Today a Michigan fan said to me...

Miami is correct, nicely done. They can't fill half a stadium these days.

The Trojans won championships in '67, '72, '74 and '78. The L.A. Kings started playing in the NHL in '67. The Rams left for St.Louis in '95 so the '03, '04 Trojan Champs were in a city without an NFL team. The very large metro area though did contain 2 NHL, 2 NBA and 2 MLB teams. There are also a team called the Bruins.

That said again, it's a very large metro.
 

I'd tell that Michigan fan that maybe they need to worry about "little brother" kicking the snot out of them for 7 of the last 8 years.
 

USC is incorrect. They haven't had football in LA for quite some time and prior they did not have hockey.

Yes, not at the same time. However, there are a thousand and one things to do in southern california, nevada, arizona, etc. People have options but they will come to support a winner. Brutal traffic and parking in the hood be damned.
 

I wasn't specifically referring to the Gophers. I got a little off topic.

For me, I don't really care that much about national championships. I'm focused on the Big Ten race. Beating our rivals, winning the West, going to the Rose Bowl (or other comparable bowl), or the Big Ten champtionship.

If anyone is seriously lamenting that we won't be Ohio State, Alabama, etc anytime soon they should seriously consider following the mercenary Vikings, and pledge their wallet to the realtor Zygi. It is conceivable we can have success like MSU or Stanford, or a tier below like an Iowa or Wisconsin. There will be recruiting challenges that limit the team to some extent. Cultivating more football players/retaining more recruits is a great place to start. Finding a coach with the "next big thing" in Xs and Os.

Absolutely agree...momentum have been established.
 

The Trojans won championships in '67, '72, '74 and '78. The L.A. Kings started playing in the NHL in '67. The Rams left for St.Louis in '95 so the '03, '04 Trojan Champs were in a city without an NFL team. The very large metro area though did contain 2 NHL, 2 NBA and 2 MLB teams. There are also a team called the Bruins.

That said again, it's a very large metro.

Technically, are those two years actually still considered championships? They certainly did it in the earlier years though. Might as well throw in pro soccer (yep, they had it back then), a major concert or non-sports event every weekend, and, well, the ocean.
 


Technically, are those two years actually still considered championships? They certainly did it in the earlier years though. Might as well throw in pro soccer (yep, they had it back then), a major concert or non-sports event every weekend, and, well, the ocean.

Not positive about that. Only know that while looking those records were there but the 2005 Season just said 0-0.

USC was penalized for a lack of institutional control in the ruling by the NCAA following its four-year investigation. The report cited numerous improper benefits for Bush and former basketball player O.J. Mayo, who spent just one year with the Trojans.


The coaches who presided over the alleged misdeeds -- football's Pete Carroll and basketball's Tim Floyd -- left USC in the past year.

The penalties include the loss of 30 football scholarships over three years and vacating 14 victories in which Bush played from December 2004 through the 2005 season.


http://www.espn.com/los-angeles/ncf/news/story?id=5272615
 

Can you give me some examples of how you've seen this happen over the years? I agree with you, but struggle to explain this to my out-of-state friends and colleagues.

I can't give you any concrete examples of this from the administration but if you look at the Strib comment section, especially over an article about our multi-million dollar facility upgrades, you'll see some comments going as far to say we shouldn't even have an athletic department and that it's not the mission of a major research university to field a football program etc.
 

In the next century, there will be a population shift from the south to the north. That will be the Gophers' best shot.
 

In the 1960's, the administration tried to drop football. It is well known. They worked with their puppet, the student government, to encourage students to not attend games. Admin used his alliance to stop student violence and show that Minnesota was completely against the Vietnam war. In the 70's there were booths at Kaufman and students with flyers that continued the same. The only thing that stemmed the tide incrementally was that the Iran students began their "Kill the Shah, Kill Carter, Death to America" protests. We students partially used football as a way to say "f-that", this is America. Ended up with the stupid Dome deal, but football lived. I was there.

Um ... I was also there and you're exaggerating a whole hell of a lot. Just a blip on the screen in an atmosphere that was similar to campuses all over the country. BTW, where is this Kaufman?

Somebody nailed it earlier:
1. The pipeline to the South and Pennsylvania dried up
2. Facilities neglected
3. Idiotic move to the Dome
4. Really poor decisions hiring coaches. Other than Holtz, they tried doing it on the cheap.
 



I can't give you any concrete examples of this from the administration but if you look at the Strib comment section, especially over an article about our multi-million dollar facility upgrades, you'll see some comments going as far to say we shouldn't even have an athletic department and that it's not the mission of a major research university to field a football program etc.

Comments sections are opinions...I've followed U sports for 30 years and never thought the administration downplayed athletic success. They've hired and fired a lot of coaches during that time and paid a fair amount out in buy-outs to do so.
 

Not positive about that. Only know that while looking those records were there but the 2005 Season just said 0-0.

USC was penalized for a lack of institutional control in the ruling by the NCAA following its four-year investigation. The report cited numerous improper benefits for Bush and former basketball player O.J. Mayo, who spent just one year with the Trojans.


The coaches who presided over the alleged misdeeds -- football's Pete Carroll and basketball's Tim Floyd -- left USC in the past year.

The penalties include the loss of 30 football scholarships over three years and vacating 14 victories in which Bush played from December 2004 through the 2005 season.


http://www.espn.com/los-angeles/ncf/news/story?id=5272615

Yeah, I think 2003 still stands but 2004 was stripped.
 

I can't give you any concrete examples of this from the administration but if you look at the Strib comment section, especially over an article about our multi-million dollar facility upgrades, you'll see some comments going as far to say we shouldn't even have an athletic department and that it's not the mission of a major research university to field a football program etc.

Never EVER read a Strib comments section. Nothing good will come out of it...
 





Who cares what some random Michigan fan ******nozzle says. He just said that because they escaped with their tails between their legs last year. Gophers are relevant and are on the rise. It will just take a little while for a few more people to notice. SKI-U-MAH!
 

Yeah, I think 2003 still stands but 2004 was stripped.

The NFL was not in LA in 2003 or 2004, the point of the question was that all four major leagues were in the city at the same time as the Gophers fight for fans against the Twins, Vikings, Wolves and Wild.
 

Today a Michigan fan said to me...

Tell me what you come here for, boy.
You better get your bags and flee.
You're in trouble boy,
And you're heading into more.

It's the same old story
Everywhere I go,
I get slandered, libeled,
I hear words I never heard in the Bible
And I'm one step ahead of the shoe shine
Two steps away from the county line
Just trying to keep my customers satisfied,
 

The NFL was not in LA in 2003 or 2004, the point of the question was that all four major leagues were in the city at the same time as the Gophers fight for fans against the Twins, Vikings, Wolves and Wild.

Over half the 18+ million person LA metro area, close to 60%, is Hispanic and Asian and while many are fans they aren't the typical demographic for college sports. In spaddition this area is teeming with transplants (and implants!) from around the country with those former allegiances. As pointed out there are numerous pro teams of different levels, recreation up the ying yang. Yet USC routinely pulls in huge numbers.

I think the pro team angle is probably not the apmain reason for the current hierarchy.
 

The NFL was not in LA in 2003 or 2004, the point of the question was that all four major leagues were in the city at the same time as the Gophers fight for fans against the Twins, Vikings, Wolves and Wild.

I know that...USC did it before then when there were all four sports...with multiple teams from each pro sport...if you have been reading the string. We were just contemplating if those championships were stripped.
 

I know that...USC did it before then when there were all four sports...with multiple teams from each pro sport...if you have been reading the string. We were just contemplating if those championships were stripped.

Gotcha, I don't think they were stripped of their championships, just Bush was stripped. Ha Ha
 

I blame the alumni? Where are they? One of the largest universities in the country and you can't fill a 50,000 plus seat stadium? I get the years of losing and the metrodome but the bank has been open since 2009. It is a great place. Why haven't the students been getting season tickets after they graduate? The stadium should be filled and their should be a waiting list. There seems to be a disconnect going on which is a problem.


Go Gophers !!!!!!!
 


MN will never be relevant in CFB.

Now, this isn't a tattle-tale post or anything. It actually made me stop and think. Michigan appears to be on the up - already eyeing National Championships. That said, we almost defeated that team last year and probably should have. A loss is a loss, of course. I enjoy each and every Gopher game at least a little, even if it is a total blowout, so the thought of an irrelevant future doesn't bother me completely. But it does make me wonder. Will MN ever be able to compete at the national level? Are there any examples of a similar team rising up through the years from a 2-loss team to a national contender? My history with CFB is somewhat new!

Just curious on people's perceptions or expectations long-term of the program.

My expectations (long-term) are for the Gophers to be as competitive and, most importantly physical, as they have been with Michigan the last 2 times they've played. While a disappointing loss last season, that too was an extremely physical football game.

If relevant means competing at a National Level - I'd say we've been very competitive the last couple of seasons.

Michigan "eyed" National Championships from 1949-1996 and got 1 in 1997. They've been "eyeing" another National Title since.
 

I blame the alumni? Where are they? One of the largest universities in the country and you can't fill a 50,000 plus seat stadium? I get the years of losing and the metrodome but the bank has been open since 2009. It is a great place. Why haven't the students been getting season tickets after they graduate? The stadium should be filled and their should be a waiting list. There seems to be a disconnect going on which is a problem.


Go Gophers !!!!!!!

You have hit on something. We have a very apathetic alumni base. I belong to the Los Angeles/Orange County alumni association. It is dead. I emailed the head of the alumni organization here and never got a response. No planned activities. No one cares. That has to change.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

It appears you may be the only catalyst for change at this point. Recruit 12. Make it fun. Watch it grow!

I also think that is the Athletic Department was effective with advertising and promotions it would be a beginning. There is a small but strong fan base as the existence of this site demonstrates. It isn't hopeless and winning helps.
 




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