Ted Glover is an Ohio State fan, but he follows Minnesota sports and always has something crisp and incisive to say whenever he comments about any sport… so I asked him for some insights on the Minnesota Golden Gophers as the program enters the 2020s.
Here are Ted’s thoughts on Fleck’s Folks:
“What’s the biggest storyline facing the Gophers as the ‘20’s approach? For me, it’s keeping head coach P.J. Fleck and letting him finish what he’s started. People have quit rolling their eyes with his ‘Row The Boat’ mantra, because he had taken the Gophers to “good,” when they’ve rarely been above average for most of my life. If he stays, the Gophers can become great, on par with Wisconsin and Penn State. Keep bringing in good recruiting classes, they’ll start beating their rivals on a more regular basis and will compete for the Big Ten West. As long as Fleck is the coach, his message and relentless recruiting will pay off, success will breed success, and they’ll become a perennial division favorite.”
Wisconsin fans might not enjoy hearing that. They might enjoy Fleck going to another program. I think it’s very hard to argue with Ted’s analysis. Fleck shows a level of organization and preparedness which generally develops players. I do think Wisconsin’s win over the Gophers in Minneapolis was huge in terms of reminding the Gophers who is boss in the Big Ten West. If the two teams meet in 2020 for the West championship once again, the memory of what happened in Minneapolis in late November will be hard for the U of M to shake, and that the Badgers will take the field knowing they still wear the pants in this rivalry. In the short term, this is still probably Wisconsin’s division to own in the Big Ten as we move into a new decade.
However, if Fleck stays at Minnesota through, say, 2027, that would almost certainly mean that Minnesota will make a few breakthroughs — division titles, New Year’s Six bowl games, and related milestones we haven’t seen from the school since the Murray Warmath days of the early 1960s. P.J. Fleck continues to show that he is the real deal. Will that continue in the 2020s? Fair question. A better question: WHERE will it continue? Minnesota fans hope it will continue in Minneapolis. Wisconsin fans hope it will continue in another conference. (Cough, cough, TEXAS in 2021, cough, cough, goodbye Tom Herman, cough, cough.)