BleedGopher
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per the Owatonna People's Press:
Pulling into the Caribou coffee parking lot on the north end of Owatonna Tuesday morning, I hopped from my car and headed toward the entrance of caffeine bliss. It was roughly 7:45 a.m. and being a sports journalist, I only see this side of 7 o’clock if I’m going to the airport or hitting the road for the lake in the summer.
Swinging the door open as I ambled down the short sidewalk in front of the building, a man roughly my age emerged said: “How you doing?”
“Good,” I answered. “I’ll see you over there.”
“No doubt,” this person said as he raced toward the Holiday Inn across the street on the far side of the cavernous parking lot.
It was Minnesota football PJ Fleck, and I think I found the secret to his endless energy: Coffee.
Only his buzz never wears off.
Shaking his hand roughly 15 minutes after bumping into him on the sidewalk, and 30 minutes prior to his presentation, I was awed by his positivity and endless liveliness.
What I appreciated the most about my conversation with him, which also included questions issued from the incomparable Roy Koenigsberg of KRFO radio, was how he looked us in the eye and gave direct answers. Sure, there was some “coach speak” sprinkled in, but he was genuine and well-spoken. Say what you want about him, but Fleck is who he is, and he’s not changing for anyone.
“The one thing about me is I am just me,” he said. “What you see is what you get. The more times you are around me, the more times you will see it’s just who I am. I think it can shock people sometimes, like ‘wow, that’s really intense, I wonder if he’s like that all the time?’ And I welcome anyone to spend more time around me and see that it’s real.”
One of those players is Owatonna’s Andrew Stelter. Playing for his third coach in three-plus years at the school, Stelter never considered leaving his hometown university, and Fleck is eternally grateful for his loyalty to Minnesota.
“Andrew has been absolutely tremendous since I have been the head football coach,” Fleck said. “You talk about a hard-worker; you talk about a row-the-boat culture guy — he has been everything that I could have imagined walking into this culture. He’s a perfect mix. He’s really led this team. He’s had to deal with a lot of things, and for him to be able to do what’s he’s done and make it through and become a stronger man, that’s what life is all about. I’m really proud of him.”
As Fleck openly admitted, it’s only natural for there to be an extra level of positivity swirling around the program at this stage. He hasn’t lost a game, made a bad call or missed out on any top-flight recruits yet. He also made no promises as to when he expects to “win championships,” only that he believes it will happen under his leadership.
Yes, I was impressed with what I saw on Tuesday morning, but the true test of a character is being able to stay endlessly positive during the tough times, because big or small, they will come.
With that said, I’m going to withhold my final judgement on whether or not I think Fleck is a right for the job. Besides, I don’t think he’d want anyone to evaluate him before he’s produced results.
That energy, though. It's infectious.
http://www.southernminn.com/owatonn...cle_c91fdb6a-c974-56eb-8f14-866e75d75502.html
Go Gophers!!
Pulling into the Caribou coffee parking lot on the north end of Owatonna Tuesday morning, I hopped from my car and headed toward the entrance of caffeine bliss. It was roughly 7:45 a.m. and being a sports journalist, I only see this side of 7 o’clock if I’m going to the airport or hitting the road for the lake in the summer.
Swinging the door open as I ambled down the short sidewalk in front of the building, a man roughly my age emerged said: “How you doing?”
“Good,” I answered. “I’ll see you over there.”
“No doubt,” this person said as he raced toward the Holiday Inn across the street on the far side of the cavernous parking lot.
It was Minnesota football PJ Fleck, and I think I found the secret to his endless energy: Coffee.
Only his buzz never wears off.
Shaking his hand roughly 15 minutes after bumping into him on the sidewalk, and 30 minutes prior to his presentation, I was awed by his positivity and endless liveliness.
What I appreciated the most about my conversation with him, which also included questions issued from the incomparable Roy Koenigsberg of KRFO radio, was how he looked us in the eye and gave direct answers. Sure, there was some “coach speak” sprinkled in, but he was genuine and well-spoken. Say what you want about him, but Fleck is who he is, and he’s not changing for anyone.
“The one thing about me is I am just me,” he said. “What you see is what you get. The more times you are around me, the more times you will see it’s just who I am. I think it can shock people sometimes, like ‘wow, that’s really intense, I wonder if he’s like that all the time?’ And I welcome anyone to spend more time around me and see that it’s real.”
One of those players is Owatonna’s Andrew Stelter. Playing for his third coach in three-plus years at the school, Stelter never considered leaving his hometown university, and Fleck is eternally grateful for his loyalty to Minnesota.
“Andrew has been absolutely tremendous since I have been the head football coach,” Fleck said. “You talk about a hard-worker; you talk about a row-the-boat culture guy — he has been everything that I could have imagined walking into this culture. He’s a perfect mix. He’s really led this team. He’s had to deal with a lot of things, and for him to be able to do what’s he’s done and make it through and become a stronger man, that’s what life is all about. I’m really proud of him.”
As Fleck openly admitted, it’s only natural for there to be an extra level of positivity swirling around the program at this stage. He hasn’t lost a game, made a bad call or missed out on any top-flight recruits yet. He also made no promises as to when he expects to “win championships,” only that he believes it will happen under his leadership.
Yes, I was impressed with what I saw on Tuesday morning, but the true test of a character is being able to stay endlessly positive during the tough times, because big or small, they will come.
With that said, I’m going to withhold my final judgement on whether or not I think Fleck is a right for the job. Besides, I don’t think he’d want anyone to evaluate him before he’s produced results.
That energy, though. It's infectious.
http://www.southernminn.com/owatonn...cle_c91fdb6a-c974-56eb-8f14-866e75d75502.html
Go Gophers!!
