What should Maturi do about Brewster?

[WAGopher]

At this point, I see roughly 9 of 29 left from that class that look like potential impactful players. To me, that's not a good ratio for a top 25 class.

When is the last time we had 9 players from any class be impact players? If each of Brew's classes produce 9 impact/quality players, I think we'd be in very good shape. Let's see 9 * 4 = 36 impact players, with 9 impact redshirt freshman learning the ropes.

Not too shabby.

 

[Iceland12]

How many years had it been since Cincinnati had been to back to back BCS bowls before Kelly arrived? How long did it take him to do this?? What are their facilities and tradition like??

- It was the first time they where in back to back BCS games.

- Joined Big East in 2005.

- Conference Finishes since 2000 to 2006 2nd, 2nd, 1st, 9th, 2nd, 7th, 4th

- 2006 the year before Kelly they finished 8-5 with Bowl win. Then Dantonio left for MSU.

- 2007 they went 10-2 with Bowl win.

- Played Bowl games in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 20010.

- 14 Current NFL players.

- 2007 Lincoln Center for Athletics

- 2009 New Football/Lacrosse Complex being built.

- Kelly did a great job at Cincy. It was good team when he got there and he improved it.

None of which I'm sure, you give a damn about.

Wouldn't it be easier just to type "Fire Maturi and Brewster", save it and just add it to every thread?

 

[dpodoll68]

MT you are correct that changing this coaching staff needs to be done. But, if Maturi (the real problem) isn't replaced with a good football guy first, we may as well keep what we have, as he would surely make another poor decision. Tubby fell onto his lap, don't count on that happening again.

Let's get this Maturi outa here and hire a great AD.

SouthMetro

"This Maturi"?

Oh dear Lord.

You're on notice, buddy.

 

[Monty519]

I wanna see what Brewster does when it's HIS players that he brought in specifically to play more like his style. Yes, I'm well aware of the spread vs. pro style switch, but that really doesn't negate the fact that a lot of what they do is dependent on having quality athletes, which, no offense to the previous group, they just aren't the pure "athletes" that the new group are. I wanna see these guys get some strength and conditioning, and then be able to go out as a group and see if they can execute Brewster and staff's gameplans better than it has been the first few years. Extend him two years, cause I want him to continue to be able to bring in these "athletes", and then we can all sit there and easily say, "Yep, this guy just plain sucks", or "Wow, glad we gave him time to do his thing". I just don't see going to two bowl games, while crappy, but still bowl games, warrants any kind of firing at all this soon, but yes, on the basis of his recruiting ability alone, I would extend him a couple years, and the fact that I feel like he's put a positive vibe within the program as far as players and recruits really wanting to be here. I don't think that was the case a few years ago. Light buyout, but extended nonetheless.

 

[Pewterschmidt]

When is the last time we had 9 players from any class be impact players? If each of Brew's classes produce 9 impact/quality players, I think we'd be in very good shape. Let's see 9 * 4 = 36 impact players, with 9 impact redshirt freshman learning the ropes.

Not too shabby.

Potential impact players.

MarQueis Gray looks like a dynamic playmaker with the ball in his hands. How would he respond to running a pro-style offense? Can he protect the ball? How good of a leader is he? Does he have the accuracy to be at least an average thrower? How does he respond to the pressure of an important drive?

Keanon Cooper has shown he can make plays and has the athleticism to compete. How will doubling his snaps impact his effectiveness?

Brandon Green came on late in '08 and injuries derailed his '09 season. Has had only a couple of dozen catches in almost 2 full years. Will he be anything more than a #3 WR?

Jewhan Edwards was good in small bunches backing up Garrett Brown. How will his body respond to an increased role?

Brandon Kirksey is in the same boat as Edwards. Doubling their snaps from a 1/3 of the downs to 2/3 of the downs doesn't mean their production and impact will hold true

Troy Stoudermire has shown he's a good KR returner but needs to improve as a slot WR.

Gary Tinsley had a great game against Iowa and showed promise. How will he hold up over 12 games as a starter? Steve Davis looked good as a backup but tired as a starter. Again, Tinsley is a potential impact player but another question mark.

DL Wilhite showed some pass rushing skills this year. In fact, one could argue that he was the best pass rusher on the team. Can he start? What happens when 15 snaps turns into 30 or 40? Does he lose his edge or will he always be a specialist and only play on passing downs so his advantage isn't taken away?

DaJon McKnight was the #1 WR in the bowl game, making some nice catches. However, he has fewer than 20 in his career. What happens if teams throw their coverage towards him? How will he respond to being a full-time starter?

Others that could make an impact but have shown little to nothing thus far: Maresh, Reeves, and Lair

My point being is none of the players above have shown to be impact players. They all impacted the game in their reduced roles as underclassman. No one knows how they will respond as starters or when the spotlight is on them. Some will undoubtedly succeed. Others will plateau or regress and the word impact would not be used to describe their game.

Using the 9*4=36 math isn't quite right IMHO when judging Brewster's classes. Also, this class had 29 signees, about as large as a class can get. If we get 9 for 18 from the '09 class, that's fantastic. 9 for 29 two years in for potential impact players shows to me the class ranking shouldn't be used as a justification as for why we should be optimistic. Just look at the individuals.

 

[gopher7]

I'm in favor of giving Brewster a 2 year extension. Even though I'm not even close to convinced Brewster is the coach of the future here, I don't think he's been so brutal to the point where you have to fire him now. Assuming we keep him for this upcoming season, it only seems fair that we give him a longer contract so he can recruit without being hamstrung.

But with that said, if Brew is going to be the coach of the future here improvement has to start in 2010. We play USC, Ohio State, Penn State and Iowa at home this year. All of these are potential top-10 teams. In this his 4th season, he MUST get to the point where he can start knocking off a team or two like this. If we go 0-4 against those teams at home, that will be a bad sign. We will lose to Wisconsin again, so that is a 7-5 record at best, and that's (a big) if on us beating everyone else. If he wins one of these four games, then I'll be on the fence and have to see how we do in the other games. If we go 2-2 then I think that is a good sign that his rebuilding is on the right track (assuming we don't lose all our other games) and I'll be more confident in him long term.

 

[WAGopher]

"This Maturi"?

Oh dear Lord.

You're on notice, buddy.

Good catch! I wonder who this SouthMetro really is?

 

[WAGopher]

Potential impact players.

MarQueis Gray looks like a dynamic playmaker with the ball in his hands. How would he respond to running a pro-style offense? Can he protect the ball? How good of a leader is he? Does he have the accuracy to be at least an average thrower? How does he respond to the pressure of an important drive?

Keanon Cooper has shown he can make plays and has the athleticism to compete. How will doubling his snaps impact his effectiveness?

Brandon Green came on late in '08 and injuries derailed his '09 season. Has had only a couple of dozen catches in almost 2 full years. Will he be anything more than a #3 WR?

Jewhan Edwards was good in small bunches backing up Garrett Brown. How will his body respond to an increased role?

Brandon Kirksey is in the same boat as Edwards. Doubling their snaps from a 1/3 of the downs to 2/3 of the downs doesn't mean their production and impact will hold true

Troy Stoudermire has shown he's a good KR returner but needs to improve as a slot WR.

Gary Tinsley had a great game against Iowa and showed promise. How will he hold up over 12 games as a starter? Steve Davis looked good as a backup but tired as a starter. Again, Tinsley is a potential impact player but another question mark.

DL Wilhite showed some pass rushing skills this year. In fact, one could argue that he was the best pass rusher on the team. Can he start? What happens when 15 snaps turns into 30 or 40? Does he lose his edge or will he always be a specialist and only play on passing downs so his advantage isn't taken away?

DaJon McKnight was the #1 WR in the bowl game, making some nice catches. However, he has fewer than 20 in his career. What happens if teams throw their coverage towards him? How will he respond to being a full-time starter?

Others that could make an impact but have shown little to nothing thus far: Maresh, Reeves, and Lair

My point being is none of the players above have shown to be impact players. They all impacted the game in their reduced roles as underclassman. No one knows how they will respond as starters or when the spotlight is on them. Some will undoubtedly succeed. Others will plateau or regress and the word impact would not be used to describe their game.

Using the 9*4=36 math isn't quite right IMHO when judging Brewster's classes. Also, this class had 29 signees, about as large as a class can get. If we get 9 for 18 from the '09 class, that's fantastic. 9 for 29 two years in for potential impact players shows to me the class ranking shouldn't be used as a justification as for why we should be optimistic. Just look at the individuals.

My main point was when was the last time we thought we had 9 impact players in one class? I think we can all agree that Brewster's brought in all around better talent than we've had in quite a while. You are correct that we don't know how good yet. That question should be answered over the next 2 years. If a few players on each side of the ball can develop into all-conference or all-americans, we should have a pretty good team.

 

[Pewterschmidt]

My main point was when was the last time we thought we had 9 impact players in one class? I think we can all agree that Brewster's brought in all around better talent than we've had in quite a while. You are correct that we don't know how good yet. That question should be answered over the next 2 years. If a few players on each side of the ball can develop into all-conference or all-americans, we should have a pretty good team.

Just off of memory (may be off on exactly what I thought at that time), the 2003 class. After 2 full years in the program (after the '04-'05 season), the following players in that class appeared to be potential impact players and a couple showed to be high impact players:

1. Laurence Maroney - Obviously a high impact player after his soph year
2. Ernie Wheelwright - raving about the kid's potential after '05
3. Neel Allen - Pegged as starting DT entering '05
4. Tony Brinkhaus - Remember him being seen as the next great O-lineman developed by Mason
5. Jamal Harris - As the nickel in '04, had some good moments. We all know how he did as the starter thereafter.
6. Brandon Owens - Played enough in '04 to show his potential. If not for the injury the following year, who knows what he might have turned into.
7. Logan Payne - Seen as a good compliment to Wheelright entering junior year.
8. Amir Pinnex - What a luxury to have a back like Pinnex backing up Maroney in entering '05
9. John Shelvin - Seen as the edge LB that we needed with his measurables
10. Justin Valentie - FB of the future

The 2002 class also had 9 impact players (as viewed entering '04): Eslinger, Setterstrom, Spaeth, Montgomery, Ainslie, Banks, Clark, Cupito, and Reese

As almost did the 2005 class (as viewed entering '07): Jay Thomas, Ned Tavale, Keith Massey, Dom Jones, Alex Daniels, Otis Hudson, Decker, Steve Davis. 8 out of 20 that year

 

[WAGopher]

Just off of memory (may be off on exactly what I thought at that time), the 2003 class. After 2 full years in the program (after the '04-'05 season), the following players in that class appeared to be potential impact players and a couple showed to be high impact players:

1. Laurence Maroney - Obviously a high impact player after his soph year
2. Ernie Wheelwright - raving about the kid's potential after '05
3. Neel Allen - Pegged as starting DT entering '05
4. Tony Brinkhaus - Remember him being seen as the next great O-lineman developed by Mason
5. Jamal Harris - As the nickel in '04, had some good moments. We all know how he did as the starter thereafter.
6. Brandon Owens - Played enough in '04 to show his potential. If not for the injury the following year, who knows what he might have turned into.
7. Logan Payne - Seen as a good compliment to Wheelright entering junior year.
8. Amir Pinnex - What a luxury to have a back like Pinnex backing up Maroney in entering '05
9. John Shelvin - Seen as the edge LB that we needed with his measurables
10. Justin Valentie - FB of the future

The 2002 class also had 9 impact players (as viewed entering '04): Eslinger, Setterstrom, Spaeth, Montgomery, Ainslie, Banks, Clark, Cupito, and Reese

As almost did the 2005 class (as viewed entering '07): Jay Thomas, Ned Tavale, Keith Massey, Dom Jones, Alex Daniels, Otis Hudson, Decker, Steve Davis. 8 out of 20 that year

It's too bad Mason couldn't keep the recruiting effort up or he might still be here. I also remember there was high hope for the 2003 class. Too bad Brandon Owens had that freak injury and Valentine was never used to his potential. While the 2005 class had some potential, I don't think it's on the same level as the 2003 or 2008 classes.

 

[nc2mn]

Wow! the poll shows GH'ers strongly in favor in keeping Brewster and the posts are taken over strongly by the negativoids! I guess I shouldn't be surprised the way this board has been going lately.

I for one am in favor of continuity and giving Brew a chance to see what he can do when his own recruits have matured into seniors. Does anyone here really think the Gophers will be even this good the next couple of years if we dump all the coaches. Not bloody likely! We've had 3 OC's in 4 years and a new DC just about every year for the last ten. Let's see what a little continuity can do.

Go Gophers!

 

[SouthMetro]

"Good catch! I wonder who this SouthMetro really is?"

Well, I don't give a rats patoot who you are.

SouthMetro

 

[maxwellsmart]

Potential impact players.

MarQueis Gray looks like a dynamic playmaker with the ball in his hands. How would he respond to running a pro-style offense? Can he protect the ball? How good of a leader is he? Does he have the accuracy to be at least an average thrower? How does he respond to the pressure of an important drive?

Keanon Cooper has shown he can make plays and has the athleticism to compete. How will doubling his snaps impact his effectiveness?

Brandon Green came on late in '08 and injuries derailed his '09 season. Has had only a couple of dozen catches in almost 2 full years. Will he be anything more than a #3 WR?

Jewhan Edwards was good in small bunches backing up Garrett Brown. How will his body respond to an increased role?

Brandon Kirksey is in the same boat as Edwards. Doubling their snaps from a 1/3 of the downs to 2/3 of the downs doesn't mean their production and impact will hold true

Troy Stoudermire has shown he's a good KR returner but needs to improve as a slot WR.

Gary Tinsley had a great game against Iowa and showed promise. How will he hold up over 12 games as a starter? Steve Davis looked good as a backup but tired as a starter. Again, Tinsley is a potential impact player but another question mark.

DL Wilhite showed some pass rushing skills this year. In fact, one could argue that he was the best pass rusher on the team. Can he start? What happens when 15 snaps turns into 30 or 40? Does he lose his edge or will he always be a specialist and only play on passing downs so his advantage isn't taken away?

DaJon McKnight was the #1 WR in the bowl game, making some nice catches. However, he has fewer than 20 in his career. What happens if teams throw their coverage towards him? How will he respond to being a full-time starter?

Others that could make an impact but have shown little to nothing thus far: Maresh, Reeves, and Lair

My point being is none of the players above have shown to be impact players. They all impacted the game in their reduced roles as underclassman. No one knows how they will respond as starters or when the spotlight is on them. Some will undoubtedly succeed. Others will plateau or regress and the word impact would not be used to describe their game.

Using the 9*4=36 math isn't quite right IMHO when judging Brewster's classes. Also, this class had 29 signees, about as large as a class can get. If we get 9 for 18 from the '09 class, that's fantastic. 9 for 29 two years in for potential impact players shows to me the class ranking shouldn't be used as a justification as for why we should be optimistic. Just look at the individuals.

Not totally disagreeing, but I think if you're going to make such a point out of certain players' reduced roles you should provide some support. Do you know how many snaps Edwards / Kirksey took? I know one or both of them were on the field at some critical times, which says a lot about how effective the coaches believe them to be. I'm not so sure we didn't just see a season in which seniors started on defense, but talented underclassmen took away significant amounts of their playing time, especially in critical situations. Speaks well for the future if true.

 

[BigGopherFan]

Brewster's recruits were true sophomores or younger this year. He has brought in the best recruiting classes that Minnesota has seen in a LONG time. I think we have to give him two more years to see what his recruits can do.

This team has a lot of upside for the future. I think you will be pleasantly surprised in 2011.

People are getting fooled by Brewster. Everyone thinks he's some type of recruiting wizard when that's not the case at all. After that above average recruiting class a couple years ago, his efforts have gone down the drain. He's let a number of good players leave the state and now look at it, his class coming in next season has ONE 4-star recruit and is ranked 8th in the Big Ten.
Troubling...

 

[Ranger]

73% think he should be extended...when he has TWO years left on his contract as is. and we wonder why mn is mediocre, at best? with fans like this, who needs enemies? we set the bar low enough for ourselves, we don't need iowa or wi doing it for us. go gophers, 6-7 for 4 more years, yeah!

I'll be pretty happy with 6-7 for the next few years. I don't see it.

 

[SouthMetro]

You are right Miles, the fans have accepted mediocrity for far too long and until that changes, the program won't. They can call me "negative" and that's their privilege. But it's also my privilege after 30 years of tickets and donations to the U, to finally say enough is enough, and demand that these people we pay, perform. I've said before, it's not a Brewster problem. It's much deeper than that. And until these people are brought to task and held accountable, the failures will continue to repeat. Makes sense really doesn't it? If it doesn't, take a gander at the last 40+ years, and think of the prospects of another 40. These people are paid very well, demand something from them.

SouthMetro

 

[dpodoll68]

People are getting fooled by Brewster. Everyone thinks he's some type of recruiting wizard when that's not the case at all. After that above average recruiting class a couple years ago, his efforts have gone down the drain. He's let a number of good players leave the state and now look at it, his class coming in next season has ONE 4-star recruit and is ranked 8th in the Big Ten.
Troubling...

There are so many things wrong with this post that I don't even know where to begin.

"BigGopherFan"? Does that refer to your waist size?

 

[Demi]

Fire him and hire Leach.

At least we'll have an entertaining product that can compete even with average to below talent.

He gets ripped because he's a poor coach with an assinine reputation as a recruiter based on working for Mac Brown, he's arrogant, has done nothing to earn the arrogance he has.

And to top it off he came in with a fake texas accent he lost in only 2 1/2 years.

He's a scheister, plain and simple.

 

[Section2]

You are right Miles, the fans have accepted mediocrity for far too long and until that changes, the program won't. They can call me "negative" and that's their privilege. But it's also my privilege after 30 years of tickets and donations to the U, to finally say enough is enough, and demand that these people we pay, perform. I've said before, it's not a Brewster problem. It's much deeper than that. And until these people are brought to task and held accountable, the failures will continue to repeat. Makes sense really doesn't it? If it doesn't, take a gander at the last 40+ years, and think of the prospects of another 40. These people are paid very well, demand something from them.

SouthMetro

You make no sense IMO. In what way have MN fans accepted mediocrity? By being mediocre fans and not selling out any games without rival help in the metrodome? How do we demand that they perform? What does accountability mean to you? I've seen opinions like yours dozens of times. It's all talk. MN fans would be better served being patient and unconditionally supportive.