P.J. FLECK – Page 81 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Here’s Your College Football Finale

Posted on December 7, 2017December 7, 2017 by David Shama

The University of Minnesota season is over but my college football notebook has unfinished business. Here’s an offering of year-end thoughts about not only the U, but also the Big Ten Conference and national scenes.

Many Gophers fans remain open-minded after one season of the P.J. Fleck era—disappointing as it was at 5-7, ending with just two league wins and outscored 70-0 by the final two opponents. That’s the fair approach because it’s too soon to judge Fleck and his staff.

The 37-year-old coach has big ambitions for Minnesota and will mostly either realize them or fail based on the talent of his players. Minnesota’s 2018 recruiting class is No. 31 nationally in the 247Sports composite rankings. If that impressive ranking sticks through Signing Day on December 20, the Gophers will have their highest ranked recruiting class since 2008 and head coach Tim Brewster.

A prominent businessman, U alum and big-time Gopher booster thinks Fleck is going to be a coaching star. He told me this fall Minnesota will be on its way as soon as Fleck’s second season. The view from here: with so many inexperienced and new players in 2018, that’s not likely.

Fleck needs to not just eventually breakthrough with a couple of winning seasons, but more importantly develop a program with continued success. Can he do it?

That’s the golden question in Dinkytown. He has only been a head coach for five years. At Western Michigan he had one knockout season, his last one in 2016 when the Broncos were 13-1 and a damn good team. His first season at Western, in 2013, the record was 1-11, then came two 8-5 years.

Fleck’s combined record as a head coach is 35 wins, 29 losses. Certainly circumstances, including resources available, have much to do with a coach’s record but it’s interesting the Broncos program he left behind was just 6-6 overall and 4-4 in Mid-American Conference games this past season. Maybe the Broncos missed Fleck’s leadership that much, or perhaps he left a program still not built for sustained high level success.

The Mid-American has long been an incubator of coaches going on to big-time jobs—from Ara Parseghian to Urban Meyer. The league has also produced its share of Big Ten coaching busts including Darrell Hazell who was a one-season hit at Kent State before piling up the losses at Purdue over four years. Brady Hoke used some brief success at Ball State to move on to San Diego State for two seasons before he failed at Michigan.

Gophers’ athletic director Mark Coyle is all in on Fleck, having hired him for more than $3 million annually last January. This fall Coyle proposed extending Fleck’s original five-year contract through the 2022 season (pending Board of Regents approval next week).

The opinion here is the first attribute an athletic director needs is the skill to identify and hire the best coaches. How is Coyle doing?

It’s too soon to judge Coyle who was hired at Minnesota in 2016. However, it’s interesting that Fleck isn’t the only ex-Mid-American head coach with limited experience and success that Coyle has hired. As Syracuse’s athletic director he hired Dino Babers who coached at Bowling Green where he was 18-9 in two seasons and won the 2015 MAC championship. Babers has coached Syracuse for two seasons with 4-8 overall and 2-6 ACC records both years.

Among the best things that have happened to Gophers football this century is being placed in the Big Ten’s West Division. The power in the conference rests in the East where bullies Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State and Penn State are usually better than most teams in the West—or is that all except for Wisconsin?

Mike Riley was the wrong coach for Nebraska but his presence in Lincoln was a plus for the Gophers who beat his team 54-21 this season. New hire Scott Frost looks like instant improvement for “Big Red” and leaves the West Division with only one apparent coaching soft spot, at Illinois where Lovie Smith is 5-19 (2-16 Big Ten) in two seasons.

The coaching scene in the West Division looks like it’s really settling in except for some drama at Minnesota and with the Illini. Frost, the former Nebraska quarterback who turned UCF from a 0-12 team in 2015 to an undefeated one this fall, looks like a perfect fit in Lincoln. Northwestern, with former Wildcat All-American linebacker Pat Fitzgerald heading the program with success since 2006, is already the West Division’s legacy model fit.

As head coach, Wisconsin’s Barry Alvarez resurrected Badgers football in the 1990s. As athletic director, he remains the CEO of the program. Now with Madison native and Alvarez disciple Paul Chryst as head coach the Badgers keep winning division titles, and it’s “On Wisconsin” every year.

It’s not easy to win at Iowa but head coach Kirk Ferentz has made an 18-year career as the Hawkeyes boss. Here and there Iowa has known glory including the 2016 Rose Bowl and the day this fall when they embarrassed Ohio State with a 55-24, beat down in Iowa City. Things remain stable at Iowa with Kirk’s son, Brian Ferentz, seemingly a solid bet to one day succeed his dad as head coach.

Jeff Brohm’s first season as Purdue head coach gave long suffering Boilermaker fans some bright moments including a 31-17 win over the Gophers. Purdue, with an overall 6-6 record and 4-5 in the Big Ten, will play in its first bowl games since 2012. A year ago Purdue finished 1-8 and 3-9 under Hazell. With his offensive pedigree, Brohm could be the right guy at a school that years ago was referenced as “Quarterback U.”

The Gophers are the opposite of “Quarterback U.” Minnesota’s last All-American quarterback was Sandy Stephens in 1961. The NFL last drafted a Gophers quarterback in 1972 when Craig Curry was an eighth round pick.

Quarterback Victor Viramontes, the junior college transfer from California expected to sign with Minnesota December 20, is already a social media fave of Gophers fans. He was even interviewed on WCCO Radio’s “Sports Huddle” last Sunday before going to church.

Perhaps Viramontes, who has drawn comparisons to former Florida Heisman winner Tim Tebow, can emerge as a starter next year and also a star. The Gophers will need box office appeal not only because of this year’s record. The home schedule is not exactly a who’s who of college football—New Mexico State, Fresno State, Miami (Ohio), Iowa, Indiana, Purdue and Northwestern.

Speaking of college football’s elite, the Big Ten was left out of the four-team playoff to determine the national champion. The selection committee may well have put the best teams in the field—it’s hard to vote for the Big Ten champion Buckeyes after the debacle in Iowa City—but the playoffs do have a provincial look. Alabama, Clemson, Georgia and Oklahoma collectively cover a small part of America geographically.

The prediction here is that won’t happen in a few years because the playoff will likely be expanded from four to six teams. Champions from the five Power Conferences, plus a wild-card team would ensure more geographic balance and lessen second-guessing about who gets in the field. The motivation for going to six teams will also be to create more TV viewers and advertising revenues.

In case you didn’t notice, TV is king. The guy who spends $100 per ticket at the stadium isn’t as important as all those folks sitting at home in their recliners watching the endless parade of TV commercials. The ticket buyer is fortunate if he or she is provided more than six-days notice regarding the start time for the next game.

Meanwhile, the viewer at home may be sitting in his pajamas and enjoying all the game action up close on an Ultra HD TV. Commercials? Whoever invented the mute button is a genius.

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Piling on P.J. Fleck Won’t Help Gophers

Posted on November 26, 2017November 26, 2017 by David Shama

It’s too soon to make final judgments about whether first-year coach P.J. Fleck can establish a winning football program at the University of Minnesota. It’s not fair to conclude hiring Fleck last January was a mistake.

Fan and media criticism about Fleck and the Gophers aren’t surprising following a disappointing end to the 2017 season. The Gophers lost four of their last five games to finish with a 5-7 overall record and 2-7 in the Big Ten. Minnesota was outscored 70-0 in its final games against Northwestern and Wisconsin.

The Gophers were mostly a bad offensive team during the Big Ten season. Minnesota finished 11th among conference teams in scoring at 18.4 points per game. League leader Ohio State averaged 46.3. While the Gophers were fourth in conference rushing, they placed 13th in passing yards averaging just 110.4 yards per game and producing seven touchdowns.

Fleck inherited a lack of talent and experience at the quarterback position. He’s not to blame for that, nor is it on him that the offensive unit lacked skills and depth in other places. The offense had its moments, including impressive production against Oregon State and Nebraska, but right now that unit has a long way to go.

Minnesota’s defense carried too much of the burden in trying to win games. The unit had its playmakers led by linebackers Jonathan Celestin and Thomas Barber but often lacked consistency in the biggest of games. The combination of defensive backs that left the program after the 2016 season and injuries this fall wrecked a promising secondary.

Before the season a reasonable expectation seemed like a final record of 7-5, 6-6 or 5-7. The Gophers were 9-4 overall and 5-4 in conference games in 2016. Minnesota returned seven starters on offense and six on defense, but significant roster losses included quarterback Mitch Leidner who graduated, and two offensive linemen and two defensive backs with remaining eligibility who left school. The college football world isn’t static and to expect another 9-4 season wasn’t realistic.

But the opinion here is the coaching of Fleck and his assistants didn’t get the most out of the team. Minnesota lost close and winnable games to Iowa, Maryland and Purdue. The Gophers often lacked focus and sometimes even effort. Too many times there was obvious lack of execution including players in the wrong defensive gap, taking poor angles while tackling, or throwing foolish passes.

Neither the coaches nor players can blame their schedule for a disappointing record. Minnesota had a soft nonconference schedule, and faced more mediocre than quality opposition in the Big Ten. Minnesota also played five of its nine league games at home.

Fleck and his assistants—as with any new coaching staff—deserve to be judged mostly on their work over a period of time. The judgment day on Fleck is probably two years away. By then three seasons will be history and it will be more evident what the trend line is for a program that wasn’t broken when he came to town.

Fleck is trying to produce a conference champion at Minnesota for the first time since 1967. His progress toward that goal is obviously tied to improving the talent level, and 247Sports ranks the Gophers 2018 class No. 36 in the nation. That’s better than all but one other rival program in the Big Ten West Division, Wisconsin.

Fleck’s reputation as a superior recruiter will be tested at Minnesota where his resources include a new indoor practice palace. There are also challenges including the program’s losing reputation (no titles, mostly below .500 seasons in conference games for decades) and a fan base that can be characterized as both apathetic and cynical.

Those who rip Fleck yet want to see the Gophers become champions might want to think twice. Rival recruiters use any negatives they deem useful to influence high school prospects. This can be a very toxic town when it comes to U football.

Fleck told Sports Headliners last summer negativity won’t dampen his resolve. “I came here to bring the positivity,” he said. “I am one of the most optimistic people you’ll ever meet. I don’t care what people say about me negatively, that will never affect me as a person. …”

If Fleck signs a top 40 recruiting class next month that’s noteworthy. Nearly all of the program’s classes in the past haven’t been as highly ranked. Minnesota could even end up with the highest rated class in its division.

That would be a good start for Fleck and his assistants who probably will need to produce even more highly regarded classes in 2019 and 2020. Gophers fans can judge those classes not only by where they are ranked but also as they begin to see the skill sets of players on the field.

Fans should wait for more results before piling on Fleck. About 18 months ago another young Gophers coach was under heavy criticism including from University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler. Richard Pitino had produced a 2-16 Big Ten season in 2015-2016 and his players had embarrassed the program with off-court issues. This followed Pitino’s third season at Minnesota and three years of mostly struggles.

Then came a turnaround in 2017 when the Gophers went 11-7 in the Big Ten, finished fourth in the standings and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013. Pitino’s team is showing even more promise this fall with a 7-0 start and top 15 national ranking.

Pitino, like Fleck, was hired as much or more for his recruiting acumen than anything else. It will be interesting to see if the 36-year-old Fleck can follow the path of Minnesota’s 35-year-old basketball coach.

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JC Quarterback Could Be U Prize

Posted on November 14, 2017November 14, 2017 by David Shama

Recruiting authority Ryan Burns from Gopher Illustrated doesn’t see Shelby, Ohio senior quarterback Brennan Armstrong signing a National Letter of Intent with the Golden Gophers next month. Armstrong re-opened the recruiting process in October after being a solid verbal commit to Minnesota for most of the year.

Burns predicted the highly regarded dual-threat quarterback will be on Virginia’s roster next season. Armstrong may have developed second thoughts about Minnesota because of competition at the quarterback position including the emergence of redshirt sophomore Demry Croft as the team starter this fall, and the enrollment next year of freshman preferred walk-on Zack Annexstad who is originally from Mankato, Minnesota but has played this fall for IMG Academy in Florida.

Armstrong’s status concerns Gophers followers but Burns believes head coach P.J. Fleck will have a promising quarterback in his 2018 recruiting class. Brevin White, a California prep quarterback who has verbally committed to Princeton and turned down offers from Washington, Washington State and Tennessee, is considering the Gophers. Minnesota is also after Utah high school quarterback Zach Wilson who has verbally committed to Boise State and California junior college QB Victor Viramontes.

Burns said Minnesota’s “best chance” among the three is probably Viramontes, a dual threat quarterback. He was a prominent high school player from Norco, California when he enrolled as a freshman at the University of California in 2016. There was a coaching change at Cal after the 2016 season and late last spring Viramontes left the Golden Bears. A four-star recruit by 247Sports coming out of Norco High School, he would have three seasons of eligibility at Minnesota.

At about 6-2, 240-pounds, Viramontes has been compared with former Heisman Trophy winner and Florida legend Tim Tebow. When Sonny Dykes was California’s head coach this is how he described Viramontes to Calbears.com:

“Victor is an unusual athlete at his size as a 240-pound quarterback that is a great runner and a good passer. He’s pretty raw but he’s got a lot of upside and really can develop into a good player. He has an unusual skill set with his size and strength. He plays with great passion. I really like the way that he plays the game and the toughness that he brings. I’m really excited about him.”

Fleck has 23 verbal commits and wants to have all the players signed to National Letters of Intent in the early signing period that starts December 20. Burns estimates only 16 or so scholarships are currently available but anticipates seven or so players leaving the Gophers will make up the difference.

Most or all of the verbal commits are expected to make official visits to Minnesota December 8. The early signing period for high school players is December 20-22, while junior college players can sign December 20-January 15, 2018.

Worth Noting

With a 5-5 overall record, the Gophers will definitely be invited to a bowl game with one more win in their last two games. A 5-7 final record could even earn an invite as it did two years ago.

Not surprisingly, there were no press box seats assigned to bowl representatives at last Saturday’s home game against Nebraska (4-6).

Last Saturday’s announced attendance of 39,933 was the second smallest in TCF Bank Stadium history. Minnesota drew 38,162 for the Northwestern game last season.

At 6-foot-10, Gophers tight end Nate Wozniak is the tallest skill player in major college football. His 34 career starts lead all offensive players on the Gophers. The senior from Greenwood, Indiana has his under graduate degree in agricultural and food business management.

It will be interesting for state basketball fans to watch tonight’s ESPN matchup of No. 1 ranked Duke and No. 2 Michigan State. Apple Valley’s Tre Jones has signed his National Letter of Intent to play for Duke next season and he will likely have to compete for playing time next fall with current Blue Devils freshman point guard Trevon Duval. Both are five-star recruits.

The game is also an opportunity to see former Apple Valley five-star shooting guard Gary Trent, Jr., who is a freshman at Duke, and also compare Michigan State with the Gophers. The two teams are favorites to win the Big Ten title.

The Gophers justified their A.P. No. 14 ranking last night in an impressive road win at Providence against a Friars team Athlon Sports magazine described as “the most experienced in the Big East.”

It seems like a “duh” by now, but Adam Thielen’s speed still seems to be news—perhaps even to NFL defensive backs. The 27-year-old Thielen—now in his fifth pro season and ranking third in NFL receiving yards (793) during a breakout season—told Sports Headliners his best time in the 40-yard dash is 4.45.

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer after being asked Monday whether anything still surprises him about Thielen: “The one ball he kind of dropped there at the end (in Sunday’s game), that surprised me. He usually makes all those catches.

“The guy is a gamer. When he gets the opportunities, he makes the most of them. Adam does a lot of dirty work. He blocks defensive ends. He blocks linebackers in the run game. He’s just a competitive guy. ….”

Former Vikings linebacker Ben Leber has been retired from the NFL since 2011. His weekends this fall are busy while working for FS1 on Saturdays and as a sideline reporter on the Vikings radio network. He has provided color commentary on college games for FS1, mostly Pac 12 and Big-12 games, but he also did analysis on last Saturday’s Golden Gophers-Nebraska game.

Leber has been earning more prominent TV college football assignments during his four full time seasons. Does he want to make a career out of the broadcast work? “I do,” he said. “It’s been a lot of fun. It’s been a challenge that I’ve readily accepted, and now I am just kind of rolling with the punches and seeing where it goes.”

Twins fans can watch the MLB Network tonight at 5 p.m. when the Baseball Writers Association of America announces its American League Manager of the Year winner. The Twins’ Paul Molitor is a finalist along with the Astros’ A.J. Hinch and Indians’ Terry Francona.

Francona, who directed the Indians to a 22-game winning streak last season, was named The Sporting News AL Manager of the Year last month. Hinch managed the Astros to the franchise’s first World Series championship.

Molitor, who was a finalist for the writers’ honor in 2015, had less talent to work with than Francona and Hinch but got his team in the playoffs after a 59-102 record in 2016. The Twins became the first MLB franchise to make the postseason after losing 100 games the year before.

Karl-Anthony Towns had another double-double last night in the Timberwolves’ win over the Jazz, scoring 24 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. He has 10 double-doubles in 13 games this season. The 21-year-old center is the seventh player in NBA history to total 3,000-plus career points and rebounds prior to age 22. Towns turns 22 tomorrow.

The Wild try to make it consecutive shutouts over the Flyers tonight at Xcel Energy Center. Last Saturday Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk stopped all 32 shots he faced and Jason Zucker had the team’s lone goal. St. Paul native Paul Holmgren is in his fourth season as Flyers president.

After a loss to Purdue last week, the nationally ranked Gophers volleyball team has dropped from No. 5 to No. 7 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association poll.

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