Not thrilled with Cosgrove

[SDGopherFan]

Looks like he will be the DC. Should be announced soon. I am not a fan, big step back IMO. No link, so don't ask.

[Gopher07]

Epic. Fail. (On paper).

In my opinion. Feel free to disagree.

[NateDawgUM]

If Brewster hires Cosgrove then I am off the Brewster bandwagon.

[sonnygarcia]

dammit, where did you see that it has a chance of being announced soon????

[Gopher4life15]

Looks like he will be the DC. Should be announced soon. I am not a fan, big step back IMO. No link, so don't ask.

Where are you getting your info?

[sonnygarcia]

If Brewster hires Cosgrove then I am off the Brewster bandwagon.



I will still be behind him...... he just won't get my "give him time, his awesome recruiting will show through soon" backing, he will get my "i like you, but get sh!t done" backing.

[parkinglotgopher]

Cosgrove's record as DC at Nebraska is pretty much the opposite of what we got when we hired Ted Roof.

I'll be so disappointed in this hire as to move past disappointed into some other emotional sphere. Possibilities include: disbelief, anger, denial and hopelessness.

[gopherguy05]

Over on GI they are saying its 99% sure its going to happen...

[GopherGod]

He is terrible and he is not a good recruiter at all. He couldn't recruit any talent at all and that was with the prestige of Nebraska which it still had before he and his idiot buddy Bill Callahan got there. As I posted on another thread his defensive rankings speak for themselves and this link doesn't even include the 2007 rankings which were the worst ever.

http://firecosgrove.com/bio.php

[The 12th Man]

Last time I checked, they still have to play the games. Don't jump off the bridge yet.

[TheDinkytowner]

I don't know much about Cosgrove but it looks like he was at one time considered a great recruiter, so maybe he can be again?

"Cosgrove has recruited many outstanding athletes during his career, and was named to recruiting analyst Tom Lemming’s “other big-time recruiting names,” just outside of the top-10 list. Among the top recruits he brought to UW were offensive tackle Aaron Gibson, a finalist for both the 1998 Lombardi Award and Outland Trophy; defensive back Jamar Fletcher, who won the 2000 Jim Thorpe Award; and defensive tackle Wendell Bryant, a two-time Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year. Gibson, Fletcher and Bryant were all first-round NFL draft picks."

[GopherGod]

Kevin Cosgrove was so bad that Barry Alvarez didn't even try and entice him to stay at Wisconsin with the promise of naming him head coach when he became A.D. Instead, he would rather bring in Bielema and name him as his successor. And though I am not a Bielema fan his defense with Cosgrove players his first year at Wisconsin as defensive coordinator was a 180 degree improvement over what Cosgrove had done.

[parkinglotgopher]

Last time I checked, they still have to play the games. Don't jump off the bridge yet.

It'd be one thing if everyone was ready to "jump off the bridge" because this guy was young and inexperienced and we were hoping for a bigger hire. It's another thing to be gravely concerned that this guy was the co-pilot of one of the great program killings of the last 20 years.

Would you be ready to jump off the bridge if your favorite NFL team picked up Rod Marinelli to be its new head coach?

[NateDawgUM]

I can only take so many kicks in the crotch until I quit coming back.

[GopherGod]

Would it be a bad sign if every gopher fan starts getting random sympathy cards from the state of Nebraska?

[TheDinkytowner]

I can only take so many kicks in the crotch until I quit coming back.

So the "NateDawg has balls of steel" rumor was just a myth?

[NateDawgUM]

So the "NateDawg has balls of steel" rumor was just a myth?

I did until I met Gopher Football.

[BBShopGo4]

I guess we're going to have to trust Brewster on this. Maybe there are factors that we don't know about that indicate Cosgrove will be successful here. Brewster will run the program the way he thinks is best and will be judged by the results.

[GoAUpher]

Ugh...I don't like it on paper. I'm hoping I like it after we see the on the field product.

Question though. It looks like he started strong at WI...did their recruiting drop significantly after the '99 season? Also (glass half full time) all of his "poor" ranked D's are significantly better than anything we've had. :rolleyes:

[Goldmember]

Not saying I don't belive it, but ... if Brewster was going to hire Cosgrove, why didn't he hire him instead of Roof last year?

[norman dale]

GopherGuy writes:


Over on GI they are saying its 99% sure its going to happen...

Lane Kiffin to next head coach at Minnesota....

McNeal will committ to Oregon...

[sonnygarcia]

I'm just going to assume its rumor until I hear otherwise. :)

[btowngopher]

Not saying I don't belive it, but ... if Brewster was going to hire Cosgrove, why didn't he hire him instead of Roof last year?

You can't allways get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you just might find....you get what you need!!!

[GopherGod]

Ugh...I don't like it on paper. I'm hoping I like it after we see the on the field product.

Question though. It looks like he started strong at WI...did their recruiting drop significantly after the '99 season? Also (glass half full time) all of his "poor" ranked D's are significantly better than anything we've had. :rolleyes:

Understanding that Minnesota is in a rebuilding process and needs to improve on talent, you do not want to go with a guy who came to one of the perennial powerhouse programs and destroyed it. Those rankings may be fine for a rebuilding team but not for a program like Nebraska or Wisconsin who had moved past rebuilding at the time those rankings were taken. He was such a great recruiter at Nebraska that they started to walk-ons on defense this year and still had a way better defense than any he ever had.

[sonnygarcia]

i think i asked this on another post already, but where was Cosgrove at during the 2008 season??

[GopherGod]

I guess we're going to have to trust Brewster on this. Maybe there are factors that we don't know about that indicate Cosgrove will be successful here. Brewster will run the program the way he thinks is best and will be judged by the results.

If you cannot be successful at Nebraska with their facilities, support, money, and name when he arrived you aren't going to be successful here, IMHO.

[btowngopher]

You guys act like cosgrove single handedly destroyed Nebraska, you do remember Solich was there before Callahan right?

[GopherGod]

i think i asked this on another post already, but where was Cosgrove at during the 2008 season??

he was unemployed and moved back to Madison, WI and volunteer assistant coached his son's high school team at Edgewood high school.

[Bo Darville]

"Understanding that Minnesota is in a rebuilding process and needs to improve on talent, you do not want to go with a guy who came to one of the perennial powerhouse programs and destroyed it."

What? We're hiring Callahan as the OC?

[GopherGod]

You guys act like cosgrove single handedly destroyed Nebraska, you do remember Solich was there before Callahan right?

The worst year for Solich and his staff was better than Callahan and Cosgroves best. Every defensive record was destroyed under Cosgroves watch, most points given up in a game, season, you name it. His defenses set the standard for what bad defense is.

[TheDinkytowner]

If you cannot be successful at Nebraska with their facilities, support, money, and name when he arrived you aren't going to be successful here, IMHO.

Nebraska has great tradition, but it is also the easiest of the "big name" schools to drive into a ditch due to its lack of recruiting base. Name one "big name" school with less of a natural recruiting base than Nebraska. All the fan support and money in the world can't pick your school up and move it out of Nebraska.

[GVBadger]

He has great connections in St.Louis and Illinois. He is a very good recruiter.

He had two Badger defenses ranked in the top 10 in the country in 98 and 99. One of the defenses was first or second in the country in scoring defense.

You could do worse.

[btowngopher]

I realize he was bad at Nebraska, but Withers sucked here and seemed to do pretty decent at UNC (yes yes with more talent). Sometimes it is just the finding the right fit.

[NateDawgUM]

You guys act like cosgrove single handedly destroyed Nebraska, you do remember Solich was there before Callahan right?

In Solich's final season at Nebraska, Nebraska's was ranked 11th in total defense and led the national in turnover margin.

The Defensive Coordinator's name was Bo Pelini, ring a bell?

The defense was sh!tty the year before Pelini was hired, he replaced a guy named Craig Bohl, who a lot of people around here wanted for head coach, gag.

Things went downhill on defense after Cosgrove came aboard.

[gopherguy05]

Rumor is he may have connections with Wingo....could be an interesting subplot...

[GopherGod]

I realize he was bad at Nebraska, but Withers sucked here and seemed to do pretty decent at UNC (yes yes with more talent). Sometimes it is just the finding the right fit.


I guess the question is how many chances do you give a guy who has shown the inability to produce a top flight defense at multiple major programs.

[btowngopher]

Good thing we aren't nebraska....

[btowngopher]

I guess the question is how many chances do you give a guy who has shown the inability to produce a top flight defense at multiple major programs.

he had 2 top 10 defenses at wisconsin someone posted.

[TheDinkytowner]

I guess the question is how many chances do you give a guy who has shown the inability to produce a top flight defense at multiple major programs.


I'll go ahead and quote GVBadger again for you "He had two Badger defenses ranked in the top 10 in the country in 98 and 99. One of the defenses was first or second in the country in scoring defense."

[sonnygarcia]

Rumor is he may have connections with Wingo....could be an interesting subplot...

hhhhmmmm, interesting, where did you hear that?

[Gopher4life15]

I am surprised Brewster would bring someone in that has the chance to have a negative impact on the fan base. You think at where this program is at right now he would try as hard as possible to keep everything moving in a positive fashion. Just from seeing his stats and hearing peoples opinion of him, I hope that this is not true and Brew goes in a different direction.

Keep the karma flowing the right direction.

[sonnygarcia]

He has great connections in St.Louis and Illinois. He is a very good recruiter.

He had two Badger defenses ranked in the top 10 in the country in 98 and 99. One of the defenses was first or second in the country in scoring defense.

You could do worse.

GVBadger, I'm assuming you live in Golden Valley and love the Badgers, can you give us any insight on how this guy is regarded in Madison?? I understand he was a complete failure to Nebraskans, but it seems like you like the guy??

[GopherGod]

I'll go ahead and quote GVBadger again for you "He had two Badger defenses ranked in the top 10 in the country in 98 and 99. One of the defenses was first or second in the country in scoring defense."

Here were his rankings and in '99 they were ranked 15, not top 10

http://firecosgrove.com/bio.php

[Maximus]

An assistant coach, who's never been a head coach, already has a fire.com site? Good PR.

[GopherGod]

Umm....an assistant coach, who's never been a head coach, already has a fire.com site? Good PR.

If we hire him maybe we can get a good deal on the site and buy it because we will definitely need it.

[GopherLady]

I am surprised Brewster would bring someone in that has the chance to have a negative impact on the fan base.

I'm with G4L15 - say what you want about Brewster, the one thing I think we can all agree on is he's obsessed with PR, and knows how to do that aspect of his job. Even notice anytime we have bad news, he has some good news banked that he puts out to the media?

It seems like the overwhelming amount of fans would be disappointed (to say the least) at this choice...I just can't see Brewster hiring someone that the fanbase does not want. This is his chance to get a good candidate, that's a crowd pleaser...to distract from the past week or so of Gopher Football...as well as get the program moving forward.

[FiveStarFan]

Here were his rankings and in '99 they were ranked 15, not top 10

http://firecosgrove.com/bio.php

Great lets hire a guy who already has a page dedicated to getting him fired...sounds like Auburn

[Gopher4life15]

I'm with G4L15 - say what you want about Brewster, the one thing I think we can all agree on is he's obsessed with PR, and knows how to do that aspect of his job. Even notice anytime we have bad news, he has some good news banked that he puts out to the media?

It seems like the overwhelming amount of fans would be disappointed (to say the least) at this choice...I just can't see Brewster hiring someone that the fanbase does not want. This is his chance to get a good candidate, that's a crowd pleaser...to distract from the past week or so of Gopher Football...as well as get the program moving forward.

Are you hearing that this is his pick?

[GopherGod]

He is pretty feared by the opposition as well. Here is what Missouri had to say after destroying his defense in 2007.

RUSH PARTY OF THREE: On nearly every one of Missouri’s offensive snaps Saturday, Nebraska was content rushing quarterback Chase Daniel with a three-man front. The Huskers consistently dropped eight defenders into coverage, daring Daniel to thread passes between their zones.

Neither end of the strategy worked. Daniel wasn’t sacked on 47 pass attempts and recalled just one time he was hit. He completed 33 of those attempts for 401 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions.

Two days later, Huskers defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove’s strategy still puzzled the Tigers.

"I was a little bit surprised that they went just about the entire game getting pressure on us with a three-man rush," Missouri offensive coordinator Dave Christensen said. "Obviously, it didn’t work very well. I don’t foresee Oklahoma doing that or at least making a living doing that."

Daniel was less subtle in his reaction to Nebraska’s game plan.

"They’re very stubborn," Daniel said. "Cosgrove’s a very stubborn guy. It’s always been that way. … That’s just how he is, that’s how they are. They’re a bunch of confident guys in what they do, and they felt they had the best chance doing that, so they stuck with it."

"You can’t just play one defense the whole entire game," Daniel added. "That’s like high school stuff that I faced in high school, so it’s nothing new for me."

[Go Gophers Rah]

Here is the link to a Lincoln, Neb. newspaper article from today reporting on the likelihood that Cosgrove might be named the Minnesots DC.

Read the responses; brutal.

http://www.journalstar.com/blog/huskers.php?title=cosgrove_to_minnesota&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1 (http://www.journalstar.com/blog/huskers.php?title=cosgrove_to_minnesota&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1)

[GVBadger]

GVBadger, I'm assuming you live in Golden Valley and love the Badgers, can you give us any insight on how this guy is regarded in Madison?? I understand he was a complete failure to Nebraskans, but it seems like you like the guy??

Cosgrove was responsible for bringing in some of the best talent that we had on defense in the 25 years I have followed the Badgers. Jamar Fletcher and Wendell Bryant from St.Louis were the cornerstones of two Rose Bowl defenses. He was one of our better recruiters for some of our best teams.

The best team the Badgers were going to have was in 2000 and was derailed by the shoe circus. It led to a slump for the program and a non bowl season and was tough to recover from. At the same time, Alvarez was resting on his laurels and the defense suffered during the time frame leading to his leaving Wisconsin. Also, he was being judged against two great defenses with multiple big time players and it is not possible at Wisconsin to have a top ten national defense every year. He was also not going to get the HC job so that did not help the situation.

At the end of his tenure, he was criticized for being too passive, playing corners ten yards off the ball, etc. Again, people forgot that when he had the talent to play more aggressively, he did. When he had Fletcher shutting down half the field and Burke getting 20 sacks a year he was a genius. When he had guys that couldn't cover a a wet paper bag, he was an idiot. Same stuff that goes on everywhere.

Most people were happy to see him leave but did not accept that there were other variables as to why the performance had slipped and conveniently forgot how good the defense was on the two Rose Bowl teams that he was DC for.

He is very competent and was regarded as a very good teacher. Coached some very good linebackers at Wisconsin. Most of them not highly recruited.

Obviously the Nebraska deal did not work out, but he has a ton of experience and has coached and recruited some very good players and some great defenses.

[MRJ]

Count me amongst the guys not really pleased with the mention of Cosgrove.

I, like several others on this board, watched over his past few jobs as his defenses looked completely lost on multiple occasions.

The last thing we need with a new OC coming in here and trying to improve our talent level from an overall stand point is to have a coach who may or may not coach a defense that is clueless.

But, if he's anything like the other guys we've recently hired at DC, it might not matter as he'll probably leave after next year anyway!!:p

[GopherLady]

Are you hearing that this is his pick?

No, not at all. This is through no insider information whatsoever. Whenever there's anything that has to do with Brew and his staff I have nothing but my opinions, no inside info.

[Schnoodler]

PR probably isn't as big a concern to Brew as it has been. He knows he needs to produce in the next two hears or all the hype in the world won't make the diff. If Brew thinks Cosgrove is his best chance to get it done, he'll go that way and spin it the best he can. And he can spin.

[Great Plains Gopher]

They practically ran him out of town...fans in an uproar against Cosgrove there. I would be very disappointed if he's chosen. Roof was doing a good job for us.

[GopherGod]

They practically ran him out of town...fans in an uproar against Cosgrove there. I would be very disappointed if he's chosen. Roof was doing a good job for us.

While I do not condone this behavior but it got so bad that the police in Lincoln were called because of the number of death threats he was receiving and it made news when his son was playing in a high school game in lincoln and he was watching him in the stands and the fans started to chant "Fire Cosgrove."

[TheDinkytowner]

While I do not condone this behavior but it got so bad that the police in Lincoln were called because of the number of death threats he was receiving and it made news when his son was playing in a high school game in lincoln and he was watching him in the stands and the fans started to chant "Fire Cosgrove."


Sounds like every SEC team in the country if they lose 2 in a row.

[GopherGod]

Sounds like every SEC team in the country if they lose 2 in a row.

True, but you don't normally see this type of behavior out of Nebraska fans.

[GoAUpher]

True, but you don't normally see this type of behavior out of Nebraska fans.

I would say their hatred for Callahan made them more SEC like. He basically spit on all the traditions that had been set by Osborne.

[GVBadger]

He has very good connections in St.Louis. If he has connections with Wingo, it would not be surprising.

Terrell Fletcher, Jamar Fletcher, Wendell Bryant all recruited out of St.Louis for the Badgers.

[Gopher4life15]

He has very good connections in St.Louis. If he has connections with Wingo, it would not be surprising.

Terrell Fletcher, Jamar Fletcher, Wendell Bryant all recruited out of St.Louis for the Badgers.

As much as I want Wingo to be a Gopher, I hope he is not hiring this guy to land one recruit.

[sonnygarcia]

As much as I want Wingo to be a Gopher, I hope he is not hiring this guy to land one recruit.

I'd give him a chance to show results on the field if it got us Wingo :D;)

[Darby11]

Brew has 2 years to produce. The last thing he needs is an inexperienced DC. Cosgrove at least has some recruiting connections and plenty of Big 10 experience on his resume. I am not sure Brew can do much better than Coz at this point without paying in neighborhood of $500,000. This there that type of money available for a DC?

[GopherGod]

I'd give him a chance to show results on the field if it got us Wingo :D;)


Do we even know for sure he has connections with Wingo? I guess I would be surprised if he has been talking to a recruit without a job and university to recruit the kid to.

[minngg]

I'll go ahead and quote GVBadger again for you "He had two Badger defenses ranked in the top 10 in the country in 98 and 99. One of the defenses was first or second in the country in scoring defense."

Yes, that was until they invented the spread offense and thus the turning point in his career. He couldn't defend the spread.

[Gopher4life15]

I'd give him a chance to show results on the field if it got us Wingo :D;)

It is tempting but what is a D-Coordinator doing recruiting a RB. Would a defensive coach change your mind if you were an Offensive player?

[Goldmember]

Is it impossible that Cosgrove will be hired by the program in a capacity other than DC? (Thereby giving GI-guys a false leak of some sort)

[Jwill535]

He was run out of Wisconsin for having pretty much a prevent defense. It was difficult to watch. Teams would move freely between the 20's. The only consolation was that the defense generally stiffened and only allowed FGs but did give up alot of big plays. His defense declined year after year and that is what got him fired. He was a very good recruiter though in the Ill and Stl areas.

[WolfontheProwl]

I dont think Roof was a genious at all he just had the benefit of having players that were better than what we had the year before. I am concerned about Cosgrove but I will give him a shot as I will any coach. I was so unhappy with the defense during the bowl game and how poorly we played that losing Roof didnt bother me as much as others. Can Cosgrove get the job done? I have no idea but we will see if he can do the job. With Wingo Jr coming into a visit and Cosgrove with possible connections with the St Louis area maybe they try to make another push for Richardson if they can get Wingo Jr to begin with.

[GophersInIowa]

Yes, that was until they invented the spread offense and thus the turning point in his career. He couldn't defend the spread.

I didn't realize he was both the defensive coordinator and starting cornerback. Maybe the players he had could not defend the spread.

[GopherGod]

He was run out of Wisconsin for having pretty much a prevent defense. It was difficult to watch. Teams would move freely between the 20's. The only consolation was that the defense generally stiffened and only allowed FGs but did give up alot of big plays. His defense declined year after year and that is what got him fired. He was a very good recruiter though in the Ill and Stl areas.

I looked up the ranking for the Nebraska defense Cosgrove's last year there and they were rated a stellar 112 in the country. I also looked up his defensive rankings the years before he arrived at nebraska and after he arrived as well as his last season at wisconsin and the first year that he was not there.

Total defense rankings: Nebraska 2003: 11th, Nebraska 2004(his first there): 56
Wisconsin 2003(his last there): 43, 2004: 9th

I think I see a pattern here

[Gopher4life15]

When is this going to be made official? Today, tomorrow?

[50PoundHead]

I'm not wild about this one either. Seems like one of the Mason-era retreads or never-wases that seemed to inhabit the Bierman Building back then.

[minngg]

I didn't realize he was both the defensive coordinator and starting cornerback. Maybe the players he had could not defend the spread.

What's the difference?

[BoOwnsIzzo]

Kevin Cosgrove was so bad that Barry Alvarez didn't even try and entice him to stay at Wisconsin with the promise of naming him head coach when he became A.D. Instead, he would rather bring in Bielema and name him as his successor. And though I am not a Bielema fan his defense with Cosgrove players his first year at Wisconsin as defensive coordinator was a 180 degree improvement over what Cosgrove had done.

Bielema got back too many players to name from injury that Cosgrove was without the previous season. Cos had his moments in the late 90s. And hasn't had any since. Which Cos shows up for Minnesota will determine his fate.

[GopherGod]

Bielema got back too many players to name from injury that Cosgrove was without the previous season. Cos had his moments in the late 90s. And hasn't had any since. Which Cos shows up for Minnesota will determine his fate.


I guess my question then is after being with Alvarez for a long time, why didn't alvarez try and get him to stay and promise him the head coaching job at wisconsin after he was done in another year.

[grunkiejr]

Nebraska has great tradition, but it is also the easiest of the "big name" schools to drive into a ditch due to its lack of recruiting base. Name one "big name" school with less of a natural recruiting base than Nebraska. All the fan support and money in the world can't pick your school up and move it out of Nebraska.

I completely agree with this statement. Despite having the Nebraska name, when they go down to Texas they fall in line behind Texas and OU and they get about 10%-25% of the players that are their first choice. Compare that to Texas that probably gets anywhere from 75%-90% of their first choice players.

I had that exact discussion with one of their coaches this weekend.

And before you throw their recruiting under the bus, Callahan did have a #5 ranked class in one season while he was at Nebraska. However, many of the players they recruited did not develop as they expected.

[GopherGod]

I completely agree with this statement. Despite having the Nebraska name, when they go down to Texas they fall in line behind Texas and OU and they get about 10%-25% of the players that are their first choice. Compare that to Texas that probably gets anywhere from 75%-90% of their first choice players.

I had that exact discussion with one of their coaches this weekend.

And before you throw their recruiting under the bus, Callahan did have a #5 ranked class in one season while he was at Nebraska. However, many of the players they recruited did not develop as they expected.


Which coach were you talking to? That is true with the the deal in texas they are getting approximately half of their class from texas this year and they have some coaches with good texas ties as well as the fact that pelini has his reputation to sell in addition to the game day experience there. In regards to Cosgrove you cannot deny however that the players he had access to were better at nebraska than what we have here atleast initially and he still couldn't even muster a decent defense.

[Jwill535]

I guess my question then is after being with Alvarez for a long time, why didn't alvarez try and get him to stay and promise him the head coaching job at wisconsin after he was done in another year.


Cosgrove was about 4th in line on that staff to be the next HC and none of them got it.

[grunkiejr]

As much as I want Wingo to be a Gopher, I hope he is not hiring this guy to land one recruit.

What if it got us Sheldon Richardson too?

[Gopher4life15]

What if it got us Sheldon Richardson too?

nope

[Boondoggle]

I don't know, but I really hope Brewster gets an assistant defensive coach from the SEC. The name that comes to mind for me is Chuck Heater. Heater would give us an SEC mindset, and last time I checked that was a pretty good thing.
I would like an offensive coordinator from the Big 12 and a defensive coordinator from the SEC.

[badgerman27]

Coz will put a defense on the field that's as good as the players that implement it. His strategy against spread teams has always been a bend but don't break defense. 2 or 3 deep coverage. He gets a lot of heat for that, but we usually did well against those teams when we had good players. We defended Purdue much better than many other Big 10 teams did. Gave up yardage, but usually won the game. The way spread passing offenses have evolved and developed, I don't know if that strategy will be effective now. As the DC, he'll implement whatever scheme the HC wants.

To give you an idea what he can do when he has players, the '98 team was something like #1 Scoring D, #1 Rushing D, #1 Total D, #6 Pass D, #6 Pass Eff D. At his best defending I formation offenses. As others have mentioned, he is a good recruiter.

[Boondoggle]

yeah, but those were defenses that were going up against I formations. We live in the spread world today. In the Big 12 Cosgrove proved he can't put up a good defense against the spread.

[lawrence21]

While I personally would hate the hire, if he could bring Wingo and perhaps Richardson also, I would hire him in a second. You could then fire him next year. 1 year of bad coaching is a worthwhile trade for a combined 9 stars.

[GopherGod]

Coz will put a defense on the field that's as good as the players that implement it. His strategy against spread teams has always been a bend but don't break defense. 2 or 3 deep coverage. He gets a lot of heat for that, but we usually did well against those teams when we had good players. We defended Purdue much better than many other Big 10 teams did. Gave up yardage, but usually won the game. The way spread passing offenses have evolved and developed, I don't know if that strategy will be effective now. As the DC, he'll implement whatever scheme the HC wants.

To give you an idea what he can do when he has players, the '98 team was something like #1 Scoring D, #1 Rushing D, #1 Total D, #6 Pass D, #6 Pass Eff D. At his best defending I formation offenses. As others have mentioned, he is a good recruiter.

I don't care what level of talent you give him he cannot coach. During his 4 year tenure at Nebraska he coached 14 defensive players that are currently on NFL rosters and several of them are starting in the NFL currently and he still had some of the worst defenses in the country. He also cannot put the blame on the offense not helping the defense out as happened here this year some. The Nebraska offenses during his tenure were some of the most successful and high scoring in the NCAA.

[NateDawgUM]

While I personally would hate the hire, if he could bring Wingo and perhaps Richardson also, I would hire him in a second. You could then fire him next year. 1 year of bad coaching is a worthwhile trade for a combined 9 stars.

You recruiting fans are starting to drive me up the f'ing wall.

[GopherLady]

You recruiting fans are starting to drive me up the f'ing wall.

the recruiting star system is perfect. It's a 100% indication of how good players will be, and coaching does not matter - it's all about rankings. I'd rather have 9 stars combined than a really good coordinator. Live and die by that, my friend. :rolleyes:

[GopherGod]

I am sure Maturi would be fine with this hire as we all know he stills gets wood thinking about his days at Wisconsin(his dream job) and would love nothing better than to hire as many coaches with Wisconsin ties as possible. If Brewster does hire Cosgrove it will have to go down as one of the worst hires in Gopher sports history and will cement in my mind that Brewster does not have a clue how to be a head coach and it will show how his lack of coordinator or head coaching experience has caught up to him. We already have a head coach whose coaching abilities are yet to be seen and now a coordinator as well. You can recruit all the talent you want but still have to have someone to coach them and we also have to be realistic that we are probably never going to recruit classes like the Florida, Texas, and USC programs.

[lawrence21]

a coach can't do much without players that can play, and we have had kids play here who should have quit football after pop warner. The most important part of the season is signing day.

[GopherGod]

the recruiting star system is perfect. It's a 100% indication of how good players will be, and coaching does not matter - it's all about rankings. I'd rather have 9 stars combined than a really good coordinator. Live and die by that, my friend. :rolleyes:


What did coaches do 20 years ago before the internet and before there were stars to tell them who to recruit? I guess Joe Pa, Tom Osborne, Bobby Bowden had to use their own brain and recruit kids that fit their system and not worry about a star rating as they were confident they could coach the kid and develop him. Good thing Osborne didn't waste his time with walk-ons(he only had 27 go on the make the NFL, guys that would have probably not even been rated by the star system).

[GopherRock]

The only reason you Badgers want Cosgrove up here is that his DC performances got him run out of Madison, and you want the same thing to happen to us.

I don't normally say much about coaching hires, but if this rumor does come to pass, this is Brewster's first big mistake.

And if you recruiting nuts are willing to sacrifice a quality D for two recruits that are a crapshoot to begin with...

[Ozzy&Ray]

Talent is essential, and we see that with the top programs around the country. However, coaching is just as essential. Notre Dame has had a top 10 class, what, 4-5 years in a row? Where has that taken them?

[gold04]

If Cosgrove is hired, Maturi and Brewster should be fired on the spot.

[mkAz]

If Cosgrove is hired, Maturi and Brewster should be fired on the spot.Nice that you'll give the guy a chance.

[Gopher4life15]

He has had plenty of chances.

[The 12th Man]

It'd be one thing if everyone was ready to "jump off the bridge" because this guy was young and inexperienced and we were hoping for a bigger hire. It's another thing to be gravely concerned that this guy was the co-pilot of one of the great program killings of the last 20 years.

Would you be ready to jump off the bridge if your favorite NFL team picked up Rod Marinelli to be its new head coach?


I guess I would wait and see. You never know. I can't believe that after 40 years of futility there are people on this board who are up in arms because of a POSSIBLE hiring. Unbelievable.

[RedPoo]

Brew has 2 years to produce. The last thing he needs is an inexperienced DC. Cosgrove at least has some recruiting connections and plenty of Big 10 experience on his resume. I am not sure Brew can do much better than Coz at this point without paying in neighborhood of $500,000. This there that type of money available for a DC?


I may not be thrilled with the hire, but it does look like it could have some upside in experience and recruiting, and like Darby points out, who else are we going to get? Now that we'll be paying Dunbar's salary as well as adding 2 coordinators, there probably isn't a ton of money to throw around. And Cosgrove could bring a measure of stability to the program that a lot of people are asking for now. Along those lines, the story in the Strib (http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/37246814.html?elr=KArksi8cyaiUjc8LDyiUiD3aPc:_Yyc: aULPQL7PQLanchO7DiU) mentions the possibility of him sharing duties with someone else. Not sure where this rumor comes from, but that could help things. Have an old, well-known recruiter as the face of the defense, and another guy behind the scenes actually putting together the schemes. I'm not too hopeful, but if this is the case, it could work out ok.

[GopherGod]

I may not be thrilled with the hire, but it does look like it could have some upside in experience and recruiting, and like Darby points out, who else are we going to get? Now that we'll be paying Dunbar's salary as well as adding 2 coordinators, there probably isn't a ton of money to throw around. And Cosgrove could bring a measure of stability to the program that a lot of people are asking for now. Along those lines, the story in the Strib (http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/37246814.html?elr=KArksi8cyaiUjc8LDyiUiD3aPc:_Yyc: aULPQL7PQLanchO7DiU) mentions the possibility of him sharing duties with someone else. Not sure where this rumor comes from, but that could help things. Have an old, well-known recruiter as the face of the defense, and another guy behind the scenes actually putting together the schemes. I'm not too hopeful, but if this is the case, it could work out ok.

That is the last thing this program needs now is two coaches trying to share the same job, this works long term in very few circumstances and if there is a difference of opinion between the two then who gets the final say, we say this with Dunbar and Davis already this season. It is not a formula for success which is why you don't see other teams doing very much.

[Bayfieldgopher]

If we had a DC whose teams averaged 21 ppg over 14 years in the Big Ten, there would be a bust ready to be on display on opening day at TCF. Cosgrove had 2good years at NU (18 & 21 ppg) and one OK. For the uniformed, his legacy is based on his last year at NU where the D was putrid.

14 years with Alvarez is pretty solid for me. They had a few years where they had a very solid D.

Its interesting that Whithers couldn't coach worth a crap here but his NC team allowed 21 ppg this Fall.

You win with good players who also make coaches look good.

Cosgrove will bring a lot of experience with him, mostly good, and is noted to be a solid recruiter.

[TCF=UnitedWeStand]

Well, one thing is for certain - if Coz does get hired as DC, I'm sure we will all hear a loud reaction in TCF if Air Force or Cal go up and down the field on us a couple of times w/TDs.

[GopherGod]

If we had a DC whose teams averaged 21 ppg over 14 years in the Big Ten, there would be a bust ready to be on display on opening day at TCF. Cosgrove had 2good years at NU (18 & 21 ppg) and one OK. For the uniformed, his legacy is based on his last year at NU where the D was putrid.

14 years with Alvarez is pretty solid for me. They had a few years where they had a very solid D.

Its interesting that Whithers couldn't coach worth a crap here but his NC team allowed 21 ppg this Fall.

You win with good players who also make coaches look good.

Cosgrove will bring a lot of experience with him, mostly good, and is noted to be a solid recruiter.


he had no good years at Nebraska and if you want to settle for mediocrity go for it. Look at the national rankings of his defenses, they were terrible. And to say he didn't have talent at NU is ridiculous, he had 14 players on defense that are on NFL rosters as we speak and several starting in the NFL, he just cannot coach. Why don't you ask Alvarez if he thought so much of him why he didn't give Cosgrove the Head coaching job versus bringing in his replacement and giving him the job.

http://firecosgrove.com/bio.php

Also not included on the link was the 2007 defense which was ranked 112th in the country. That means his defenses for his career averaged in the 50 or 60 range out of 119 in the entire country, unacceptable in my opinion. If he is such a great recruiter than you have to draw the conclusion that he is a terrible coach.

[Bayfieldgopher]

TCF
Do you mean like Iowa did against Roof's vaunted D? And KU for that matter. Can you visualize how many TD's teams like Oklahoma or Texas would rack up against us?

Do you really believe that a new DC will produce a terrific D in 09? We need better players and a lot of them. Until that time comes, hang on to your hat and take a deep breath.

[gopherguy05]

The scuttlebutt on the pay site is that Cosgrove may be the co-coordinator with a promoted Tim Cross....

Take it for what it's worth..

[GopherGod]

The scuttlebutt on the pay site is that Cosgrove may be the co-coordinator with a promoted Tim Cross....

Take it for what it's worth..

Great just what we need a coordinator who has proven he cannot lead a defense sharing the role with another coach. This is not a formula for success, you cannot have two cooks in the kitchen trying to come to a consensus on a decision. Someone needs to be able to make the final call. This is a joke of a hire if Cosgrove is actually hired.

[TCF=UnitedWeStand]

Bayfield,

I have no idea what our defense is going to be like in '09. I'm with you - it depends a lot on the players, no doubt.

I was just making the point that based upon the reaction on this board (five pages of comments in two days) and the level of reaction from several folks regarding the idea of Coz being hired ("If Coz hired, Maturi and Brewster should both be fired on the spot!"), it appears as though a lot of people are going to be pointing directly at the DC, right or wrong.

Trust me, after watching some of the guys we've had on defense over the years (Jamal Harris, as a recent example, are you kidding me?), I'm a big believer in talent.

And for the record, I am a Brewster guy. There were things I liked about Mason - I think he was a good coach who developed a lot of guys who were presumed to not have a lot of talent and turned them into All-Big Ten players. However, he rarely got the more talented guys and always seem to fall back on excuses for not getting the top local players. Game management was another big issue. Also, from the time the season finished, until the next season began, (w/the exception of spring practice), we never saw Mason or heard anything from him and it wasn't because he was wearing out the recruiting trail.

My hope now is that Brewster will continue to learn/develop as a Coach, and he and staff will be able to develop players with the success Mase had (in a number of cases).

[Iceland12]

Anybody want to revisit this topic? Besides a weekly blown assignment in the secondary and the inability to stop Clay for 2 Quarters and Cosgrove's tenure so far has looked a lot better then folks around here thought they'd be.

It's interesting to read though.

[gopherjay]

The defense has been fine. Could be better on third down but with the number of plays against us in our losses, you going to give up yards and points. The bottom line is the defense has been competent to this point.

[Frod0]

You been skipping third downs if you think they've been fine. The Run D has been great but the pass D has been sub-par due to no pass rush and CB's playing to soft and giving up the easy slants. I don't mind giving up a big play now and then if it means getting a swat from someone other than a D-Lineman on a short pass and someone other than an LB on the deeper throws.

[thailleagle]

Still better then any Mason Defenses.......

[Frod0]

True.......

[Clyde Tester]

Still better then any Mason Defenses.......

I'm going to post the season-to-date team defense stats here - would someone please go pull stats from the Mason era for comparative purposes?

Yes we know the '09 defense is on the field a lot. Yes some are arguing that a tougher schedule skews the stats. That's all fine and good. But there is still value in comparing stats year over year...

Brewster/Cosgrove '09 and Brewster/Roof '08
Scoring Defense-----------26 ppg - #75 (-5) **** 2008 – 25 ppg - #61
Rushing Defense ----------172 ypg - #89 (+7) **** 2008 – 143 ypg - #68
Passing Defense -----------230 ypg - #78 (-2) **** 2008 – 240 ypg - #94
Total Defense --------------402 ypg - #92 (-3) **** 2008 – 384 ypg - #81
3rd down conv allowed – 50% - #115 (na) **** 2008 – 39% - #61

FWIW, here is some info from the Ted Roof Wiki page - I have not verified that any of this data is accurate but it's interesting if true given the statistical difference between 2007 and 2008.


Under just one season of Roof's tutelage, the Gophers made tremendous improvements to give up 160 yards fewer passing per game and over 135 fewer overall when compared to the previous year's 119th ranked defense. Besides the nation's worst total defense, Roof also inherited a squad which had ranked 115th in pass defense, 114th in rushing defense and 109th in scoring defense in 2007. Roof's defense made strides throughout the season and finished ranked in the top-25 in both sacks[7] and tackles for loss[8] after being ranked 103rd[9] and 116th[10] the previous season. The stingy defense created 31 turnovers, second most in the Big Ten and 11th nationally. They were 7th in the nation causing fumbles (16), fueling the teams 16th rank in turnover margin. Overall, the scoring defense improved to 61st, rushing defense to 69th, total defense to 79th and pass defense to 93rd. This quick turn-around on defense contributed to the Golden Gophers improving its record from 1-11 to 7-6 and garnering an appearance in the 2008 Insight Bowl.

Note that the final national rankings listed for Roof are only slightly different than those I've posted (I'm rounding - I think they are rounding a bit more generously perhaps :D ).

So let's test thailleagle's assertion - how does the Cosgrove led defense compare statistically to the Mason years' defenses?

[NewEngland_Gold]

Since Cosgrove's and Roof's coaching total defense stats are in the same general neighborhood, does this mean both experienced coaches are getting/got the most out of the talent, experience and depth available to them?

If this is the case, then a big step-up toward say the #50 range in national ranking is going to take a lot more talent and depth than currently available...continued high-level recruiting may be the only answer no matter how talented and experienced the defensive coaches.

Also, since Mason was recruiting on the "lower-tier" track and had very poor results on the defensive side...especially with 2H collapses due to talent and depth issues...I don't think the defensive stats from his regime will shed much perspective on premium coaching or where the Gs are heading on D.

In fact, one thing we are not seeing with Brew's Gs are the repeated 2H collapses so characteristic of Mase's era. As HC, Brew deserves a lot of credit for actively managing/directing his O/D coordinators to generate resilient 2H performance with intelligent in-game and 2H adjustments.

[50PoundHead]

I've been fine with Cosgrove/Lee. There have been breakdowns and those, while often inexcusable, usually relate to a player in a given situation and not directly to how he's been coached. That's not to say these guys have been perfect, but I do see some progress.

In fairness to Mason, Brewster has really been recruiting the heck out of the defensive side of the ball. I still can't remember a Gopher LB being as far down the field and in the proper position as Cooper was last Saturday. And Cross appears to be a pretty good DL coach. Garrett Brown and Eric Small have both made strides and are more productive than the better athlete Anthony Montgomery was during Mason's tenure.

[Iceland12]

".Yes some are arguing that a tougher schedule skews the stats. Very true.

I'm to lazy to go and do as comparative study as done above, but here's a scoring study using Big Ten and Bowl games. That's what really counts doesn't it? Works out to 9 games for 2003,2004,2005 and 2006 (10 with Cal). 8 games in 2007 and 6 this year, 7 with Cal 9 with Syracuse, Air Force and California.

2003 - 26.0
2004 - 26.0
2005 - 31.4
2006 - 31.9 - 32.9
2007 - 38.0
2008 - 28
2009 - 27.8 - 29.8 - 26.8

With two Big Ten gams and a Bowl game coming it will be interesting to see what happens.

Regardless, it appears that we are far better of with Mr. Cosgrove and Mr. Lee then people were saying last January.