U losses and court cases abound, but where's embarrassment?

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Jim Souhan is a strange little man.

And he loves the Big Twelve and hates the Big Ten.
 

Gopher Bandanna Guy said:
I can't wait to read the article about how the Gophers have failed as a football program, if they ever get to the Rose Bowl and lose. And even if they get to the Rose Bowl and win, there will likley be Souhan and Reusse hand-wringing that they didn't win a national title. These guys just live to tear down the U. No other Big Ten school has to put up with the semi-weekly kick in the teeth these two knuckleheads try to deliver.

I'd love to ask them flat out what kind of season would satisfy them for 2010, given our current situation.
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Nothing will satisy them. That's not what they are after.

The Star Tribune has truned into a true tabloid over the last decade. These are the type of columns they are expected to write. People expect their columns to make a point, but the Star Tribune is our daily paper that is all about emotion.
 

tjgopher said:
I even laughed pretty hard at Souhan's "The Drive" column after last week's SDSU game (and I'm a diehard Gopher). But, this piece that he wrote here is total garbage. A completely unnecessary cheap shot.
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Good point. I forgot about it already, but that column was actually hilarious.
 

Souhan was basically right on with his column. And you all are just a bunch of crybabies. As usual. So tiresome.
 

Maroon said:
Souhan was basically right on with his column. And you all are just a bunch of crybabies. As usual. So tiresome.
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Ha. Are you serious?

Souhan prints a lengthy, rambling piece of drivel that is literally non-stop whining about the state of the Gophers, and by us calling him out, WE are suddenly the crybabies? His column today DEFINES 'crybaby'.

Honestly, his column had zero insight or meaning. "This is bad, that is bad, everything is bad, why aren't they embarrassed?" Great perspective, Jim.
 


Maroon said:
Souhan was basically right on with his column. And you all are just a bunch of crybabies. As usual. So tiresome.
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Come on, really? I mean, really? I'm not going to say there wasn't some truth in there and, in all honesty, I was embarrassed after the game last week. But to say he was basically right on? It makes me wonder if you're a guy that gets it.
 

I am going to agree with Souhan on most of what was in his column, but I have a couple of thoughts:

1. "Brew" - We are really no better than the Mason-era and "Brew" has been able to recruit to a new stadium. I know most of his recruits are young, but I don't see the difference-maker in the younger class that we saw with Mason - as noted by Maturi in the Star Trib story today. By the time Maroney, Barber, Eslinger, Setterstrom, Spaeth, Ron Johnson, Ben Utecht, Ben Hamilton, Karon Riley and Willie Middlebrooks were sophomores you thought they might be pretty good or even special. Heck, even Ukee Dozier, Anthony Montgomery, Darrell Ried and John Schlecht were all conference players. Each of the players I listed, I believe, ended-up on an NFL roster for at least one season. I don't see that with any of "Brews" guys which is more an indication that he can not develop players. Say what we want about Mason, but he could develop players and did not worry so much about the recruiting rankings and whether a guy was 3 or 4 stars, something that is important to our guy Brew.

2. Royce White - I think Souhan was a little hard on Tubby based on the fact that if Tubby did not sign White, fans might be more critical as to the fact he did not keep one of the state's best prospects at home. I think we will see Coach Smith handled this in an appropriate manner and move past the issue.

3. Lucia - It is hard to blast a guy that has won two national championships but I do think this is a big year. I will give him a pass after all the health issues he dealt with last season but I think the program needs to have a good year and show progress, otherwise the seat probably gets hot.

4. Maturi - Joel was the perfect fit for what the University needed at the time - someone to bridge the gap between the men and women during the merger of the departments and a face with the legislature during the stadium push. He has accomplished a lot in those two areas. I don't think the job has become to difficult for him, but I think he is going to have to make some tough decisions in the next couple of years. Many of the coaches in that department have become too comfortable with the expectations in front of them.
 

I understand this is a mostly bash the Strib thread, but I am kind of surprised that Souhan's end-of-the article mention of Brewster berating Maturi in front of the players is largely ignored.
Something certainly did happen there.
I guess we all know the pecking order, and Power Football Coach falls ahead of AD.
But where does Recruiter-Haven't Proven I Can Coach fall in that situation? Maybe there's a reason for Maturi's recent quotes.
 

alleged. Most likely a minor event that has been sensationalized and blown up to something not even remotely resembling the actual event. Why do I choose to believe that as most likely? Because this is how these media guys roll. I bet not one of them has bothered to ask either Brewster or Maturi about said incident. And why? Because the truth is probably uninteresting and un-newsworthy.
 



What annoys me about Souhan and Ruesse is that there criticisms are layers in personal arrogance and disdain, especially toward Brewster. To me, just comment and critique the issues...leave the arrogant snide comments out.
 

I'm sure that's the case. That's the way those media guys roll.
 

Concerning the Gopher hockey, it is hard to develop a program when your top players are basically one and done and on there way to the pros.
 

ORGopher said:
Say what we want about Mason, but he could develop players and did not worry so much about the recruiting rankings and whether a guy was 3 or 4 stars, something that is important to our guy Brew.
QUOTE]


Correction: something that is important to the people on this board. Brewster has never discussed star rankings once.
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Correction 12th Man: Maybe Brewster does not talk about the stars but he sure talks about where the experts rank his classes. What really is the difference?
 

The 12th Man said:
ORGopher said:
Say what we want about Mason, but he could develop players and did not worry so much about the recruiting rankings and whether a guy was 3 or 4 stars, something that is important to our guy Brew.
QUOTE]


Correction: something that is important to the people on this board. Brewster has never discussed star rankings once.
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Your correct...a number of times he has been trying to get recruits well before they were even rated. Guys like Stoudemire and Mcknight were 2 star recruits.
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ORGopher said:
Correction 12th Man: Maybe Brewster does not talk about the stars but he sure talks about where the experts rank his classes. What really is the difference?
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Big difference. People on here quibble all the time about whether a kid is a 3 star, or a 5.6, or any of that other junk. Is a 5.6 kid really better than a 5.5 kid? Nobody knows for sure, and to debate the difference is an exercise in the ridiculous.

The overall quality of a class, however, is something that can be ranked without a star system (even though Rivals and the like choose to use the star system). It is something you can hang your hat on and sell to the next recruiting class: "We had the 20th class this year- come build something with us." It is a recruiting tool, and I am glad he uses it. Good recruiting begets good recruiting, and the "experts" are one measuring stick that everyone can use.
 


I wonder if Matt Painter will come out in the West Lafayette paper tomorrow and admit that he's "embarrassed" that the #7 Purdue Boilermakers beat SDSU by 11 points at home? I'm gonna guess no.
 

govikesgo said:
It is about coaching
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Come on, man. To discount either is to do a disservice to everything that goes into it. Recruiting absolutely matters. Pete Carroll was a terrible NFL coach but recruited his butt off and started a dynasty at USC. Their backups could start for a boatload of other D-1 programs. It is not just coaching, just as it is not just recruiting.
 





I'm no fan of Brewster but this was BS. I stopped listening to KFAN a few months ago because they didn't provide anyting decent and took on the U under the guise of news. Now I'm done with strib. Ho hum.
 

need a trophey

I could put with criminal activity if could win a meaningfull game.
 

I have no problems with columnists trying to be provocative to sell papers. Considering how badly most papers are taking it in the shorts financially these days, I fully expect the vitriol to become more outlandish as the Strib continues to swirl the drain.

I just wish Souhan would realize that less is more when it comes to his (usually lame) attempts at humor in his columns. Aaron Gleeman (Twins blogger for those that don't know) calls him 'Shecky' for a reason.
 

91 CLA Grad said:
I have no problems with columnists trying to be provocative to sell papers. Considering how badly most papers are taking it in the shorts financially these days, I fully expect the vitriol to become more outlandish as the Strib continues to swirl the drain.

I just wish Souhan would realize that less is more when it comes to his (usually lame) attempts at humor in his columns. Aaron Gleeman (Twins blogger for those that don't know) calls him 'Shecky' for a reason.
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#1

I generally like Souhan's sports insights (although this column didn't contain much of that -- mostly a rehash of events). But my god, he has no sense of humor. On the radio and in the paper. I really think he's trying to be Reusse II, and I just can't get past his "jokes." Stick to what you know and stop trying to be funny, Jim!
 

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