FSN: Gophers taking steps forward, albeit baby ones

[BleedGopher]

From the article:

Getting to a bowl game was the goal all year for the University of Minnesota football team. Now that the Gophers have accomplished that, is it a surefire sign progress has been made from coach Jerry Kill's first season to his second?

Sure, you could easily argue that making a bowl game is a step in the right direction, and it is after Minnesota's 3-9 record last year. On some levels, though, this year's 6-6 record may not be viewed as a complete success, even for a team that won six games the previous two seasons combined.

Four of Minnesota's six wins came in nonconference play, which means the Gophers were just 2-6 against Big Ten opponents — just like they were last year. Of the Gophers' six wins in 2012, only two were against teams with winning records. One of those two was over New Hampshire, a Football Championship Subdivision school. The other was against a Syracuse team that finished 7-5 and beat No. 9 Louisville late in the season.

The cause for concern for Minnesota is how it fared against some of the Big Ten's elite programs. The Gophers' two wins in the conference were against a Purdue team that finished 6-6 and has just fired its head coach a 10-loss Illinois squad. Minnesota was far from competitive in games against Wisconsin, Michigan, Nebraska and Michigan State, four teams in the upper tier of the Big Ten. The Gophers were outscored by a combined 137-50 in those four games.

http://www.foxsportsnorth.com/11/28...nding_gophers.html?blockID=826701&feedID=3590

Go Gophers!!

 

[Ole]

From the article:

Getting to a bowl game was the goal all year for the University of Minnesota football team. Now that the Gophers have accomplished that, is it a surefire sign progress has been made from coach Jerry Kill's first season to his second?

Sure, you could easily argue that making a bowl game is a step in the right direction, and it is after Minnesota's 3-9 record last year. On some levels, though, this year's 6-6 record may not be viewed as a complete success, even for a team that won six games the previous two seasons combined.

Four of Minnesota's six wins came in nonconference play, which means the Gophers were just 2-6 against Big Ten opponents — just like they were last year. Of the Gophers' six wins in 2012, only two were against teams with winning records. One of those two was over New Hampshire, a Football Championship Subdivision school. The other was against a Syracuse team that finished 7-5 and beat No. 9 Louisville late in the season.

The cause for concern for Minnesota is how it fared against some of the Big Ten's elite programs. The Gophers' two wins in the conference were against a Purdue team that finished 6-6 and has just fired its head coach a 10-loss Illinois squad. Minnesota was far from competitive in games against Wisconsin, Michigan, Nebraska and Michigan State, four teams in the upper tier of the Big Ten. The Gophers were outscored by a combined 137-50 in those four games.

http://www.foxsportsnorth.com/11/28...nding_gophers.html?blockID=826701&feedID=3590

Go Gophers!!

This should be the media's narrative at this point in Kill's tenure. Not the other crap being spewed.
6-6, twice as many wins as the last 2 years. That Syracuse win is looking better and better. Definitely not a finished product, as the scores against solidified BIG programs show, but baby steps and a bowl game with a young, injury riddled team are good signs the program has at least pulled up from the rock bottom it was at the past 2 years.

 

[ruppertflywheel]

Bleed, I think that is why it is going to be tough to get a decent crowd of followers to Dallas or Houston. Ranking wise, we really didn't beat a quality opponent except for Syracuse. We've been to most of the bowl games except for the two Rose Bowl games. When attending these bowl games I always thought we had a decent chance of winning going back to the Liberty Bowl in Memphis. Right now the only team I feel we have a ghost of chance against is Iowa State. If we get Baylor, Texas Tech, or West Virginia we will get smoked. Even healthy, we just don't have the bodies. It didn't help that we lost Barker and our best DL Roland Johnson. So the question for us is do we want to spend 2-3 grand to head out to Dallas or Houston to watch a bowl game that could be over at halftime?

 

[CentralGopher]

This should be the media's narrative at this point in Kill's tenure. Not the other crap being spewed.
6-6, twice as many wins as the last 2 years. That Syracuse win is looking better and better. Definitely not a finished product, as the scores against solidified BIG programs show, but baby steps and a bowl game with a young, injury riddled team are good signs the program has at least pulled up from the rock bottom it was at the past 2 years.

I would agree. Anything else is just plain impatient and uneducated. The next step is a pretty big one and could take longer to get over.

 

[everybody knows my name]

I'm not sure I would agree with characterizing a 3-win improvement as a "baby step."

Like anyone, I can find things from this season to point at, roll my eyes, and shake my head at. But I'm happy with a 3 win improvement this year, and the great strides (not baby steps) that the defense made since 2011. I see at least one, probably two more wins next year, and that'll make me happy too!

 

[e.bigelow]

This should be the media's narrative at this point in Kill's tenure. Not the other crap being spewed.
6-6, twice as many wins as the last 2 years. That Syracuse win is looking better and better. Definitely not a finished product, as the scores against solidified BIG programs show, but baby steps and a bowl game with a young, injury riddled team are good signs the program has at least pulled up from the rock bottom it was at the past 2 years.

+1. Well said, Ole.

 

[Great Plains Gopher]

The Gophers were one win better than I expected and with a healthy Gray would have been two wins better. Getting to a bowl is huge at this point, though I hope we don't draw W. Virginia or Texas Tech.

 

[givetheballtodarrell]

We all thought 5 wins was doable and that 6 would be an achievement. Next year we win 8 and the following year 9. After that, we can hope lightning strickes once every 6 years.