Serious conversation

[Nax5]

He sounds like an @ss. So glad my college football experience isn't based on enjoying the season if the team is in the top ten. Minnesota will never be like Michigan and OSU again. But they can have good to really good teams and we can enjoy watching/communing with our fellow fans. Maybe I'm the exception though as I would rather not have a college football playoff and just regular bowl games like before.

I guess the fact that we almost beat (and probably should have) the defending national champions, things can seemingly change in an instant in the world of CFB.

It would be easier if we just had bowl games. My only dream goal before was winning the Big Ten. Which would still be great. But sneaking into the playoffs could be even more realistic in the re-imagined CFB landscape.

 

[gopherbadgerman]

The question was about expectations for the program given the climate today. Assuming the BiG stays the same for the next five years, here's what I think are reasonable goals:
1. Win 11 of the 15 non-conference games.
2. Beat Iowa/Wisconsin 4 of the 10 games
3. Win 22 of the 35 remaining conference games
4. Win 2 of 4 bowl games

That's winning 37 of the 60 regular season games on a typical season of 7-5, 8-4.

Based on the program history going 26-19 over a five year period in the big ten will be a tall order.

 

[PMWinSTP]

The question was about expectations for the program given the climate today. Assuming the BiG stays the same for the next five years, here's what I think are reasonable goals:
1. Win 11 of the 15 non-conference games.
2. Beat Iowa/Wisconsin 4 of the 10 games
3. Win 22 of the 35 remaining conference games
4. Win 2 of 4 bowl games

That's winning 37 of the 60 regular season games on a typical season of 7-5, 8-4.

Did you mean to say win 22 of the 45 conference games?

 

[FanSinceTheFifties]

Did you mean to say win 22 of the 45 conference games?

No. I listed the goal for Iowa and Wisconsin separately.

 

[DanvilleGopher]

We consistently recruit in the 25-40 range and that's about where we are. Need to catch lightening in a bottle. It's possible. At the very least we need to improve the OL. That alone can cover up some warts. We will be fine.

Wait a second, when have we ever hit 25 for recruiting, or even below 30? I would say we consistently hit 37-50. We do get some good players no doubt but the overall talent level we recruit across the board will keep us where we are.

 

[60's Guy]

Wait a second, when have we ever hit 25 for recruiting, or even below 30? I would say we consistently hit 37-50. We do get some good players no doubt but the overall talent level we recruit across the board will keep us where we are.

Kinda crazy how it seems to work. At least at Minnesota. We do recruit in the 37 to 50 range in the rankings on an annual basis and our team pretty much slots into that same level every year on the field.

Question I guess is...should we be happy? It'd be easy to under perform on the field. Over performing is likely a rarity no matter who the coach is? So achieving the season finish in the 35 to 50 range is good....it is certainly not a guarantee.

It seems the only way to change it is to recruit better. And we need millions of outside money to do that. We also probably need a mindset change in administration. The reality is our climate is not an advantage in recruiting. And our proximity to 4 and 5 star recruits within 200 miles likely offers the fewest candidate opportunities among the Big Ten teams.

There you have it...

 

[Golden Deuce]

Missing a big area,

PJ runs a clean program.

No scandals....yet.

High GPAs and his players graduate.

They seem to be producing good people.

Not saying record isnt important, if the program is near the bottom of the Big Ten consistently, coach should be let go.

I appreciate the fact that PJ runs a program the community should be proud of.

 

[BilldGopher]

Missing a big area,
PJ runs a clean program.
No scandals....yet.
High GPAs and his players graduate.
They seem to be producing good people.
Not saying record isnt important, if the program is near the bottom of the Big Ten consistently, coach should be let go.
I appreciate the fact that PJ runs a program the community should be proud of.

Not only these superlatives but there is now a solid core of fans and early data suggests he's connected to the matriculating students that long term should result in some butts-in-the-seats for members of the next generation with modest attention spans and disposable income.

As long as the media money continues to pour in and NIL is decent, the football program should remain stable with Coyle and PJ at the helm. To the degree that we get a special season like 2019 every ten years will probably have to do it. 2019 could have been epic if we had gotten The Axe and Pig that year too.

It has been worse. Progress.

 

[MNVCGUY]

Missing a big area,

PJ runs a clean program.

No scandals....yet.

High GPAs and his players graduate.

They seem to be producing good people.

Not saying record isnt important, if the program is near the bottom of the Big Ten consistently, coach should be let go.

I appreciate the fact that PJ runs a program the community should be proud of.

These factors are definitely important and do get overlooked when people focus in just on the teams record. They won't be enough to save a coach if the team is terrible every year but they are still important factors when evaluating the program as a whole.

It is tough for a lot of fans to accept but there is a clear pecking order in college football and unfortunately it is going to be really really hard for any coach to get Minnesota above the crowded second tier of teams and into the elite group competing for the conference and National championships on a yearly basis. Same applies to Iowa, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Purdue, Northwestern, Rutgers, Indiana, UCLA, Illinois, Washington, Michigan State, Maryland......

 

[60's Guy]

And if the Georgia coach, coached at Minnesota...with all the drunken driving, people losing their life, would he still be the coach here?
Scandals are tough, you got 100 guys to be responsible for, plus another 50 that work for you.
Georgia hasn't been a one time thing...it's a pattern. He wins. He has his job.
Sometimes coaches don't win enough to keep their jobs.

 

[mngg11]

Underperformance vs unc and Rutgers for certain. Not even a question.

Not getting to 8 wins not including bowl game is underperforming.

Did you post a prediction before the season started?

 

[BarnBurner]

Did you post a prediction before the season started?

Don't think I posted anything. My thought was to get to 8 pre bowl.

 

[Golden Deuce]

And if the Georgia coach, coached at Minnesota...with all the drunken driving, people losing their life, would he still be the coach here?
Scandals are tough, you got 100 guys to be responsible for, plus another 50 that work for you.
Georgia hasn't been a one time thing...it's a pattern. He wins. He has his job.
Sometimes coaches don't win enough to keep their jobs.

Two very different administrations. I doubt that would be tolerated here unless there were playoff victories and national titles, even then it would be highly suspect.

 

[BilldGopher]

And if the Georgia coach, coached at Minnesota...with all the drunken driving, people losing their life, would he still be the coach here?
Scandals are tough, you got 100 guys to be responsible for, plus another 50 that work for you.
Georgia hasn't been a one time thing...it's a pattern. He wins. He has his job.
Sometimes coaches don't win enough to keep their jobs.

Unfortunately my other alma mater does have higher tolerance for team misconduct than certainly PJ's regime and the UM administration broadly. That said, every incident down to our south gets blasted on the cover the Atlanta Journal Constitution and all local media so there is some heat. Still, very proud to be a Gopher and the Row The Boat+ culture PJ instills compared to any other institution and athletic programs.

 

[btowngopher]

Unfortunately my other alma mater does have higher tolerance for team misconduct than certainly PJ's regime and the UM administration broadly. That said, every incident down to our south gets blasted on the cover the Atlanta Journal Constitution and all local media so there is some heat. Still, very proud to be a Gopher and the Row The Boat+ culture PJ instills compared to any other institution and athletic programs.

Up here the media puts out hit pieces for the coach conducting too rigorous of practices.

 

[Jack jones]

Not sure anyone gets caught cheating in today’s environment. Wouldn’t be opposed to finding someone who presses the issue. Might just take one recruit to get us over the hump.

 

[soneillumn]

Up here the media puts out hit pieces for the coach conducting too rigorous of practices.

Or not filling up with a rental car before dropping it off

 

[PMWinSTP]

Not sure anyone gets caught cheating in today’s environment. Wouldn’t be opposed to finding someone who presses the issue. Might just take one recruit to get us over the hump.

Well thought out, thanks for sharing.