next weekend, I will have my first doubts.

PJ's performance graph out of the gate said it would be up followed by down...but then back up. The AD is definitely paying attention.
 


short ornery norwegian said:
Look, this goes back to the same argument that Gopher fans have been having for decades: what are the reasonable expectations for this program?

Under Mason, Kill and Claeys, the Gophers generally won 7 or 8 games most seasons and went to a mid-level bowl. Mason had a 10-win season. Claeys had a 9-win season. but some fans (not all fans) said MN should be able to go to "the next level" - which included playing for or even winning a conference title, and playing in the Rose Bowl or another Bowl game of similar stature.

I will stipulate that Fleck has had a higher winning % and has produced two 9-win season and an 11-win season. But - he has not played for a conference title or won a conference title. He did play in a New Year's Day bowl game. (so did Jerry Kill)

So MN got a taste of what the Next Level might be - and now it appears the program is slipping back to the old level of Mason, Kill and Claeys.

that's what stings - to have the promise of something better dangled in front of our eyes, only to see it fade away like a mirage in the desert. so people are upset.
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I will say this: it's not entirely clear that we're slipping back into the traditional norm. This has been for all intents and purposes a shitty season compared to what we've become accustomed to. I refuse to believe that some switch got flipped and the whole program went back into the dumpster, however. We had a lot of things go poorly this season, and I think it's only fair, with some of the accomplishments we've seen as a whole under Fleck, that he be given the benefit of the doubt and we look at this as a blip instead of a wholesale regression of the program. It sucks but it's inevitable that a team will have a shitty year on occasion. Let's keep the axe and hit the drawing board. We do need a change at qb. I don't think the best qb coach in the world can improve whatever mental blocks Kaliakmanis has, and his inability to consistently get in a rhythm, hit his receivers in stride, and be accurate with touch on short passes over the course of an entire game have kneecapped us and caused us losses in both the NW and Illinois games.
 

PJ Fleck's 2nd game of "Year 0" was a 48-14 obliteration of Oregon State, on the road

Now Oregon State is #11 and near the top of their league, playing big games in prime time...and Minnesota is hoping to eke into a bowl

Oregon State has fewer resources than Minnesota.
 





GopherRob said:
So many said 7 wins and they will get 6. Nobody said they would get 9/10 so stop acting like they should have done so much better. Bucky, Hawks and a Bowl with this schedule…I will take that this year.
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I had much higher expectations for this team and believed it was a 10 win program coming in. Based on outcomes, with a dependable qb this would've been a 9 win team with our only losses being NC, Mich, and OSU. With a dependable qb this team has more heart in the Purdue game. It all comes down to the qb in my eyes.
 

Gophergrandpa said:
Not clear he gives that talent enough chances to succeed. Third down calls when we were inside OSU territory during the first half were akin to raising a white flag … when the score was still close. Wrong message to team, esp. because we seem to be the worst team in the B1G coming out of the halftime break.
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Playing the "field position" strategy is not going to work against Ohio State. That game plan would need to be complimented with about 5 OSU turnovers to have a prayer for success.
 



Some Day...Maybe said:
MN has been a 2nd or 3rd tier team since the 1970’s, that ain’t changing. The one year they were a tier 1 team was 2019.
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I understand that. My point is, if your want to be done being a 2nd or 3rd tier team then step up to the plate. Otherwise quit telling the fans there is any hope at all! I know there is no chance Minnesota will ever be relevent. So quit selling the hope and over charging for tickets for a mediocre product.
 


Next season is a slaughter schedule. It's an awesome schedule for seeing top teams play but brutal for wins and losses.

After going through that, then it will be a time to rethink the new reality -- after that slaughter schedule.

Maybe two seasons of the new Big Ten slaughter schedules and then think. It will be a new world, coast to coast viewers in the millions and millions flowing.
 


1) Our offense has zero creativity.
2) After almost two years, AK should be better than this.
3) Our RB's are not very good.
4) Our TE is not very good.
5) Not sure why any skill player would come here, when we just consistently run up the middle.

Thanks, I feel better now.
 

the change in the conference makes this whole discussion difficult.

how do we judge Fleck's performance going forward in an 18-team B1G with no divisions?

again, what is an "acceptable" season for MN? what are realistic expectations?

how would any of the recent coaches be evaluated if there had been no B1G West Division?

Mason never had the opportunity to win a Division title. If he had won a Division title, would his tenure be evaluated differently?
 

I know I’ve matured in the 13 years I’ve been on here because I knew better than to watch a second of this game.
 

Unless you’re one of the top programs, almost everyone has a bad season here and there. But this feels like more of the direction of the program than just a blip. There’s not a lot to be excited about in the future.

It just seems to me that Fleck has checked out to some extent. As silly as it sounds, he doesn’t even do his signature “row the boat, skiumah, go Gophers” nearly as much anymore.
 

GophersInIowa said:
It just seems to me that Fleck has checked out to some extent. As silly as it sounds, he doesn’t even do his signature “row the boat, skiumah, go Gophers” nearly as much anymore.
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That's an interesting observation. We'll have to look forward to the offseason and next fall to confirm.
 

LakevilleBro said:
1) Our offense has zero creativity.
2) After almost two years, AK should be better than this.
3) Our RB's are not very good.
4) Our TE is not very good.
5) Not sure why any skill player would come here, when we just consistently run up the middle.

Thanks, I feel better now.
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1) Don't disagree
2) Overwhelmingly agree
3) Respectfully disagree, we're on our 4th stringer and our top two are studs.
4) Jury is out on this for me. He's had some of the worst passes I've ever seen come at him at about 180 mph two steps behind him. I have no idea how well he blocks.
5) We have a good offensive line and if our quarterback was worth a damn those runs up the middle would be worth five yards every other time.
 

GophersInIowa said:
Unless you’re one of the top programs, almost everyone has a bad season here and there. But this feels like more of the direction of the program than just a blip. There’s not a lot to be excited about in the future.

It just seems to me that Fleck has checked out to some extent. As silly as it sounds, he doesn’t even do his signature “row the boat, skiumah, go Gophers” nearly as much anymore.
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He is definitely not the same PJ we hired. Listen to his introductory press conference and the difference to now is drastic.

He has realized Minnesota is not a sleeping giant and he can’t wake it up.
 


Great Plains Gopher said:
We need a QB who can move the team. Right now our essentially freshman QB can't do it. He's at 52% for season completions. Not acceptable.
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I agree, he's still pretty young but he's not a freshman in experience. He's been here since 2021, he's had plenty of time to improve, and he yet might...but it doesn't look encouraging.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Look, this goes back to the same argument that Gopher fans have been having for decades: what are the reasonable expectations for this program?

Under Mason, Kill and Claeys, the Gophers generally won 7 or 8 games most seasons and went to a mid-level bowl. Mason had a 10-win season. Claeys had a 9-win season. but some fans (not all fans) said MN should be able to go to "the next level" - which included playing for or even winning a conference title, and playing in the Rose Bowl or another Bowl game of similar stature.

I will stipulate that Fleck has had a higher winning % and has produced two 9-win season and an 11-win season. But - he has not played for a conference title or won a conference title. He did play in a New Year's Day bowl game. (so did Jerry Kill)

So MN got a taste of what the Next Level might be - and now it appears the program is slipping back to the old level of Mason, Kill and Claeys.

that's what stings - to have the promise of something better dangled in front of our eyes, only to see it fade away like a mirage in the desert. so people are upset.
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Fleck will easily make north of $40 million. Worth it?
 

On the positive the D Line played better at times. Having Walley play man against Harrison Jr worked well and I wish the defense played more man.
Evans was effective.
It was obvious to everyone how big the talent gap was and is. It seems to be getting worse with NIL and it's really dissapointing as I felt like the Gophers had turned the corner with new facilities, on campus stadium, and a young and promising coach. Gopher fans will need to pony up if they want this program to compete in the future in my opinion.
That brings me to Fleck playing not to be humiliated. He is no dummy and can tell that this current team is not in the same league as Michigan, Penn State, or OSU. I don't agree with his strategy, but I have to think he thinks that it's in the best long term interest in the program not to lose by 50. I think it must suck to be a current player and know that the coach doesn't think you can win, but frankly I think the players know it too.
Remember that he did not play OSU, PSU or Michigan in a chicken sh1t way when his previous year's teams were more competitive. He went for it on 4th down vs OSU from the Gophers own 30 yard line for example.
 

mnsportsgeek said:
He is definitely not the same PJ we hired. Listen to his introductory press conference and the difference to now is drastic.

He has realized Minnesota is not a sleeping giant and he can’t wake it up.
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The rules are different now.
 

mnsportsgeek said:
He is definitely not the same PJ we hired. Listen to his introductory press conference and the difference to now is drastic.

He has realized Minnesota is not a sleeping giant and he can’t wake it up.
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WorkingMyTailOff said:
On the positive the D Line played better at times. Having Walley play man against Harrison Jr worked well and I wish the defense played more man.
Evans was effective.
It was obvious to everyone how big the talent gap was and is. It seems to be getting worse with NIL and it's really dissapointing as I felt like the Gophers had turned the corner with new facilities, on campus stadium, and a young and promising coach. Gopher fans will need to pony up if they want this program to compete in the future in my opinion.
That brings me to Fleck playing not to be humiliated. He is no dummy and can tell that this current team is not in the same league as Michigan, Penn State, or OSU. I don't agree with his strategy, but I have to think he thinks that it's in the best long term interest in the program not to lose by 50. I think it must suck to be a current player and know that the coach doesn't think you can win, but frankly I think the players know it too.
Remember that he did not play OSU, PSU or Michigan in a chicken sh1t way when his previous year's teams were more competitive. He went for it on 4th down vs OSU from the Gophers own 30 yard line for example.
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NIL might be an issue in a year or two, but it has nothing to do with this year. Losing depth in the transfer portal… Maybe but not NIL. You can’t play in the Big Ten and be a chickenshit like he is.
 

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