A question regarding "revenge games"...

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RememberMurray

RememberMurray

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Is it just me, or do a lot of us (me included) have a tendency to give our opponents a lot of credit for their ability to motivate themselves using "revenge" as a factor...

...yet we never seem give the Gophers the same credit?

Example: maybe one of us will say that a team the Gophers thumped last year — maybe Purdue or Wisconsin — will be highly motivated to beat Minnesota this season for "revenge".

Yet we almost never claim that the Gophers will have any sort of edge over teams that beat us last season, like, say, Nebraska, Illinois or Maryland.

Then again, maybe I'm imagining all this. If so, carry on.
 

I'd say it's mostly due to our apathetic fanbase. That, and not being competitive with rivals WI, and to a lesser extent IA.

I will say it would be nice to kick the crap out of Illinois, NE, and Maryland this season.
 

Generally speaking I don't feel like motivation has been an issue as far as PJ's teams go.
 

LesBolstad said:
I'd say it's mostly due to our apathetic fanbase. That, and not being competitive with rivals WI, and to a lesser extent IA.

I will say it would be nice to kick the crap out of Illinois, NE, and Maryland this season.
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NO KIDDING! Hopefully, Fleck and the team feel the same way.
 

A_Slab_of_Bacon said:
Generally speaking I don't feel like motivation has been an issue as far as PJ's teams go.
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I agree. I was speaking more about fan's perceptions regarding revenge (specifically) as a motivation; we Gopher fans seem to be certain that revenge is a great motivator for our opponents, but not so much for our Gophers.
 


RememberMurray said:
I agree. I was speaking more about fan's perceptions regarding revenge (specifically) as a motivation; we Gopher fans seem to be certain that revenge is a great motivator for our opponents, but not so much for our Gophers.
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I think it is reasonable as we've gone though a number of rough patches where .... honestly i felt the team was flat and uninspired.

I don't blame the players, we just had a lot of games where i didn't feel we were motivated, so expecting we would be ... might seem reasonable.
 

A_Slab_of_Bacon said:
I think it is reasonable as we've gone though a number of rough patches where .... honestly i felt the team was flat and uninspired.

I don't blame the players, we just had a lot of games where i didn't feel we were motivated, so expecting we would be ... might seem reasonable.
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Do you feel like other teams are more likely to be motivated by the idea of avenging a loss from the previous year than the Gophers would be?

Will Purdue be highly motivated to avenge their loss to Minnesota? Will Minnesota be less highly motivated to avenge their loss to Nebraska?
 

RememberMurray said:
Do you feel like other teams are more likely to be motivated by the idea of avenging a loss from the previous year than the Gophers would be?

Will Purdue be highly motivated to avenge their loss to Minnesota? Will Minnesota be less highly motivated to avenge their loss to Nebraska?
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I feel like if a coach can get a team motivated it can help. I'm not sure any given reason is more potent than another (well other than bike riding...).
 

A_Slab_of_Bacon said:
I feel like if a coach can get a team motivated it can help. I'm not sure any given reason is more potent than another (well other than bike riding...).
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I've heard that bike riding is good for you, and I've also heard it can be dangerous.

I know for a fact that Purdue football players hate bike riding in the snow.
 



RememberMurray said:
Is it just me, or do a lot of us (me included) have a tendency to give our opponents a lot of credit for their ability to motivate themselves using "revenge" as a factor...

...yet we never seem give the Gophers the same credit?

Example: maybe one of us will say that a team the Gophers thumped last year — maybe Purdue or Wisconsin — will be highly motivated to beat Minnesota this season for "revenge".

Yet we almost never claim that the Gophers will have any sort of edge over teams that beat us last season, like, say, Nebraska, Illinois or Maryland.

Then again, maybe I'm imagining all this. If so, carry on.
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I've been a Gopher fan a long time. There have been revenge games for me, but we usually fall flat (kind of like 14 in a row to Sconnie). So I don't let myself get too hyped up about it because we've been so average for so long that we usually don't win those games.

For example, how'd we do after Iowar beat us 55-0 and we should have been properly motivated? Oh yeah shut out again...
 

Sparlimb said:
I've been a Gopher fan a long time. There have been revenge games for me, but we usually fall flat (kind of like 14 in a row to Sconnie). So I don't let myself get too hyped up about it because we've been so average for so long that we usually don't win those games.

For example, how'd we do after Iowar beat us 55-0 and we should have been properly motivated? Oh yeah shut out again...
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2008: A Brewster-coached Gopher football team loses to Iowa 55-0. The following season, a Brewster-coached team plays Iowa again, and again fails to score.

Fast forward to 2019: Should we assume an entirely different Gopher team, coached by a different coach, will react in exactly the same way to a big loss from the previous season as Brewster's 2009 team did?
 

Sparlimb said:
I've been a Gopher fan a long time. There have been revenge games for me, but we usually fall flat (kind of like 14 in a row to Sconnie). So I don't let myself get too hyped up about it because we've been so average for so long that we usually don't win those games.

For example, how'd we do after Iowar beat us 55-0 and we should have been properly motivated? Oh yeah shut out again...
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You are forgetting revenge is a dish best served cold. Those Brewster teams were holding off a couple years for revenge.

Sent from my phone using Tapatalk
 

Revenge is for movies. Unfavorable matchups carrying over to the next year are for reality.

Beware Maryland and Illinois.
 



RememberMurray said:
I agree. I was speaking more about fan's perceptions regarding revenge (specifically) as a motivation; we Gopher fans seem to be certain that revenge is a great motivator for our opponents, but not so much for our Gophers.
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I think revenge games really means that there is no way a more talented team is going to take a less talented team lightly because the less talented team won the last matchup.

Since the gophers historically are often not the more talented team, it is harder to imagine them taking someone lightly.

I’d consider Maryland and Illinois revenge games this year. I wouldn’t consider Iowa and Nebraska revenge games
 

With Wisconsin as the last game on the schedule. The season will have defined itself for the most part. Revenge would be the lowest type of motivation I would want. The chance to play for a high goal, a B1G championship or play-offs being the 2 things that would motivate me over beating a Minnesota team because they kicked our ass last year. Higher aspirations usually are better than revenge.
 

Some guy said:
I think revenge games really means that there is no way a more talented team is going to take a less talented team lightly because the less talented team won the last matchup.

Since the gophers historically are often not the more talented team, it is harder to imagine them taking someone lightly.

I’d consider Maryland and Illinois revenge games this year. I wouldn’t consider Iowa and Nebraska revenge games
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That's a really thoughtful, well-reasoned answer to the original question. Thanks!

Maybe 'revenge' is overrated as a motivator?

I see the Maryland and Illinois games in 2019 as opportunities to make good, and get rid of the bitter taste left over from poor outings against those teams last season.

I see the 2019 Nebraska game as a chance to show the world that we should indeed be taken seriously, and are at the very least the equal of a (possibly) over-hyped 'helmet school'.

I see the 2019 Iowa game as an opportunity to get a leg up an opponent we should be competing with for this season's B1G West title — and a team that is also a border rival.
 
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RememberMurray said:
That's a really thoughtful, well-reasoned answer to the original question. Thanks!

Maybe 'revenge' is overrated as a motivator?

I see the Maryland and Illinois games in 2019 as opportunities to make good, and get rid of the bitter taste left over from poor outings against those teams last season.

I see the 2019 Nebraska game as a chance to show the world that we should indeed be taken seriously, and are at the very least the equal of a (possibly) over-hyped 'helmet school'.

I see the 2019 Iowa game as an opportunity to get a leg up an opponent we should be competing with for this season's B1G West title — and a team that is also a border rival.
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I don’t think revenge impacts a game. I think focus impacts a game. Sometimes making last years mistake corrected can improve the focus.
 

If a revenge factor exists and it makes the players practice better that week, then its beneficial. Players usually play as they have practiced.
 

As a general rule of thumb - you want to win games. If a team beat you last year, you would like to win that game this year - because it would result in a better record. I don't know if "revenge" plays into it. More just a matter of practicality. If they beat you last year, and you beat them this year, that indicates you have improved, and it helps you finish the season with a better record.

BUT - on the other hand, individual games are about match-ups. If Team A does not match up well with Team B, Team B is more likely to win. Now, if the match-up issues are based on scheme, then Team B could still have the advantage next year. If the match-up issues are based on personnel, that can change from year to year. The guy you couldn't stop last year may have graduated, or you may have added better players who will minimize the match-up issues.

All the 'revenge' and motivation in the world don't mean squat if the other team has better players and/or better execution.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
As a general rule of thumb - you want to win games. If a team beat you last year, you would like to win that game this year - because it would result in a better record. I don't know if "revenge" plays into it. More just a matter of practicality. If they beat you last year, and you beat them this year, that indicates you have improved, and it helps you finish the season with a better record.

BUT - on the other hand, individual games are about match-ups. If Team A does not match up well with Team B, Team B is more likely to win. Now, if the match-up issues are based on scheme, then Team B could still have the advantage next year. If the match-up issues are based on personnel, that can change from year to year. The guy you couldn't stop last year may have graduated, or you may have added better players who will minimize the match-up issues.

All the 'revenge' and motivation in the world don't mean squat if the other team has better players and/or better execution.
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I agree with almost everything you said here, Shorty.

One thing, though: I'm glad you weren't coaching at the Olympics in Lake Placid in 1980. Somebody (and no names, but he might have been a lifelong Gopher and his initials might have been H. B.) managed to convince a bunch of kids that they could beat an opponent who was clearly superior, talent-wise.

That being said, that was not really a 'revenge' situation. But we who are fortunate enough to be old enough to have witnessed it (on TV, in may case) will never forget it.
 

RememberMurray said:
I agree with almost everything you said here, Shorty.

One thing, though: I'm glad you weren't coaching at the Olympics in Lake Placid in 1980. Somebody (and no names, but he might have been a lifelong Gopher and his initials might have been H. B.) managed to convince a bunch of kids that they could beat an opponent who was clearly superior, talent-wise.

That being said, that was not really a 'revenge' situation. But we who are fortunate enough to be old enough to have witnessed it (on TV, in may case) will never forget it.
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Obviously, there are upsets in sports. and they happen because one team outplayed the other team. I just question the value of 'revenge' as a motivational tool. and FWIW, the night the US team beat the Russians, I was at a pro wrestling event in La Crosse, WI, so I did not see it.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Obviously, there are upsets in sports. and they happen because one team outplayed the other team. I just question the value of 'revenge' as a motivational tool. and FWIW, the night the US team beat the Russians, I was at a pro wrestling event in La Crosse, WI, so I did not see it.
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Agree 100% with 'revenge' being overstated as motivation in sports.
 

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