BleedGopher
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per Fox 9:
If the University of Minnesota football team ends up being annual contenders in the Big Ten West with PJ Fleck, it can point to two dates during last season where the turn started.
The first? Nov. 3. The Gophers, off to a 1-4 start in the Big Ten, gave up 55 points and 445 yards rushing to Illinois. It was Minnesota's fifth loss in six games to start the Big Ten season. In those six games, Minnesota was allowing 43.1 points per game.
At Big Ten Media Day Thursday, Fleck started to call the Illinois game a bad loss, then backed off and called it a big loss. Something had to change. Days later, Robb Smith was fired as the team's defensive coordinator. Fleck and Smith were close friends and it wasn't an easy move to make, but Fleck had to make a change.
It was their first win at Wisconsin since 1994, and it earned the Gophers their chance to face Georgia Tech in the Quick Lane Bowl.
"Coach Fleck talks about the way we build the program. We dug the foundation, then we started laying stuff down and now we're adding the framework," senior rush end Carter Coughlin said.
The Gophers headed home with the Axe, and were met plenty of fans and supporters when they got back to the football complex.
"Getting the Axe back meant a lot for both teams. I know maybe Wisconsin isn't happy that we have the Axe, but it's healthy for the rivalry," Fleck said. "After 14 straight years of one of the greatest rivalries in college football, being one-sided for 14 straight years, there's a lot of things that happen to people's minds, especially in our state. They doubt it more, they say we'll never, things like that. If that ever happens. Well winning that game, especially how we won, where we won it and hadn't won there since 1994, hadn't won the game in 14 straight years. Breaking that mold creates this hope for the future. That's what I hope our state of Minnesota understands is we're doing things that haven't been done in a very long time, maybe ever in some areas."
http://www.fox9.com/sports/gophers-we-dug-the-foundation-
Go Gophers!!
If the University of Minnesota football team ends up being annual contenders in the Big Ten West with PJ Fleck, it can point to two dates during last season where the turn started.
The first? Nov. 3. The Gophers, off to a 1-4 start in the Big Ten, gave up 55 points and 445 yards rushing to Illinois. It was Minnesota's fifth loss in six games to start the Big Ten season. In those six games, Minnesota was allowing 43.1 points per game.
At Big Ten Media Day Thursday, Fleck started to call the Illinois game a bad loss, then backed off and called it a big loss. Something had to change. Days later, Robb Smith was fired as the team's defensive coordinator. Fleck and Smith were close friends and it wasn't an easy move to make, but Fleck had to make a change.
It was their first win at Wisconsin since 1994, and it earned the Gophers their chance to face Georgia Tech in the Quick Lane Bowl.
"Coach Fleck talks about the way we build the program. We dug the foundation, then we started laying stuff down and now we're adding the framework," senior rush end Carter Coughlin said.
The Gophers headed home with the Axe, and were met plenty of fans and supporters when they got back to the football complex.
"Getting the Axe back meant a lot for both teams. I know maybe Wisconsin isn't happy that we have the Axe, but it's healthy for the rivalry," Fleck said. "After 14 straight years of one of the greatest rivalries in college football, being one-sided for 14 straight years, there's a lot of things that happen to people's minds, especially in our state. They doubt it more, they say we'll never, things like that. If that ever happens. Well winning that game, especially how we won, where we won it and hadn't won there since 1994, hadn't won the game in 14 straight years. Breaking that mold creates this hope for the future. That's what I hope our state of Minnesota understands is we're doing things that haven't been done in a very long time, maybe ever in some areas."
http://www.fox9.com/sports/gophers-we-dug-the-foundation-
Go Gophers!!
