Jerry Kill

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This has been an incredibly fun season so far and you can really tell a lot of people are having a blast with this.

The one guy really missing out on all this that really shouldn't be is Jerry Kill. A lot of the players enjoying great success this year came from Jerry Kill and Tracy Claeys and it would have been nice to have Jerry be a guy that stuck around and bled maroon and gold and helped out whenever possible. He would be a guy loved the rest of his life around these parts.

Instead, he became embittered about how Coyle fired Claeys (and I get that) but to make matters worse has badmouthed PJ Fleck and has never been seen around here again. Like it or not Fleck is the face of this program and he is the guy we rally around. This was not PJ Fleck's fault that Claeys isn't coaching here and to be honest, Coyle's hiring of Fleck looks like a pretty damn good decision to me right now. The lesson to be learned here is always, always, ALWAYS take the high road no matter how bad it might seem at the time. Kill should be hanging around going to the games and I bet everyone would have nice things to say to him if he had decided to go down that road. Now he has put himself in a position where he has alienated Fleck and really can't be in on all the fun.

I would hope maybe he can mend the fences with Fleck and be a part of the U of M community somehow. He came in after the disastrous Brewster era and to be honest, I was hoping they would hire Mike Leach instead. He proved me wrong and I tip my cap to Jerry for a job well done. He was an excellent coach and he could still be a big help if he could let bygones be bygones. I am sure PJ Fleck does not really need him but I think if Kill had handled things differently he would be having an awful lot of fun around here right now.
 

I'm also a Kill fan.

But, if we've learned anything about Kill since he resigned at MN, it's this: the guy cannot stay away from coaching. He had a decent job as an AD, and from all accounts was doing well in raising money for facilities,etc - but he walked away to be a 'special assistant' at Va Tech.

The point being - I just don't see Kill being happy as some kind of figurehead or ambassador role. He needs to be directly involved with the program. And that is just not going to happen under Fleck.

So, I think Kill is where he wants to be. if not for his health issues, Kill would probably still be coaching at MN. But that is water under the bridge.
 

I'm also a Kill fan.

But, if we've learned anything about Kill since he resigned at MN, it's this: the guy cannot stay away from coaching. He had a decent job as an AD, and from all accounts was doing well in raising money for facilities,etc - but he walked away to be a 'special assistant' at Va Tech.

The point being - I just don't see Kill being happy as some kind of figurehead or ambassador role. He needs to be directly involved with the program. And that is just not going to happen under Fleck.

So, I think Kill is where he wants to be. if not for his health issues, Kill would probably still be coaching at MN. But that is water under the bridge.

True. It seems like ages ago since he was here, doesn't it??
 

I think ship has long sailed especially with Coyle/Fleck here

Wish Jerry the best, had fun watching his teams. I first got season tickets for his 2nd year and have had them since (except 2018 for different reasons).
 

ol' jer is a ball coach. it's who he is, it's in his blood. he helps turn boys into men and football is his vehicle. while i don't agree with everything he's done, and i cringe at the interview where he attacked pj and brought up the wife, but jer is likely looking on fondly as the empire class he helped recruit is impacting so many lives and winning so many games.
 


Jerry Kill is a great memory for Gopher faithful. True, had his health not been an issue, there is no doubt in my mind he would have
kept the Gophers contenders in the BIG West and would still be coaching here.

But, we go with life events that happen, and we wish him the best, and the Gophers are what the Gophers are today.
 

Jerry sailed his own ship, so I don't have any emotional tie. Had all the love in the world through 2016. Then he started changing jobs and schools every year, bad mouthed a coach in a way that makes no sense. His PJ is about himself schtick just doesn't play out.

Appreciate him for what he did, but I have stronger ties to Mason who really dug us out of the gutter (too bad Brewster put us back) and stuck around and continues to be a decent MN promoter.
 

I feel bad for kill.

He reached new heights in 2014... and then 2015 happened.

I think he secretly regrets walking away. He could have stayed, taken a leave, but he chose to walk.
 

ol' jer is a ball coach. it's who he is, it's in his blood. he helps turn boys into men and football is his vehicle. while i don't agree with everything he's done, and i cringe at the interview where he attacked pj and brought up the wife, but jer is likely looking on fondly as the empire class he helped recruit is impacting so many lives and winning so many games.

Not sure why you do not give the whole "ol'jer" thing. Give the guy some respect like addressing him with his name. Jerry Kill brought some respect to this program and he deserves some. None of us know why he ripped Fleck publicly and so people should maybe leave that alone. It takes two to tango so do not assume there not something behind the scenes that prompted it.
 



Not sure why you do not give the whole "ol'jer" thing. Give the guy some respect like addressing him with his name. Jerry Kill brought some respect to this program and he deserves some. None of us know why he ripped Fleck publicly and so people should maybe leave that alone. It takes two to tango so do not assume there not something behind the scenes that prompted it.

you serious bro? no one on this board pays respect to him like i do. Gerald R. Kill (his real name if you are going to be "that guy") referred to himself as "ol jer" quite often in his press conferences.
 

I think this season has validated a lot of the recruiting choices Kill and his staff made. As we know they didn’t rank real high but they chose the right kind of guys.

PJ would probably say it’s all RTB culture but most of those guys would have done great building Brick by Brick too. Kill knew what he was doing and had his health cooperated the program would be in good shape in 2019 with him as coach.
 

you serious bro? no one on this board pays respect to him like i do. Gerald R. Kill (his real name if you are going to be "that guy") referred to himself as "ol jer" quite often in his press conferences.[/QUOTE

Yea OK, I take it all back, my bad.
 

you serious bro? no one on this board pays respect to him like i do. Gerald R. Kill (his real name if you are going to be "that guy") referred to himself as "ol jer" quite often in his press conferences.[/QUOTE

Yea OK, I take it all back, my bad.

thank you. ski-u-mha
 



Not sure why you do not give the whole "ol'jer" thing. Give the guy some respect like addressing him with his name. Jerry Kill brought some respect to this program and he deserves some. None of us know why he ripped Fleck publicly and so people should maybe leave that alone. It takes two to tango so do not assume there not something behind the scenes that prompted it.

No. I don't care what the issue is, he should not have gone after him in public like that. I don't care if Fleck was at fault, you keep it private.
 
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I agree with the OP. With so many of Kill's recruits contributing it would have been a great scene to have Kill be on the sideline at one of the games, wave to the crowd and get his standing O. But unfortunately that will never happen. Jerry burned a lot of bridges here.
 

No. I don't care what the issue is, he should have gone after him in public like that. I don't care if Fleck was at fault, you keep it private.


And to Fleck's credit, he did not respond publicly. We don't know, he may have responded in private, but at least he kept it professional in the public domain...
 

Kill had a very serious seizure disorder that was kept in check with medicines. On more than a few occasions he had seizures because he was non compliant because the medicines made him feel groggy and without focus.
He could not be a HC in the BIG and be seizure free at the same time. His medical condition was a distraction also. He was a welcome relief from the bozo that preceded him as HC but I think recruiting and the aura around the team has improved since Kill and Claeys left.
In any event he seemed to be a father figure for some fans who stil lmourn his absence.
 

Kill had a very serious seizure disorder that was kept in check with medicines. On more than a few occasions he had seizures because he was non compliant because the medicines made him feel groggy and without focus.
He could not be a HC in the BIG and be seizure free at the same time. His medical condition was a distraction also. He was a welcome relief from the bozo that preceded him as HC but I think recruiting and the aura around the team has improved since Kill and Claeys left.
In any event he seemed to be a father figure for some fans who stil lmourn his absence.

He decided that.

The U told him he was welcome to take a leave or do whatever he needed.

I'm not convinced that he'd make the same decision again.
 

I agree with the OP. With so many of Kill's recruits contributing it would have been a great scene to have Kill be on the sideline at one of the games, wave to the crowd and get his standing O. But unfortunately that will never happen. Jerry burned a lot of bridges here.

my sentiments exactly.
 

I agree with the OP. With so many of Kill's recruits contributing it would have been a great scene to have Kill be on the sideline at one of the games, wave to the crowd and get his standing O. But unfortunately that will never happen. Jerry burned a lot of bridges here.

I wonder if Jerry not getting a job or whatever afterward caused issues we don't know. He was away for awhile, came back here or there but not so much associated with the U.

Sometimes I'm not sure Jerry ever truly fit in / was comfortable at a big university where there was so much for going on / football didn't rule the athletics department and such.
 

This has been an incredibly fun season so far and you can really tell a lot of people are having a blast with this.

The one guy really missing out on all this that really shouldn't be is Jerry Kill. A lot of the players enjoying great success this year came from Jerry Kill and Tracy Claeys and it would have been nice to have Jerry be a guy that stuck around and bled maroon and gold and helped out whenever possible. He would be a guy loved the rest of his life around these parts.

Instead, he became embittered about how Coyle fired Claeys (and I get that) but to make matters worse has badmouthed PJ Fleck and has never been seen around here again. Like it or not Fleck is the face of this program and he is the guy we rally around. This was not PJ Fleck's fault that Claeys isn't coaching here and to be honest, Coyle's hiring of Fleck looks like a pretty damn good decision to me right now. The lesson to be learned here is always, always, ALWAYS take the high road no matter how bad it might seem at the time. Kill should be hanging around going to the games and I bet everyone would have nice things to say to him if he had decided to go down that road. Now he has put himself in a position where he has alienated Fleck and really can't be in on all the fun.

I would hope maybe he can mend the fences with Fleck and be a part of the U of M community somehow. He came in after the disastrous Brewster era and to be honest, I was hoping they would hire Mike Leach instead. He proved me wrong and I tip my cap to Jerry for a job well done. He was an excellent coach and he could still be a big help if he could let bygones be bygones. I am sure PJ Fleck does not really need him but I think if Kill had handled things differently he would be having an awful lot of fun around here right now.

Brewster, who credibly could have complained about the way Maturi treated him, did take the high road. I gotta a least give him credit for that. Any comment Brewster has said about Minnesota or the players has been positive and supportive. Kill has done basically the opposite, even going after Heather. Burning bridges rarely does anything positive.
 

There is a percent of blame all around. Jerry Kill gets 80% of the blame for deciding to go the bitter route after his departure. He could be a favorite son around here and have a lifetime of standing ovations and cheers at Gopher football games that he shows up for. He already seemed petty when he said he would never step foot on the U campus again, and took it to a whole new level with that awful interview cutting Fleck and dredging up his personal life. Meanwhile, I do throw 20% shade at Fleck for usually avoiding mention/acknowledgement of the good job Kill did prior to Fleck's arrival.
 

I agree with the OP. With so many of Kill's recruits contributing it would have been a great scene to have Kill be on the sideline at one of the games, wave to the crowd and get his standing O. But unfortunately that will never happen. Jerry burned a lot of bridges here.

Yep, only person Kill has to blame for his legacy here is himself. Knew I shouldn't have clicked on this thread but couldn't stop myself. Thought maybe Kill had spouted off to the media again or maybe taken yet another job.
 

There is a percent of blame all around. Jerry Kill gets 80% of the blame for deciding to go the bitter route after his departure. He could be a favorite son around here and have a lifetime of standing ovations and cheers at Gopher football games that he shows up for. He already seemed petty when he said he would never step foot on the U campus again, and took it to a whole new level with that awful interview cutting Fleck and dredging up his personal life. Meanwhile, I do throw 20% shade at Fleck for usually avoiding mention/acknowledgement of the good job Kill did prior to Fleck's arrival.

Rewatch Fleck's intro presser that was posted in another thread. He goes out of his way to say nice things about Kill. Kill chose to be offended by the culture comments and be petty and bitter about things because as people have found out that is who he is as opposed the good ole southern ball coach he tried to pretend to be.

We are in year 3, Fleck is under no obligation at this point to give any credit to Kill what-so-ever and any thought he might have had to doing so went out the window when Kill decided to bad mouth him on National radio for no reason.
 

Brewster, who credibly could have complained about the way Maturi treated him, did take the high road. I gotta a least give him credit for that. Any comment Brewster has said about Minnesota or the players has been positive and supportive. Kill has done basically the opposite, even going after Heather. Burning bridges rarely does anything positive.

This is spot on.

Brewster was not ready to be a HC and he was not given the support he needed to succeed. When he failed, he took the high road.Unfortunately, Kill did not. I like Jerry Kill and I hope the relationship can eventually mend. After all, he is now one of us. I typically support all future, current and past Gophers and Kill is not the exception.
 

Rewatch Fleck's intro presser that was posted in another thread. He goes out of his way to say nice things about Kill. Kill chose to be offended by the culture comments and be petty and bitter about things because as people have found out that is who he is as opposed the good ole southern ball coach he tried to pretend to be.

We are in year 3, Fleck is under no obligation at this point to give any credit to Kill what-so-ever and any thought he might have had to doing so went out the window when Kill decided to bad mouth him on National radio for no reason.

He is under no obligation, but it would be silly to not give any credit to the guy who recruited a large number of your key performers. I am not saying that this team's success is anyone but Fleck's, it isn't. But that Empire Class is special, and that class was brought in by Jerry Kill.
 

Yeah I was thinking about that recently too. Brooks and Smith are kind of the biggest pieces of this team that makes me think of Kill's lasting impact on the program to this date. I remember there being question marks going into 2015 about running back with David Cobb and even Donnell Kirkwood both graduating. But Brooks and Smith really impressed early on and showed then (and still today) that Kill could at least recruit some talent.

With that said his connections to the program have since taken some hits. He road off into the sunset in a sense having at least set a quality foundation for the program and made it respectable, so even though his retirement was tough it seemed like he could at least leave with a job well done to a point. When the whole Claeys thing happened, I get being upset with the overall outcome, but one would have hoped that maybe he'd let that go.

I think the good will around here has kind of left for the most part too, and I lean on that side. I think his changes in jobs shows that he had a bit more of an ego than expected. When he started at K-State in a non-coaching role I thought fair enough since that's his home state and he still wanted to be associated with athletics. But then he went back into coaching at Rutgers just two years after leaving the Minnesota program. Then he leaves from Rutgers for his illness again and goes into the athletic director for SIU, only to return as a special assistant to the head coach at Virginia Tech a year later.

I get it was hard to walk away from what he loved doing, but at the same time it seemed like he had two opportunities to be working in athletics still without the added stress, yet would just flip and change jobs. His whole loyal and humble persona that he carried while here really kind of eroded.

On top of all that, though, there were the comments about Fleck. If you disagree with his coaching philosophy, fair enough, but I don't think it was right to imply Fleck only cares about himself and it was downright wrong to make those comments about his marriage. I'll say again what I said in another thread from a while back, both Brewster and Mason haven't bad-mouthed the program, and they were fired.

I appreciate the 2011 Iowa upset, the 2014 Iowa thrashing, both Nebraska wins and taking down Michigan at the Big House, but I feel the bridge has been destroyed at this point.
 

Rewatch Fleck's intro presser that was posted in another thread. He goes out of his way to say nice things about Kill. Kill chose to be offended by the culture comments and be petty and bitter about things because as people have found out that is who he is as opposed the good ole southern ball coach he tried to pretend to be.

We are in year 3, Fleck is under no obligation at this point to give any credit to Kill what-so-ever and any thought he might have had to doing so went out the window when Kill decided to bad mouth him on National radio for no reason.

You quoted me so I would hope you read what I said. I said "usually avoiding" mention of Kill's work. I didn't say "never" so pointing out his intro press conference as an example is beside the point.
 

Yep, only person Kill has to blame for his legacy here is himself. Knew I shouldn't have clicked on this thread but couldn't stop myself. Thought maybe Kill had spouted off to the media again or maybe taken yet another job.

I listened to the radio interview he just did in Blacksburg. It's funny, the promotional picture still has him coaching the sidelines at the U of M.

A short synopsis on what he had to say:
1) He loves being on the sidelines - says you get an entirely different perspective there.
2) He loves being around the "kids" in the program.
3) Rebecca says she hasn't seen him this happy in a long time. (I'm betting since his HC days)
4) He sounded good, but tired.

He signed my book "Chasing Dreams" and put in: "To Rescooter, my biggest fan." I'm still a fan of his and will always wish him well. I just wish he had taken the high-road (as others have said) with respect to PJ.
 

I'm kinda done with good ol' Jerry.

He shouldn't have gone away mad. Just go away. - Sticks Jones

[video]https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=Heartbreak+ridge+dont+go+away+mad+just+go +away&&view=detail&mid=C9F2E278FD3F3902A1F6C9F2E278FD3F3902A1F6&&FORM=VRDGAR[/video]
 




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