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Gopher FB Coach PJ Fleck appeared on the Sports Huddle with Mike Max, Sid and Jeff Diamond (Mona has the week off).
Max: you're a basketball fan. what did you think of the Gophers?
PJ: proud of Richard and his boys. Amazing what that team has been through. Unfortunate that Murphy didn't get chance to play. this shows where the program is headed. Look at other sports - Women's hockey playing for Nat'l Championship. men's Gymnastics. women's Basketball playing in NIT. awesome times at U.
Sid: spring break. had a week of practice. is the team showing progress?
PJ: the players had the week off. back at it tomorrow. coaches excited. need to keep getting team better.
Jeff: evaluate QB's. do players separate based on Spring practice?
PJ: 2 upperclassmen are separated based on experience. Tanner going on year 3 with the program, Zach on year 2. the rookies just got here. the experience in the offense is showing. the two young guys have done a good job to grasp it in two months. they get to go out and run offense. they're thrown in the fire, running the team in the periods they get.
Sid: how does Winfield look so far?
PJ: looks good. practicing well. in contact drills other day. was able to come down and thud up. trainers are monitoring, need to be careful how much we give him. he plays so darn hard. training staff doing great job. have to hold him back. give him a certain # of reps - he's on a pitch count at practice.
Max: recruit multi-sport athletes. when you recruit, can you garner a lot watching them play basketball?
PJ: sometimes our 1st true evaluation is watching them play basketball. look at their hand-eye coordination, body control, leaping ability, looseness of hips. can tell a lot. we take basketball seriously. I love multi-sport athletes. it's a huge tool for us.
Sid: are you impressed with new recruits?
PJ: only 3 practices so far. we've been able to watch them go through conditioning, getting stronger. adapt to college, becoming a teammate. blend in with FB team. do what they're demanded to do. pleased with group. some of them will have chance to play. some will have the opportunity to red-shirt. last year couldn't do that. there were players we were forced to play. some kids will play four games; some kids will benefit from going through true red-shirt process.
Jeff: MN pro day coming up. Important to you as a head coach? Impress scouts with your guys.
PJ: MN has averaged less than 1 draft pick per year. our goal coming in here was to change all that. with classes we've brought in, that's going to change. once our classes start coming through. Blake Cashman will bring in a lot of scouts, bring publicity to our campus. lot of guys, scouts coming in, want to set up workouts with him. that's where I got my shot. without pro Day, i wouldn't have played in the NFL. people know it's for real. important for players who want to play in next level. see how they handle a high-pressure situation. have one hour to perform. that's how you're going to be judged. excited to have scouts on campus.
Max: what's like to prepare for that one hour?
PJ: you're training 3 months for that 1 day. have to leave nothing behind - give everything you have. need to get rest, continue to fuel your body. one chance to perform. some people in that situation - people fizzle out, don't like that fear of failing. others thrive in that. it's either one or the other. the key is the preparation leading up to that - if you wait for that day, it's going to be a problem. got to train for it.
Sid: new recruits on defense. worked out so far?
PJ: feel really good where Defense is at. more experienced guys will be playing this year. had to be able to do that with our 2019 class - had to be dominated on defense. have 5 commits for 2020. some for 2021. continue to recruit for 2021 as well. our 1st class will be seniors that year. '20 and '21 very important for our future.
Jeff: Coughlin. last year DE. could he also play LB?
PJ: probably DE. that's his best position for us. stand-up DE -be able to drop into coverage, have linebacker instincts. play closer to line. CC at his best when he can play incredibly fast. We need to put him in position to do that. gained 12 pounds in off-season, gotten bigger. you can see it. we needed him to get bigger. he was never red-shirted. this would have been his RS JR year. that's often when players show the most growth, get stronger. when your best players are the hardest workers, best leaders, that's when you're getting places.
Sid: great ticket plans, big discounts. great schedule. Murray's. thanks for showing up at my birthday party.
PJ: Can't wait for next year and number 100. RTB, Ski-U-Mah. good luck to all the Gopher athletes competing today.
Max: you're a basketball fan. what did you think of the Gophers?
PJ: proud of Richard and his boys. Amazing what that team has been through. Unfortunate that Murphy didn't get chance to play. this shows where the program is headed. Look at other sports - Women's hockey playing for Nat'l Championship. men's Gymnastics. women's Basketball playing in NIT. awesome times at U.
Sid: spring break. had a week of practice. is the team showing progress?
PJ: the players had the week off. back at it tomorrow. coaches excited. need to keep getting team better.
Jeff: evaluate QB's. do players separate based on Spring practice?
PJ: 2 upperclassmen are separated based on experience. Tanner going on year 3 with the program, Zach on year 2. the rookies just got here. the experience in the offense is showing. the two young guys have done a good job to grasp it in two months. they get to go out and run offense. they're thrown in the fire, running the team in the periods they get.
Sid: how does Winfield look so far?
PJ: looks good. practicing well. in contact drills other day. was able to come down and thud up. trainers are monitoring, need to be careful how much we give him. he plays so darn hard. training staff doing great job. have to hold him back. give him a certain # of reps - he's on a pitch count at practice.
Max: recruit multi-sport athletes. when you recruit, can you garner a lot watching them play basketball?
PJ: sometimes our 1st true evaluation is watching them play basketball. look at their hand-eye coordination, body control, leaping ability, looseness of hips. can tell a lot. we take basketball seriously. I love multi-sport athletes. it's a huge tool for us.
Sid: are you impressed with new recruits?
PJ: only 3 practices so far. we've been able to watch them go through conditioning, getting stronger. adapt to college, becoming a teammate. blend in with FB team. do what they're demanded to do. pleased with group. some of them will have chance to play. some will have the opportunity to red-shirt. last year couldn't do that. there were players we were forced to play. some kids will play four games; some kids will benefit from going through true red-shirt process.
Jeff: MN pro day coming up. Important to you as a head coach? Impress scouts with your guys.
PJ: MN has averaged less than 1 draft pick per year. our goal coming in here was to change all that. with classes we've brought in, that's going to change. once our classes start coming through. Blake Cashman will bring in a lot of scouts, bring publicity to our campus. lot of guys, scouts coming in, want to set up workouts with him. that's where I got my shot. without pro Day, i wouldn't have played in the NFL. people know it's for real. important for players who want to play in next level. see how they handle a high-pressure situation. have one hour to perform. that's how you're going to be judged. excited to have scouts on campus.
Max: what's like to prepare for that one hour?
PJ: you're training 3 months for that 1 day. have to leave nothing behind - give everything you have. need to get rest, continue to fuel your body. one chance to perform. some people in that situation - people fizzle out, don't like that fear of failing. others thrive in that. it's either one or the other. the key is the preparation leading up to that - if you wait for that day, it's going to be a problem. got to train for it.
Sid: new recruits on defense. worked out so far?
PJ: feel really good where Defense is at. more experienced guys will be playing this year. had to be able to do that with our 2019 class - had to be dominated on defense. have 5 commits for 2020. some for 2021. continue to recruit for 2021 as well. our 1st class will be seniors that year. '20 and '21 very important for our future.
Jeff: Coughlin. last year DE. could he also play LB?
PJ: probably DE. that's his best position for us. stand-up DE -be able to drop into coverage, have linebacker instincts. play closer to line. CC at his best when he can play incredibly fast. We need to put him in position to do that. gained 12 pounds in off-season, gotten bigger. you can see it. we needed him to get bigger. he was never red-shirted. this would have been his RS JR year. that's often when players show the most growth, get stronger. when your best players are the hardest workers, best leaders, that's when you're getting places.
Sid: great ticket plans, big discounts. great schedule. Murray's. thanks for showing up at my birthday party.
PJ: Can't wait for next year and number 100. RTB, Ski-U-Mah. good luck to all the Gopher athletes competing today.
