Myron Uses Our Good Week As Opportunity to **** On The U - Again

Minnesota basketball fans can't feel their collective face right now, and they love it. You know why? Because Richard Pitino enhanced the program through a pair of top-100 recruits in the 2016 class -- one homegrown -- who committed this week.

And the Gophers' community can, for a brief stretch, forget about the other woes -- not Drake's but the ones in the dictionary -- that currently beset the entire university.

Amir Coffey, ranked No. 33 in the 2016 class by Recruiting Nation, chose to stay home when he committed Monday to the same Minnesota team that his father, Richard, led during the mid-1980s. On Wednesday, Eric Curry, a talented 6-7 power forward from Arkansas, committed to the team, too. Add Illinois State transfer Reggie "King 'Fro" Lynch, who will be eligible in 2016-17 after leading the nation in block percentage last season, and Pitino will boast the best incoming class since Tubby Smith signed Royce White and Co. in 2008.

That's great news for Pitino and his squad, but it's far more important for the athletic department.

Last month, Eric Kaler's hands shook as he announced former athletic director Norwood Teague had resigned after committing sexual improprieties against two university employees. The school's president initially stated that Teague had been "overserved" before changing his tune and assigning full blame to Teague, who was also accused of sexually harassing a Star Tribune reporter during his tenure. A subsequent internal investigation led to the indefinite leave of Teague's No. 2, Mike Ellis, earlier this month. Again, sexual indiscretions, involving the circulation of pornographic images, were alleged.

All of this followed federal inquiries about potential Title IX violations.

The football team has a 2-1 record and a top-20 passing defense, but its struggling offense is guided by inconsistent quarterback Mitch Leidner, a passer who rarely completes game-changing throws.

The drama and discontent aren't rare. They're expected at Minnesota.

Name the decade and you'll find a scandal. The 1970s? Ticket-scalping by players and mismanagement by former coach Bill Musselman lead to numerous NCAA violations. The 1980s? Three players are accused of sexual assault during a road trip to Madison. All were acquitted but the stain remained. The 1990s? The 1997 Final Four squad was stripped of its banner when NCAA officials learned that an office manager had written hundreds of papers for Clem Haskins' players. The 2000s? White, a former five-star prospect, left school in 2010 without playing one possession for the Gophers, and then he enrolled at Iowa State after a series of legal issues in Minneapolis. He led Iowa State to the NCAA tournament and secured a first-round slot in the 2012 NBA draft.

A week of goodness for Minnesota sports is a rare thing. That's why it means so much.

Pitino's Gophers will probably finish in the Big Ten's basement next season. They've lost far more than they've gained, it seems. The 2015 class possesses a few promising youngsters but it will need time to mature before it blossoms in the Big Ten. The next few years, however, will feature talent that programs must get if they intend to rebuild -- or build, in Minnesota's case. Pitino's "he's Rick's son" shine wore off last year when he followed an NIT championship with a 6-12 record in the Big Ten. But his recruiting boon this week proves he has the allure to keep the state's best players and assemble legit classes.

Coffey did not follow the trend of past Minnesota prospects who picked out-of-state schools. Tyus Jones, Reid Travis and Rashad Vaughn were all top-30 recruits in 2014. All three left Minnesota, where they'd played high school basketball.

After he was hired, Pitino recognized he had to become a serious destination for top in-state and regional prospects. And his 2016 class is proof he's made more progress on the recruiting circuit than his first few years on the job suggested. This is a class that will temper whatever disappointment might follow any Gophers struggles next season. He's building something.

It's clear that help is on the way.

Pitino needed a week like this.

And the University of Minnesota needed this even more.

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AO54 said:

Did you read the article????? Sounds pretty positive to me.

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Holy Man said:

Professional people don't use their professional platforms to air out personal gripes. Ergo, Myron's professionalism can be seriously questioned. If he wants to pee on the U, he doesn't need to use the stories of two high school kids to do it. Do some healing of memories work, Myron. It would be good for you.

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Holy Man said:

Yes. It was a backhanded compliment at best. He was airing out an anti-U agenda that had nothing to do with the commitments of two quality recruits. He wanted to piss on the U and used the recruiting story as his entry point. Pitiful.

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BleedGopher said:

That was such an awful article, written by a person who clearly allows some odd hatred of the U to cloud his ability to write objectively.

Go Gophers!!

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MadtownGopher said:

A lot of you are missing the point with Myron's article. Yes most of what he says about the history of the University is true, but there is absolutely no reason why he has to rehash all of that negativity every single time he writes a Minnesota-related article. Go back and read his articles on the U, especially since he arrived at ESPN, ever single one of them digs up old negativity surrounding the U. It doesn't matter what the article's primary focus was, Myron always finds a way to make the U look bad. Why the **** is he bringing up scandals from the 70's in an article about two high school kids commiting to the U? There is no reason for it. You don't see him digging up scandals about other Universities. I mean he might as well dug up the Shoebox scandal, John Chadima sexual assault scandal, and numerous other black marks on UW's record when they went to back to their final fours the last two seasons. But he didn't, because he only cares about ****ting on the U, for whatever reason.

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MadtownGopher said:

A lot of you are missing the point with Myron's article. Yes most of what he says about the history of the University is true, but there is absolutely no reason why he has to rehash all of that negativity every single time he writes a Minnesota-related article. Go back and read his articles on the U, especially since he arrived at ESPN, ever single one of them digs up old negativity surrounding the U. It doesn't matter what the article's primary focus was, Myron always finds a way to make the U look bad. Why the **** is he bringing up scandals from the 70's in an article about two high school kids commiting to the U? There is no reason for it. You don't see him digging up scandals about other Universities. I mean he might as well dug up the Shoebox scandal, John Chadima sexual assault scandal, and numerous other black marks on UW's record when they went to back to their final fours the last two seasons. But he didn't, because he only cares about ****ting on the U, for whatever reason.

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Solid Gold said:

Wow..talk about being overly sensitive. This article was far from inaccurate. Our program has been littered with scandals, shortcomings, and quite frankly disappointments for decades. So his point is true..enjoy the moment. These weeks come few and far between for our fan base. This article does nothing to impact the momentum/excitement among Coach Pitino and his staff/team.

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bleedsmaroonandgold said:

I'm usually ready to stick up for writers that this board unfairly rips into (especially Reusse), but this one was bad. Which one of you guys slept with his girlfriend?

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bleedsmaroonandgold said:

I'm usually ready to stick up for writers that this board unfairly rips into (especially Reusse), but this one was bad. Which one of you guys slept with his girlfriend?

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