Stadium update
Posted on May 29th, 2008 – 8:51 PMBy Chip Scoggins
I had a chance to visit the stadium site today for the press conference for the 87-county tribute. I hadn’t been by there in a few weeks and it’s amazing how much it changes and comes into shape in such a short time.
Adam Weber and a handful of players were also there. I talked to Adam after the ceremony and he said almost every time he goes home he drives slowly by the stadium just to see the progress. He said a lot of players do that.
He also said players often look out the window of their players lounge in the football complex and can see the stadium going up.
One of my favorite things about covering college football is visiting the different stadiums on fall Saturdays. I’ve covered Big Ten, SEC, ACC and Big 12 football for various newspapers, and I love going to all the different venues and seeing the fans tailgate and come together.
I really think the “experience” factor for Gophers fans will be incredibly different once the team leaves the Dome and moves into the new stadium. You certainly could hear Weber’s excitement as he talked about it today.
488 Responses to "Stadium update"
I can’t wait until it opens. 6 games left and we’re home free. The place looks beautiful and they’re in the middle of construction still.
Thank you, Chip. I, too, can’t wait for Air Force in 2009! I’ve been waiting 27 years for this!
Even though we won’t have the history I can almost be certain that TCF Bank will start being talked about with the top stadiums in the country.
There are so many things that this stadium will bring that the Metrodome didn’t provide;
Marching Band Practice Facility
Hall of Fame
Team Store
M Club Room
Club Room
Loge Seats
Recruiting Lounge(maybe the most important)
Even though we won’t have the history I can almost be certain that TCF Bank will start being talked about with the top stadiums in the country.
There are so many things that this stadium will bring that the Metrodome didn’t provide;
Marching Band Practice Facility
Hall of Fame
Team Store
M Club Room
Club Room
Loge Seats
Recruiting Lounge(maybe the most important)
I can’t even begin to describe how pumped up I am for the bank to open! Go Gophs!
If the Metrodome was a modern stadium, I would have been in support of the stadium bill.
I thought the arguement about a stadium on campus was weak when the Metrodome is practically on campus itself. It’s not like the students were having to go way out to Bloomington, or Eagan, or even farther out in the Twin Cities to watch the game.
Since the Metrodome is a old, cheap, run down stadium, I’m FOR the new stadium. I know the Brewsterites and Masonites will rip me on my position about a staduim being on campus, but that’s the way it goes.
I’m sorry one correction. If the Metrodome was a modern stadium, I would NOT have been in favor of the stadium bill.
I guess it really doesn’t matter how you feel. Its getting built and that discussion was 3 years ago.
Gold4, your point about the metrodome almost being on campus is true. What sold me on the new stadium was the income factor. We can not continue to compete in the big ten under our current revinue sharing program with the met-commission. We were getting raped by all the outside interest that had their hands in the U’s pocket on game day. We now have a chance to increase revinues by having an on campus stadium. The stadium is a site to behold, but we had better fill it on game day or it will lose its appeal fast with the general public. We all know how to fill it. This is not field of dreams. We can not say build it and they will come. Maybe in the first year but I do not think they will come in 2010 if we have another poor season.
I think 50,000 is too small, Maturi wants it to look full and get high prices for tickets. Murry Warmath told them a couple of yrs. ago they will be sorry if they build it that small. Even as a few have reminded us once or twice we were 1-11 and we still had games with over 50,000. If they start winning and get the enthusiam that they want, I hope the TV works.
It is what it is and those decisions were, for once, correctly made. For those of you who have not had the privaledge to see “game days” at real college football facilities, we were NEVER, in ten thousand years, going to recruit Minnesota legally and well until we got the 20,000 Iowa or Badger fans out of our stadium. That HAD TO BE the first priority above and way past any other goal.
Now that opportunity is just around the corner for us. True, you pinheads have decided to play a lot of bad football now, but, if that changes, we may be able to have some real “gameday” for a change.
Loon, I don’t play football for the U. So how am I a pinhead?
You dont’ build a church for Easter Sunday. I am beginning to think 50,000 is too big if we still have 7,000 tickets still available.
I want NO opportunity for Wisconsonites or Iowians to make the annual gopher game a fun Mall of America/Gopher game weekend.
Bud … I am still laughing over your naive claims yesterday that the football players at Ohio State and Michigan get their $1,000 gold chains and $300 sneakers by applying for Pell grants and NCAA funding. ROTFLMAO!!!!
Even more hilarious is your silly claim that football players can work during the year because they only have 20 hours per week of football related activity during the season and eight hours a week during the off-season. THAT IS FREAKIN HILARIOUS!!!!!!!
For heaven’s sake, any player than does not put in three times that amount of time a week would be run out of Division II. Playing bigtime college football is a fulltime job.
It is so funny you are believing the ruse and farce put up by the NCAA. These are just fronts so the big guys can cheat as normal and hide behind more liberal rules.
The bottom line is football players don’t have time to work and the NCAA is not paying for $1,000 gold chains. Somebody else is. You need to get realistic.
Bud … I just got off the phone with Rich Rod over at Ann Arbor. He confirmed you are correct. All his players have fulltime jobs during the school year.
Rich said his left tackle is trying anti-trust cases with a local law firm. His defensive end is a dentist, and his lineback is a heart surgeon. Three of his D backs are commuting to Kazakhstan twice a week to explore for oil. Oh, and get this, his entire offensive line is serving as police officers in Iowa City.
Yup, Bud … these guys have plenty of time to work and at Michigan they pull down some pretty good pay.
ROTFLMAO!!!!!!!!!
Come on DAC, that’s a little harsh. I think the REAL Bud…not wren, loon and recruting pretending to be Bud…actually has some good insight now and then. I may not always agree with him but I do think he adds something to this board now and again.
Goph … How do you read into my comments that Bud has no insight nor value to the board? I think the contrary and, if you notice, when he does make a good contribution I compliment him.
You need to understand, Goph, I am here for the fun. When I can poke fun at a dumb statement I do it. I am not here to gratuitously tear down and trash the coach and players like Loon and Wren do and like Bud sometimes does. It’s all about fun.
But seriously, do you really believe that the NCAA has funds for players so they can buy gold jewelry, expensive clothes, cars, and to fly home? Does that sound remotely possible to you?
It is not remotely possible. Yes, they have funds and players can apply. But this is just a ruse to hide the normal under-the-table spending money that is provided by “others” at Michigan, Ohio State and the other big powers.
And the idea that players can work is a total farce. The idea they only put in 20 hours a week during the season and eight hours a week off season is a total joke. So what does the NCAA do? They now allow players to “work” which means at Ohio State, Michigan and the like players can draw paychecks every week for phantom, phony jobs.
It’s that simple.
Oh, and Goph … if in the future you spot that a “Bud” post is from the sow cruding, please point it out. I do not want to go after anyone’s comments if they are not legit.
Gopher1;
I don’t think DAC means any harm by his harshness. He’s gotten after me a few times about my views on Weber being the U’s best QB. He and Jimbo used to get into some real scrums.
If he suddenly turned in to a mild mannered non-controversial poster, I’d be worried. Otherwise, his rants are great. Case in point:
“Oh, and get this, his entire offensive line is serving as police officers in Iowa City.”
Priceless and a literary work of art. Trashing two teams at once….if he could have thrown in Wisconsin, he’d be nominated for a Pulitzer.
Scooter … Actually, that sentence should have read:
“Oh, and get this, his entire offensive line is serving as police officers in Iowa City and driving through Madison on the way to and from to pick up litter.”
Speaking of Madison, I was there this weekend and walked around Camp Randall. Nice football venue (TCF stadium will be much better), but the thing that ruined it for me was seeing this stupid oblisk piece of art at the SW entrance. I don’t know what their idea of art is, but someone needs to use that for a boat anchor. That is one nasty looking sculpture.
Scooter … The reason I am laughing so hard at Bud’s attempts to tell us new NCAA rules put everything above board at places like Michigan and Ohio State is because my (ex) son-in-law played four years of hockey at Michigan for Red Berenson.
During his time he got to know many football players and a few basketball players. He knows exactly how they were taken care of. The idea that Michigan or Ohio State is playing by any kind of rules is absurd.
NCAA rules are there to protect the big powers and to use the patsies as stage props for show trials.
Bud is also smokin’ crack if he thinks any great percentage of guys who go to the NFL draft early ever bother or even care about graduating. Doesn’t happen much.
Now tell me how draft factories like Michigan and Ohio State have any scholarships left after that many 0 for 2s?
Rain clouds all over the state today. The stadium looks wonderful and you fools keep knocking each other upside the head.
Chip - keep us posted on academic progress of the team. It most certainly matters to me, a tax payer.
OneOld … Sure it matters but as a taxpayer you would be a lot more justified worrying about the academic progress of the 20,000 or so students at the U who are there for a party.
One Old Gopher, dac guards this place against anyone who would suggest that we should not just follow the Brewster lead and recruit speed at any price.
I am with you. If the guys don’t want an education or do not have the ability to get an education I do not want them regardless of the impact that has on the football program.
So, d_a_c you say there are 20,000 University of Minnesota students who are totally wasting the taxpayer’s money?
jimbo should be interested in hearing you say that. He labors under the apparent false assumption that an education from the U of M is meaningful in some odd sort of way.
jimbo, your good friend d_a_c insinuates that the University for Minnesota is for rampant partying and nothing else and he believes they should shut the doors to save the tax payers money. He says: “…Sure it matters but as a taxpayer you would be a lot more justified worrying about the academic progress of the 20,000 or so students at the U who are there for a party…”
You better try to tear d_a_c a new one for insulting you and your sons.
I believe that everyone should expect more of the academic programs run for the unvergraduates at the University of Minnesota…and also for the academic standings of the students in the football program.
Recruit STUDENTS who can prosper in the academic community and who can play football on Game Day Saturday.
There MUST be academic integrity clearly demonstrated by the players in the football program and without that, there is NO reason to have a football program. Graduates and Big Ten wins will help insure that the program stays clean and honest.
It is up to you gm/recruiter brewster AND ad, maturi.
gold oh four: I am pleased to say that I have been on the opposite side of virtually every issue with the Gopher Football program than you have been. I strongly supported the building of the new stadium. It was the ONLY shot the Gophers had at continuing to build upon what Coach Mason had brought to the program.
Thank you to coach Mason for his very large role in getting this stadium for the Gophers. As Coach Mason stated many times: it was essential.
I can live with what ever it means for long time season ticket holders.
Unfortuantely, I believe the current ad?recruiter…brewster is headed down many wrong paths. I also believe the ad maturi and prexy b failed to bring in the kind of coach to lead the Gophers into their new stadium who could have maximized the effect of the new Gopher Football home.
I also fear the 1-11 and 0-8 Big Ten record of brewster will be very hard to overcome.
However, the small stadium was needed just to shut out the iowa and wisky fans.
2008 will be a huge season. brewster needs a lot of Big Ten wins. There are what should be 3 sure Big Ten wins in the dome with games there against iowa, NU and Indiana.
The pressure is on him to get those wins. He needs to do that or he and maturi are digging themselves holes that will be too hard to overcome. That’s what happens, maturi and prexy b when you do start charging the premiums in 2009. Expectations go WAY up and if you don’t deliver…you will be history!
Wren,
How are we on the opposite end of the new stadium? We both were FOR the new stadium.
gold oh four, you said: “…I thought the arguement about a stadium on campus was weak when the Metrodome is practically on campus itself. It’s not like the students were having to go way out to Bloomington, or Eagan, or even farther out in the Twin Cities to watch the game…”
IF you didn’t “get” the fact that the Gophers needed an open air, ON CAMPUS stadium…you just didn’t “get it…”
That argument that the stadium was almost on campus was crazy and pure hog wash every time it was ever used.
Look at Big Ten Football. The stadiums are all on campus and are all owned by the individual Big Ten program.
NO other Big Ten Football Program EVER had a game time moved because of a professional sport conflict. The fact that the Gophers were the third and lowest ranking tenant in the damn dome was MORE than enought reason to ditch that stupid off campus professional stadium asap.
IF you didn’t understand that the Gophers needed their own stadium, then you understood nothing.
Since brewster, maturi and prexy b are off to such a miserable start in the launch of the new Gopher On Campus stadium, it is essential to fight any kind of move by the vikings for them to build a new stadium with ANY kind of public assistance. Keep the vikings in the dome until they abandon the Minnesota territory and head to another city that might provide public funding for an nfl franchise owned by a billionaire real estate developer.
Make wilf so frustrated that he sells the vikings to someone who will move them out of town. THAT would be the best thing for Golden Gopher Football that has happened since the Lakers bagged tail for LA!
Make the timberpukers stay in their joke of an arena until they either fold or move out of state too.
The Gophers need to win some battles over the professional sports teams and then they will start getting more local recruits.
The vikings have always been the worst enemy of the Gopher Football Program…other than the long list of U of M prexy’s and administrators.
No new stadium for the vikings in Minnesota…EVER!
Wren,
I know you use to walk to school uphill both ways in two feet of snow to get to school during the winter. If you can still manage to get to school the students can manage to find a stadium right next to the U campus.
This site is a little like the politics in this country. One side can say that cheating is going on and get blasted for it and in the next post another person can go on and on about the cheating at other schools and nothing is said. Not even a prove it or tell me how they are cheating. DAC, did your mother ever tell you two wrongs do not make a wright? You are some type of a conspiracy guy how just knows that everything happening out there for a reason. And it all has do do with keeping the Gophers down at the bottom of the barrel. If you have not figured it out yet DAC, only 0-2 cause a school to lose scholarships. Let the schools and the NCAA do their job and you stay close to this site and monitor all the posts. Stick to something you can handle.
I am so glad we are getting a new stadium on campus and it is looking great. This is one big step in bringing Minnesota football program to greatness. Where the students and fans could have a great experience. Yes it was Mason that helped get the stadium, but unfortunately he was not too interested in helping raise the money or capatilize on it to bring in talent. Plus too many heartbreak losses got him fired. Now we have Brewster that is selling the stadium, the program, and bringing in talent. His last season was just awful, but I think he learned a lot from that. Now will he lead us to the promised land he said he will, we just need to wait and see. He is doing some good things now plus there is only one way get can go up from here and that is UP!
mn cagv,
“there is only one way get can go up from here and that is UP!”
We not only heard that 17 months ago, we old timers have heard that with every coaching change. Please, we are not a natural Ohio State in football and we will always (at least until Global Warming drives black people out of the south) have the potential of being a last place team in the Big Ten if we make enough mistakes.
I have not seen Brewster do one thing right yet. Not one. I have yet to see Brewster bring in a single player who has helped us win a single game. (You must be thinking about all that Brewster has said, not what he has actually done.) I too hope he does more than one thing right this season so we can win more games than the one game last year that Miami of Ohio gave us when they missed a 30 yard field goal.
Brewster fans should never compare Brewster with Mason because Mason actually won some football games here against Big Ten teams. Brewster has won none, ever. His doing the King Kong thing on top of Focher (sp?) Tower is absurd. His fans should avoid that sort of chest pounding until we have gone 1-7 or better.
Then we can shout “We’re number ten!!! We’re number ten!!! We’re number ten!!!!”
3 months until Gopher football
You think things will be getting better once Brewster gets back to doing what he does least effectively?
Time will tell
Bud asks stupidly,
“DAC, did your mother ever tell you two wrongs do not make a wright?”
__________
No, clueless, we had no Wrights living in the neighborhood.
And then Bud says,
“If you have not figured it out yet DAC, only 0-2 cause a school to lose scholarships.”
___________________
We’ve got that, genius. But what you seem incapable of understanding is that almost all the early draft departures were in school only preparing for their pro football career.
Most of those guys could not be leaving in good academic standing if real rules were enforced. Almost everyone leaving early is an 0-2.
thewrenagain says: “The vikings have always been the worst enemy of the Gopher Football Program…other than the long list of U of M prexy’s and administrators.”
==========================
Does your list of poor U of M prexy’s and administrators include … Paul Giel, Yudof and Mark Dienhart??????
taylor: Yudof rocks! He was the best…the VERY best during the pasthalf century. He single handedly raised 2.25 billion to start getting the U of M’s campus back to respectability after countless other prexy’s had let the campus deteriorate. Paul Giel is just another dead All-American. Dinehart went on to much bigger and better things at St. Thomas!
Try to knock prexy y all you want but macturi and prexy b have us at 0-8 in the Big Ten and counting.
I’m concerned about prexy b’s health. He is too old for the job and needs to start paying attention to his health. maturi has to go unless brewster starts winning a heck of a lot of Big Ten games and starts doing it in 2008. They are blowing the grand opening of the new stadium and all the positive effects that should bring by starting out 1-11 and 0-8 in 2007. For gosh sakes get a LOT of Big Ten wins brewster…get on the stick or get out now!
Thanks to the failed coach Mason for bringing the on campus stadium on home by single handedly persuading Mr. Cooper to do the TCF naming rights deal!
Wrenbawlbaby says,
” … but macturi and prexy b have us at 0-8 in the Big Ten and counting.”
_______
Oh really? I could have sworn Weber played every game at QB last year, not Maturi or the President.
“Thanks to the failed coach Mason for bringing the on campus stadium on home by single handedly … ”
_________
Incredibly funny stuff. A vagabond football coach with no ties to the area and no interest in being here was responsible for the stadium? ROTFLMAO!!
Loon,
What is up with the black people comment? The reason Ohio State has a great football program is because of the talent they have year after year. Any college football coach can tell you the way you win games is to have talented atheletic players. Now Brewster is doing just that, bringing in talent to win games. He also knows that the defensive plays were too complex for the players last year so it will be simplified this year.
Look I am not going to dwell in the past, but look into hear and now and into the future. The past is what it is the PAST it can’t be changed (it’s in the record books)but we can learn from it.
Forgetting how we (as I predicted we would) screwed up last year will not help us avoid screwing up this year or in the future. The notion that the University of Minnesota could throw away two whole seasons and then move on to a Big Ten Championship was a fundamental misreading of the recruiting situation the U faces in the real world. Losing games or recruiting fast but stupid players will not help this university.
Regarding the black comment, 100% of all players recruited from south Champlain were players. Less than 12% of all Americans are black. Brewster said he had no real interest in recruiting any of 800,000 people (99% white or Indian) in North Dakota at any time while he is here. What does that all add up too? Let me guess, it is not the Hispanics or whites in the south that he is looking at? “Speed, speed and more speed”, is Brew saying we need more players who are black. Otherwise, why write off North Dakota as being of no interest to him.
should be “south of Champlin, MN”
Almost every Division 1 coach in the country has written off North Dakota, silly.
Nobody recruits by color, Loonatic. You recruit speed, strength, and athletic ability. Nobody cares what color a kid might be except you. You are a disgusting, sick racist.
Mason sold the deal to Mr. Cooper, the TCF head honcho d_a_c. prexy b needed to extend Masons’ contract for that very reason. prexy b and maturi couldn’b bring the deal home without Mason. That just ticks you off to no end doesn’t it d_a_c. prexy b and maturi left to their own devices couldn’t accomplish the finalizing of the stadium deal. So they literally spent millions and millions of dollars first extending Mason and then the very next year buying him out. That incompetent pair of administrators are so fiscally lacking in responsibility it is pathetic. They then hired a coach who went 8-0 in Big Ten play and 1-11 overall during his first year at the helm. Never before in the history of University of Minnesota Football have a pair of administraters wasted so much money with such disasterous immediate results as prexy b and maturi.
Those incompetent administrators NEEDED Mason to get the naming rights deal so that the legislature would give them the time of day. Thatnk you Coach Mason for coming through for those fiscally incompetent administrators.
That is the way it went down d_a_c. Millions and millions of wasted dollars. That is a big part of the legacy of maturi/prexy b: fearless fantasy football manipulators of the “nth” degree.
“Mason sold the deal to Mr. Cooper … ”
_________
ROTFLMAO!!!!!! Way too funny, Wrenbawl. You are a stitch. That’s hilarious … a vagabond, itinerate football coach with no permanent tie to the community and who worked night and day to get a better job elsewhere “sold” a stadium deal. Hilarious.
And the idiotic prexy b and macturi extended this, “so-called” (by the ever so perceptive d_a_c) vagabond, itinerate football coach with no permanent tie to the community for five mother loving more stinking years! Yes, those incredibly incapable and foolish administrators prexy b and maturi inked a deal for five…count ‘em big buck years at the end of the 2005 season.
d_ac_ the incapable prexy b and maturi did the deed and you try to blame the coach. You are so transparently bankrupt with your thick lines of b.s. and ANY fool can see that the fools were prexy b and macturi.
They were incapable of selling the stadium deal without Mason. They are THAT pathetic and incompetent left to their own devices. In fact, the ONLY solution that that stumbling, bumbling pair of administrators could come up with was to extend Mason for FIVE mother loving years. Get the picture d_a_c?
Oh yes d_a_c, the incredibly over-matched, incompetent and totally inexperienced gm/recruiter brewster was the one who started the qb that he started for every game in 2007. Or, are you insinuating that things are so incredibly out of control re: the coaching staff that a red-shirt freshman qb took it upon himself to give himself the ball to start at every game because brewster was so totally out of control every Game Day Saturday?
What is it d_a_c? It would seem to me that you are saying that brewster doesn’t have a brain in his head?
You have just rotflmaoffed until any commonsense you might have ever had just got too crammed, jammed and slammed what the sun won’t shine…
It just gets funnier and funnier with this ignorant moron Wrenbawl who hasn’t got the intelligence of a three-day-old monkey if he thinks people are going to believe Mason “sold” the stadium.
This is our state university. Everybody living within our borders has a stake in the U, the Gophers, and the new stadium. The Legislature has been appropriating billions of dollars to the U without ever once asking Mason for permission or directions.
Wrenbawl … If you read this blog last fall — and I know you did because you were posting on many of your other dirty pornographic aliases — you know that I criticized Brewster every week for going blindly with Weber and never giving Mortonsen a shot.
That was Brewster’s worst failing last fall. We had a stretch of games where Weber absolutely killed us. He needed to sit, even if briefly.
The thing you can NOT get around is that the incompetent and blundering maturi and prexy b. DID resign Mason at the end of the 200f5 season. They did NOT have the stinking stadium deal ramrodded through the legislature at that point in time. WITH Mason’s efforts they DID get the stadium deal ramrodded through the legislature. HEN, at the cost of millions and millions of University dollars, they bought Mason out. The incompetent prexy b and maturi could NOT and DID NOT get the stadium deal done without Mason.
No deal done yet = EXTEND Mason for five years. With Mason leading the charge = get stadium deal passed through legislature. Coach 2006 seson = newly 5 year extended Coach Mason. Fire and buy out coach Mason after stadium deal done = waste of millions and millions of dollars by incompetent prexy and ad AFTER Mason got the stadium deal done for them.
Maturi gave Mason a new contract because he had done a good job building the running game and recruiting some good players in the preceeding couple of years.
We went 10-3 in 2003 and had decent seasons in 2004 and 2005. We extended Mason because we wanted him here not because of some fantasy regarding the stadium.
Likewise, we finally terminated Mason because we no longer wanted him. Maturia recognized the recruiting effort had fallen way off and that we were declining rapidly in talent.
So between the day they rehired him for five more years at millions per year, and one exact year later, they decided he could not coach or recruit. I suppose it was his winning three out of his last four games that convinced them?
Cut the BS d-a-c, nobody believes that story for the simple reason that it makes no sense at all. They extended Mason to get the stadium and once they got the stadium he was gone no matter what happened on the field.
Also, why would any coach write off a city or state of 800,000 people that is in their territory? Closer to the U than any other D-1 program. In Brewster’s case, it was because they were the white people of North Dakota. Who’s the racist?
The Loonatic asks,
“Also, why would any coach write off a city or state of 800,000 people that is in their territory? Closer to the U than any other D-1 program. In Brewster’s case, it was because they were the white people of North Dakota. Who’s the racist?”
__________
You are the racist, Loon. You have established that very clearly.
When a good North Dakota kid comes along once every five years or so, we will go after him. We have brought in a few over the years. Most years ND will not produce a Big Ten player so what would be the point of having a coach camp there?
Recruiting is done with limited man hours and limited budget. A good manager must prioritize how he uses precious resources. General Mills does not spend the bulk of its advertising budget in North Dakota for the very same reasons.
And to think, someone as dumb as you was allowed in close proximity to school children? Incredible.
It is time for maturi and prexy b to show us the Big Ten wins. They are 0-8 in big Ten wins with their inexperienced
dinky/dunky/easty/westy coasty cutsey football gm/recruiter brewster. The NEXT Big Ten game will happen at Columbus in the Horseshoe in 2008. Have they explained to their big fantasy recruiting oriented gm/recruiter that he NEEDS to win Big Ten games? Have they told him the new stadium will open in 2009 and they need a LOT of Big Ten wins in the 2008 season to help people with seniority priority seating rights to decide whether to pay premiums for seating starting in 2009 or rather to use their seniority and priority to take the seats that they will not have to pay a premium for?
That throw away season brewster put us through in 2007 makes it just that much harder to handle any more Big Ten losses to start the 2008 season. At Ohio State…at Purdue…at Illinois…How many Big Ten wins can brewster get us from those places to start the Big Ten season?
With this administrative staff and this gm/fantasy recruiter staff entrenched, getting Big Ten wins right from the start of the Big Ten season just might get pretty darn dicey.
It is Big Ten wins that matter. Somebody needs to get that message to prexy b and maturi.
I think prexy b needs to step aside and regain his health. A prexy at the U of M will have a lot of tough choices to make concerning the continued tenure of his ad and that ad’s football program head gm/recruiter’s status…unless there are a LOT of Big Ten wins in 2008.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
For those that don’t like Maturi:
Maturi took over in 2002 and inherited a $31 million deficit. The U now has a balanced budget. Those that feel he’s doing a poor job have not looked at his record.
One more thing: he was instrumental in getting the new stadium approved.
david_allen_coe says:
June 2nd, 2008 at 6:55 am
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
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You have a better attitude than I do about his non-sensical posts. I view it in the same category as water torture.
Scooter … Maturi has done a good job as AD. As you point out, he started deep in the red. He got rid of a failed basketball coach and a football coach that was starting to show lack of interest. Both good moves.
He landed a premiere basketball coach and made a gutsy but necessary decision in football to bring in a guy with a repuation for recruiting. There is no more important nor tougher job at Minnesota than recruiting.
I did not see it at the time, but getting rid of the M&M boys was a good move by Maturi. Sometimes longivity isn’t all it’s cracked up to be….especially if the coaches are diverting energy and resources away from the programs.
The press was short-sighted in their criticism of Maturi. It was a bold, much needed move. Bringing in the polar opposite was also a bold move. I think we’re already starting to see dividends of that investment.
macturi has driven the University of Minnesota football program to the very bottom of the Big Ten standings. The inexperienced, used-car saloesman he brought in as a coach went 0-8 in Big Ten play in 2007 and he will begin Big Ten play in Columbus in 2008. maturi needs to be given MUCH heat for driving the Gopher football program in a wreckless and careless manner right into a brick wall.
The damage he has caused can not be ignored. To be at the very bottom of the big ten with a new stadium being built and set to open in 2009 is tragic. Football is THE driver of all revenue producing sports and the football program MUST be at least competetive. It can NOT be at the bottom of the Big Ten. The football program has reverted to the fire the coach every 3 to 5 year disaster that kept the U of M football program in the wilderness for SO many decades.
macturi is a disgrace…
You fools and peons who preach the company line that “things are better now in the U of M football program…” are such tools of an establishment that only sees the football program as a resource to bring in money to pay for the non-revenue and title IX sports. You don’t even CARE that the football program went 1-11 overall in 2007 and was 0-8 in Big Ten play. You care about fantasy recruiting rankings and blind yourself to the ZERO and EIGHT Big Ten record. You are pleased that the U of M finished DEAD last in the Big Ten.
Persoanlly I hated that experience. I can NOT forgive brewster, macturi or prexy b for pile-driving the football program into the basement of the Big Ten in football. What those three have done in an 18 month time span is SO disgraceful and is such a total failure of an effort. I am mad as hell about what macturi and brewster have accomplished. I expect more. Being last in the Big Ten is a horrible place to be. spin until you puke. It doesn’t change the record. In the end it is ALL about Big Ten wins, graduating ever increasing numbers of football players and running a clean and honest porgram.
Good one ‘couter: ” Joel Maturi the Bold”. I like it. Sort of like, ” George Custer the Bold”.
Goon:
Your rants about the U being in financial trouble because of non-revenue sports, was highly exaggerated.
While you were a lousy History teacher, you would have been an even worse Math teacher.
d_a_c: There is a much tougher thing than recruiting at Minnesota. It is winning big Ten football games. brewster is over his head and is 0-8 in Big Ten play. He will open the big Ten season at the Horseshoe in 2008. Unless he wins that game he will go to 0-9 with a bullit in the chamber. He also has to face Purdue at Purdue and Illinois at Illinois within the first four Big Ten games of the Big ten season. UNLESS he can win a gimme Big Ten game at the dome against one of the other bottom feeders such as NU and Indiana, he could open up 0-4 or 06 in Big Ten play. That would bring his pathetic totals to 0-12 or 0-14 in Big Ten play. He could NEVER recover from such a start. He would be laughed out of the conference. He lets it all ride on his dipsy/dumpsy make the qb runsy/flip a two yard passey offense. Russian roulette with brewster! Do you recall the scenes from THE DEER HUNTER involving Russian Roulette? Not pretty…very messy…totally unpreductive scenes that leave one feeling very depressed and despirited.
\brewster better get on a winning streak in Big ten play and fast. He had better start with a win in Columbus!
“While you were a lousy History teacher, you would have been an even worse Math teacher.”
___________________
And, as a sick and depraved racist, the goon is an even worse citizen.
Wrenbawl … You can bring in Urban Meyer or Pete Carrol for the game at Columbus this year and the Gophers will still likely lose.
Nobody can win without Big Ten talent. Mason left very little because he laid down on recruiting his last three years. It will take a similar amount of time to build back a competitive team. It won’t happen overnight.
But unlike fools such as yourself, intelligent people see that we are on the right track. The first Brewster class was the best Minnesota has attracted in decades. That is a good start.
Rescooter says:
Maturi took over in 2002 and inherited a $31 million deficit. The U now has a balanced budget. Those that feel he’s doing a poor job have not looked at his record.
One more thing: he was instrumental in getting the new stadium approved.
=====================
I agree wholeheartedly!!! Maturi also had to contend with merging the men’s and women’s department … which was no easy feat considering all of the egos involved.
And he spend a helluva a lot more man hours with the state legislatures than Mason ever did. Mason wasn’t even in town when the announcement was made for the funding of the on-campus stadium. (But he did make it for the photo-op with the ceremony shovels!)
Regarding 2007, anybody with an ounce of football knowledge knows you can’t put a defense on the field with only a couple of Big Ten calibre players and win. That is impossible.
Nor can you win with a freshman quarterback unless he is Drew Breeze gifted as a passer.
The key to improvement this year will be new talent on defense and player development of some returners. Several returners are on the verge of being Big Ten players and Vandesteeg is already when not hurt.
Mason got the deal done with Cooper…mactutri most likely wasn’t even granted an appointment with someone as influential in the naming rights deas as Cooper.
macturi has run the football program into the ground during his time on the job.
Taylor wrote:
“…..Mason wasn’t even in town when the announcement was made for the funding of the on-campus stadium.”
—————-
Could he have been out of town pursuing one of his many job possibilities?
First you say …the worst enemy of the Gopher Football Program is the long list of U of M prexy’s and administrators.”
==========================
And then you say … Yudof Rocks!!
He was the best…the VERY best during the pasthalf century. He single handedly raised 2.25 billion to start getting the U of M’s campus back to respectability after countless other prexy’s had let the campus deteriorate. Paul Giel is just another dead All-American. Dinehart went on to much bigger and better things at St. Thomas!
===================
It’s hard for me to keep up with your contradictions. You complain about our BAD administrators … and then you rave about Yudof, Dienhart and Giel.
If I remember correctly … I’m sure Mason was complaining about not getting enough support from Yudof when Yudof was the University’s President.
Rescooter says:
Could he have been out of town pursuing one of his many job possibilities?
========================
I think he was out of town on VACATION!!
thewrenagain says:
Mason got the deal done with Cooper…mactutri most likely wasn’t even granted an appointment with someone as influential in the naming rights deas as Cooper.
========================
Oh, really??? Who was the firt person Cooper called when he needed Rose Bowl tickets???????
d_a_c: then are you predicting that brewster will get a LOT of Big Ten wins? or would one suit you just fine? I have much higher standards than that! I demand at LEAST 3 Big Ten wins in 2008 and should probably be ademanding 5! Personally, brewster has only shown himself to be full of hot air and a non-shower on Game Day Saturdays. People who love Gopher football demand a hell of a lot more than that!
Cooper knew he OWNED the Athletics ddepartment at the U of M after putting up the money for the naming rights. macturi became his peon whipping boy and personal pathetic little ranger. macturi is all about Notre Dame…wisky and then, finally Minnesota all in that order. Look at his resume…
david_allen_coe says:
Maturi gave Mason a new contract because he had done a good job building the running game and recruiting some good players in the preceeding couple of years.
We went 10-3 in 2003 and had decent seasons in 2004 and 2005. We extended Mason because we wanted him here not because of some fantasy regarding the stadium.
Likewise, we finally terminated Mason because we no longer wanted him. Maturia recognized the recruiting effort had fallen way off and that we were declining rapidly in talent.
===================
I agree 100%!!! Mason had a winning record and coming off a bowl victory in 2005. Of course, Maturi had to extend his contract!!!
But unfortunately, Mason did not build a resovoir of goodwill with former “M” men, high school coaches, boosters, media and the students.
I remember at a pre-season Goal Line Club in 2006 … Mason told the audience (with Maturi in attendance) that he was “tired”.
So, I think Maturi did what he felt he had to do. And he’s a big boy … he knows he has to live with the consequences of his decisions.
If Brewster is the right man or not … time will tell. If not, fire him! Just like Giel was able to do in his tenure as A.D. and hire and fire five football coaches. Maturi should be allowed to be treated and respected like the A.D. of Mr. Paul Giel.
Wrenbawlbaby … Who are you to demand a certain number of wins? You are a nobody .. an incidental in the scheme of Gopher football. What you demand is completely removed from the reality of the situation.
Personally, I believe we will improve to perhaps six wins overall this year. That would be a nice step up from the rock-bottom position we were left because of no recruiting by Mason.
But nobody can “demand” a very young team beat Big Ten teams that go two and three deep at every position with quality Big Ten players. That doesn’t mean we won’t work like hell to win and pull some upsets but it is foolish to say it is expected until we have some parity in talent. That will take about three years.
Keep in mind, folks … Mason had little or nothing to do with the stadium. He wanted it just like a couple other million people around the state wanted it.
The Legislature made the decision to build the new stadium. TCF took a calculated risk on the PR benefits of contributing in exchange for naming rights. They didn’t do it for nothing. They did it for business.
None of that is remotely connected to Mason.
thewrenagain says:
Cooper knew he OWNED the Athletics ddepartment at the U of M after putting up the money for the naming rights. macturi became his peon whipping boy and personal pathetic little ranger. macturi is all about Notre Dame…wisky and then, finally Minnesota all in that order. Look at his resume…
==================
“…peon whipping boy and personal pathetic little ranger”
Wren, your repetitive, name-calling rants are so childish and immature. How old are you anyway? You sound like a 12-year old!!!
“I remember at a pre-season Goal Line Club in 2006 … Mason told the audience (with Maturi in attendance) that he was “tired”.”
________________
Yes, and he also announced that after ten years he needed a grace period for “rebuilding”? The funny thing is, it was actually true. By going three years without working hard at recruiting, he did leave himself — incredibly — with a need to rebuild.
But at the pace Mason worked, Maturi knew that would take the next four years. Maturi had no choice but to try something revolutionary — get a recruiter.
And brewster promptly went 1-11 against some of the softest cupcake ooc opponents (FAU, NDSU, BG and Miami of Ohio) and a very EASY Big Ten slate that included Indiana and NU and excluded MSU and PSU). brewster actually went 0-8 in the big Ten after blowing a HUGE 3rd quarter lead at NU. He was totally incompetent on GDS and most days in between. Of course, it was the blind leading the blind because his boss is the pathetic little ranger.
taylor: you are not a stranger to name-calling. And look at this d_a_c creature and his name calliong. And jimbo the name-calling fool! Giel is just another dead All-American. Former Prexy Y rocks though!
d_a_c, you pathetic excuse maker. brewster changed all the schemes and systemd. HE and HE alone was responsible for the 1-11 and 0-8 Big ten record in 2008. He was incredibly pathetic on Game Day saturdays. He didn’t have his players in position and he didn’t even have them in systems that would allow them to win. All the losses go DIRECTLY on brewster’s head. Look at the rocord book d_a_c. The record book RIGHTLY places all responsibility directly on brewster’s head for the 2007 season. And it ALWAYS will. It was the MOST pathetic season of Gopher Football within the past quarter century. And brewster has that stamped on his career resume. His first throw away season. And, he came in talking about TWO throw away seasons…
Can anyone name the year in which the Gopher Athletic Department had less success than it had this year? How many championships did we win this past school year? When Maturi came here we were doing very well in a number of sports. This year? Women’s Indoor Track and Field and what else? Yes, it was a good but not great year for his favorite Minnesota sport, Women’s Rowing.
Let’s face it, Joel is a natural Kilgore Rangerette. Period. He talks a big show and has a very high kick. That’s it.
Wrenbawl … The schedule last year was soft for a Big Ten team with Big Ten talent. The Gophers were a Big Ten team with mid-level MAC talent.
Brewster didn’t throw the picks in the 4th quarter which gave NU two quick scores. But he did go with a freshman quarterback who was bleeding mistakes. Much worse, he called the freshman QB’s number in an all-or-nothing two-point attempt in overtime. Not smart at all.
Every new coach installs his own schemes. If you want the same schemes, the same talent level, and the same results, keep Mason.
I am continually amazed at some of the buffoons posting here with IQs of three-day-old chimps continue to believe that mid MAC-level players can compete in the Big Ten if only the systems were not changed. That is hilarious.
Wren, there will be no end to this for at least three more seasons. The four NC games are so soft even Coach Brewster may win some of them. During the real season the Brewster sucks will go wild with glee if we win two games.
ONE injury will be all they need to go off on their standard “Mason left the cupboard bare” tirade.
By 2009 they will have to face a real schedule and then it will be all about how unlucky poor Brewster has been to face a schedule so much harder than what any other Gopher coach has ever faced (”other” being code for “Mason”).
They are at least three seasons from realizing what a mess we are in. Then, as we both well know, it will be on to the next coach, the next savior.
I would reccommend they actually go to the games and stay until the end if they want a better program, but what do I know compared to the Kilgore Rangerette?
d_a(sp)_c, sorry to leave you alone to battle Looney Toons and the Wren. Mrs. Jimbo and I are vacationing out west (since last Friday.) May not be back until next weekend. I notice that you’re doing quite well against those two buffoons without my help. That doesn’t surprise me.
Keep up the good work.
Go Gophers!
Jumbo … All is well. Neither one of them has the IQ of a week-old monkey. They are so invested in their hatred of Brewster that any semblance of common sense has long evaporated.
Enjoy your time with Mrs. Jumbo and have a great and relaxing trip.
…and just as every coach may install his/her own systems and schemes…EVERY coach assumes TOTAL responsibility of the record of EVERY game that coach coaches.
Now, since 2007 at the University of Minnesota, we have no head coach. We have “a co-head coach…”…maybe. We have two coordinators who the person supposedly in charge want to be the “head guys/gals…” on Game Day Saturdays. What macturi hired here was a person who wants to be a “gm/recruiter dude or dudette, which ever the case may be. So, we have gm/recruiter brewster. Even though he tries to duck the responsibility for the record that is kept of the Game Day Saturday Football Games, his record is 1-11 over all and 0-8 in Big Ten play. There we have it. There is no way to dispute it. IF you cash the check, brewster, YOU and you alone take credit/blame for the losses…each and every stinking loss.
I want Big Ten wins. I think the local sports columnists want Big Ten wins. I think that unless brewster starts getting a lot of Big Ten wins, he is going to be the whipping boy with a target painted on his back, his head and his office door. So, brewster, it is time to start making with the Big Ten wins during the 2008 season. You bombed out compeltely in 2007…
I don’t know where they’re getting the idea, but the PP is reporting that Notre Dame may show an interest in Maturi…?
“speculating” may be a better word than “reporting” here…
Turbo, Shooter Walters wrote that in his article yesterday…Shooter is also NOTORIOUS for throwing things out like that.
Wrenbawl … You are a liar and a fraud. Brewster is the Head Coach. Period. Most schools name one of the assistants as Associate Head Coach. There is nothing unusual there except your frantic lies to make it look unusual.
Show any quote from Brewster where he has disavowed responsibility for his first year as coach. You can’t. You are a liar and a fraud.
yeah it is definitely a strange idea, thanks, I don’t know Walters (or the PP for that matter)
God has answered with justice the rightious calls of the Gopher faithful who have suffered under the incompetence of Maturi!! Praise to the Lord, for we may be delivered!!!
Heck, Taylor may have to get a different lickspittle job now.
d-a-c will get a new person to blame for Brewster screw ups.
Oh, oh…what if the new woman is honest?
Loon … You truly are a functional dunce.
Oh My Goodness!!!!OH<OH<OHHHHH!!!!
This is too good!!! It’s a bloody miracle!!!!
What if… What if …. NOTRE DAME really wants to get BREWSTER?!?!
Oh, I’m going to pass out!!!
They are sick of Charlie Tuna and they want to have him fired and they want a really, really great recruiter of Legionaires!!!!!
Oh my heart!!! Be still my beating heart!! Oh the potential here for us. Two total blow hards gone in one blessed day.!!
I better calm down. I’m getting my hopes too high. It may be only one dud dropped. Heaven forbid, it may not be either. I’m going to throw up.
WHATTTT!!!! Dunbar TOOOO!!! The Lord is tooo kind to me today!!! Quick, hit me with a bucket of water before I blow up from joy!!!
ok genius, assuming that rumor is true, who would you hire? Please come up with someone who would be available. We don’t need another non-sensical rant like your buddy Wren always seems to regurgitate when pressed about what qualified & available coaches were out there once Mason was canned.
Mason is available.
(That was too easy.)
Britney Spears is available.
thewrenagain says:
Former Prexy Y rocks though!
===================
If Prexy Y rocks and Mason was the best coach ever … then contrary to your repetitive rants, Gopher Football has enjoyed success and prosperity!! We have hadsuccessful administrators and football coaches!!
What I think is still funny is how Wren can beg for a clean program and worships Yudof at the same time. Yudof was the prexy when the basketball scandal broke. Now, he’ll tell you that it was the previous prexy’s mess and Yudof just walked into it…but yet he claims Brewster is responsible for 110% of everything from character issues on the roster that he inherited to the lack of talent on the team in 2007 (that he didn’t recruit). While I agree Brewster could have done a few things differently (be positive but not over-the-top), he didn’t walk into a plum college coaching job filled with talent.
JB,
That’s because Wren worships the guy’s who want to use our program as a stepping stone to greener pastures. Unfortunately for his pal Mason, he was only used to round out the list for the LSU & OSU jobs. They never gave any serious consideration to a career 3-5 Big Ten record guy.
Do you really mean a guy with a 10-year record in the Big Ten averaging three wins isn’t really a serious candidate at Ohio State and LSU?
Who would have thought that?
Taylor, I think your fear at having to find a real job once Maturi is gone is getting to you. Compared to Coach Brewster’s 0-8 any of previous football coaches “enjoyed success and prosperity”.
You are mistaking Maturi’s cave in on the Big Ten’s plan “to pay bad Big Ten football programs a ton of money to provide the real football programs with teams they can beat every year” with “real prosperity”. You are confussing the single poorest coaching performance in the history of Gopher football with “real success”.
Please stop. Once your Brewster actually wins a Big Ten football game, then you can tell us how he is nearly as good as Joe Salem.
I forget mnmike, how many Big Ten wins did your hero get when he replaced the 6-7 coach who won three Big Ten wins?
That’s right 1-11 with a Big Ten record of 0-8. Wow, my guess that showed the whole country that every coach either is very average here or can’t win any games. That was a Maturi Classic Move. “I’m show the country what a real coach can do here!”
Sadly, I don’t think even Notre Dame would be that dumb.
Loon, let me ask this again. When has anyone in here said that Brewster is the greatest football coach ever?
Loon, let’s not forget that ND went 3-8 last year and lost to a team they hadn’t lost to in over 40 years. Some would even say that Charlie Weiss has run that program into the ground. Time will tell, just like time will tell if Brewster can turn things around here.
mnmike: who cares about Mason? He didn’t win enough Big Ten games.
Now here is the thing: brewster has won ZERO Big Ten games. He is an inexperienced loser with a big mouth. Unless he wins a heck of a lot of Big Ten games…and SOON, he and the low-life ad who brought him in will be history.
prexy b is old and sick and needs to retire to focus on living out the remainder of his years as best he can. He helped bring in this brewster character and he will be long forgotter IF the U ever finds another prexy of prexy y’s cut and style. By the way: prexy y is on to bigger and better things. He did more in the few years he was at Minnesota than all the prexy b’s and other prexys who have been here will ever do in their combined lifetimes.
Bash Mason all you wish. brewster is gthe worst gm/recruiter the Gophers have ever had..oither than the cheating hoax.
jim bean you low-grade alcoholic beverage: All the damn, damn damage was done underthe crook haskins was done under the dude who was prexy here before prexy y…prexy h. What kind of fool are you? Prexy y helped did the dirt up on the criminal haskins and then dealt with the NCAA and helped keep Men’s basketball barely alive…but still a member of the Big Ten conference when all the trash of the past decade on haskins was revealed.
Get your facts straight you bourbon headed low-brow wisky fan.
Wren - you drink the kool-aid when it is convenient for you and rip others when it isn’t…must be amazing to live in your fantasy world. It wasn’t Brewster’s fault Mason’s recruiting nose-dived at the end of his tenure or that attrition took a big bite out of an already mediocre talent pool and depth chart. Yet you put 110% of the blame on Brewster because HE is the head coach and everything is HIS responsibility (Brew has yet to prove anything to me but I’m smart enough to realize he has a very different vision of what this football program could become than Mason did and I applaud him for leaving no stone unturned looking for athletes to make it happen - unlike Mason). Prexy Y was good at damage control (exactly what the U of M needed during the basketball scandal) but don’t expect him to be eligible for sainthood anytime soon. The scandal broke under HIS watch and he is the leader of the university, so it was HIS responsibility as well…if we apply the same rules and logic you apply to the head football coach. And please, your childish name calling and drivel are unnecessary. Be an adult.
kYou are full of b.s beam. haskins had been doing criminal theing (according to NCAA rules under prexy h.)
brewster was going to change everything when he came in so the takent levels had NOTHING to do with anything. brewster “brewsters up” by changing to the kinds of schemes and systems he did. brwewster is 120% to blame for what HE decided to do. He made the call…HE takes the heat. It is HIS record forever.
Tell d_a_c and jimbo and these other name calling posters to be adult beam. Don’t try to lecture me about anything… You apologists for brewster are bad news.
He is the head coach and has every right to change the schemes. And if you are trying to recruit athletes to play in said system you show them that system on the field so it is tangible to them. Hell, even if Brewster had kept Mason’s schemes there wasn’t any RB depth to make it successful because the roster was shot. Did last year’s seniors deserve better? I think so - but I also think most of them were a stretch to even own a Big Ten scholarship…not Brewster’s fault. I also don’t care if Brewster was #1 or #100 in these recruiting service rankings, but I do know that he is getting kids to commit to MN with offers from big time programs, which tells me there are a lot of football minds who feel many of these kids are good enough to play in their programs. Now he needs to show he can put the upgrade in talent in the correct position to make plays. You are simply a Mason apologist still angry 15 months later. I’m willing to take the wait and see approach because, although we were 1-11 last year, it is not like the immediate years prior we were on the edge of greatness. With Mason’s schemes, and hell, with Mason still coaching, we would have maybe won 4 games last year, b/c there was little talent and depth. Our O and D lines were outplayed regardless of scheme. That is my opinion and you have yours - we’re all entitled to one, but mine is better 
Have to agree with JB, remember that after recruiting season ended Sports Illustrated named MN its “most surprising” program for getting so many kids with offers from big-time football schools to sign here, I’d say that’s both an impartial and a reliable source.
And all the experts picked MN to finish 0-8 in the Big Ten after Mason’s departure and the graduation of Cupito, Spaeth, Payne, et. al…long before scheme changes and RB injuries.
Why would an AD fire a “sub mediocre” coach who can only win FIVE Big Ten games and replace him with one that can win ZERO Big Ten wins? Oh, because he (Maturi) knew he would lose all his Big Ten games his first couple of years and the fans would be dumb enough to buy tickets to see it?
Well, ha, ha, ha. The fans really fooled Maturi and did not bother to stay for the second half of most of the games. That fooled the Kilgore Rangerette. (see rangerettes.com, class of 67, only male on the team)
Now when you say Mason did not win five games every year, I will just point out the obvious: Brewster has yet to win one game in any year. With his fans predicting we may or may not win two Big Ten games this year, I can hadly hold my breath to see how this season actually turns out.
But, there is some good news, the new “greatest D co ordinator” of all time may be a better coach than any of the goofs of last year.
Notre Dame is NOT going to be hiring Joel Maturi. They would have to get the permission of the AD at Wisconsin to even talk to him. Fat chance (pun intended).
Oh hell, I’d say you’re jim beam “on the rocks…” brewster had every right to change the schemes and sytstems and that also means that he is totally and completely responsible for the record that he achieved.
Heck, Mason got fired for not winning enought Big Ten games. “Don’t cry for me Argentina…” I could care less about Maosn. macturi and prexy b were so stupid, they sent him off with extra millions and millions of dollars. How stupid and ineffective can prexy b and macturi be? What the hell did Mason have on them? It must be something pretty darn good!
But, brewster is just such an incompetent loud=-mouthed used-car-salesman type of hhypster I could NEVER take him seriously…even if he could EVER manage to win between 3 and 5 Big Ten games a season…I don’t think the dude has a chance of EVER reaching those lofty goals that were good enough…or…should I say bad enough to get Mason fired…but laughing all the way to the bank because he obviously had a LOT on macturi and prexy b. Just look at all the buy out and go away quietly money they paid him. prexy b. had to even loan macturi millions from the General Fund of the University to get that pay-off and buy-out done. How bad off can a prexy and his pathetic notre dame graduate, wisky ties ad be??????? Where is the smoking gur? What did the 8 x 10 glossy photos show about macturi and prexy b? What was the cover up?????
All of the 2007 losses belong to macturi…prexy b AND brewster. brewster failed to show up for so many of those games. He very seldom had the players ready to go in the first quarter. How pathetic could a first-year guy be???? Obviously VERY pathetic based upon the 2007 scores and results. brewster looks like a big time loser based upon his record.
Wren our darling, dainty, dumbfounded fans are totally grateful our team showed up so unprepared that we often fell out of the game in the first quarter. Under Mason, we might have shown up so prepared that we would have had a lead. Heaven protect us from those sort of situations. With a lead, we might have lost a lead. Not good.
Yes, by the fourth quarter we even started to get back into some of those games once the players had learned to ignore the bad game plans. But, by then, most of our dainty fans were off to Dinky Town.
Thus our Brewster fans saw our lack of preparation as an asset, not a vice.
Wren, you also hit the nail right on the head regarding the Mason buy out. Macturi and Prexy paid millions for Mason to go quietly. Silently. The classic three monkies seeing, hearing and saying NOTHING about why that money was so needed. We will get the same sort of deal with Brewster at the end of 2010.
SF racist garbage. Both of you.
So dac, does that mean we are getting too close to spilling the beans on the buyout? Your dirty secret is safe with us.
Racist garbage.
Loon,
Your right. Mase was great at preparing our troops. He also was the greatest coach in second half adjustments!
Loon and Wren,
I agree with you guys TOTALLY! Brewster needs to start winning football games. Everyone agrees with you guys on that point.
No one is saying Brewster is the greatest. Just give Brewster two more years to see what he can do. After all Brewster inherited a team that was predicted to finish dead last in the Big Ten.
Speaking of Haskins and the academic scandal and NCAA penalties he brought to the U of M … who was the A.D. in charge during his tenure???
Wasn’t the the Great YUDOF?? And didn’t Yudof pay Haskins millions to terminate his contract??? And lawyers had to get involved (after Yudof left) to get some of the money back.
So, if it is okay for the Great Yudof who Rocks to pay millions in a buyout … and Nebraska can do it for their coach (Callahan) and A.D., … it is not okay for Maturi to pay Mason his contract/buy-out clause.
I love your logic, Wren!!??!!
We all know that Loon and Wren are biased in their opinions. They will always be a Masonite at heart. You love Mase, but hate Maturi and Brewster.
Obviously, I’m about as unbiased as it comes, when writting about our football coaches!
G4, remember though that it is all about Big Ten wins and that the Gophs went 1-11 last season.
wrenagain says …” macturi and prexy b were so stupid, they sent him off with extra millions and millions of dollars. How stupid and ineffective can prexy b and macturi be? What the hell did Mason have on them? It must be something pretty darn good!
=========================
What did Haskins have on Yudof?????? Wren and Loon have high ethical standards, yet claim Yudof “Rocks” when he paid $MILLIONS$ to a cheating, lying Basketball Coach!!!!
Talk about fiscal responsibility and poor judgement??? I’m glad my tax dolalrs went into Haskins pocket so he could enjoy his farm in Kentucky!!!
Mason should be grateful and kiss Maturi’s azz for his million dollar buyout package.
So Taylor, you think Maturi handled the Gary Russell thing well?
I don’t know any of the details of the Gary Russell thing. Please inform me.
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So Loon, do you think Yudof handled the Clem Haskins thing well???????????
Looney Toons,
Brewster is my hero? No, he’s our current coach that I still support. One year does and will not make his coaching career. Should our record not improve over the next 2-3 years, then I’ll be calling for his head. I definately feel that Brewster’s worth the risk though. Sure, we could’ve kept Mason and hit a 5-3 record once every five years and signed the vast cornocopia of talent in the fertile recruiting ground that is North Dakota.
We were 1-11 & 0-8 in the Big Ten last year? So that’s what Wren was babbling about.
The Loon says:
So dac, does that mean we are getting too close to spilling the beans on the buyout? Your dirty secret is safe with us.
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Loon, please spill the beans! I’d luv to hear your dirty little secrets. (It would be a lot more interesting that Wren’s juvenile, monotonous drivel.
–Wren our darling, dainty, dumbfounded fans are totally grateful our team showed up so unprepared that we often fell out of the game in the first quarter. Under Mason, we might have shown up so prepared that we would have had a lead. Heaven protect us from those sort of situations. With a lead, we might have lost a lead. Not good.–
Unfortunately your pal Mason never prepared or was aware that football’s played with 4 quarters. We would’ve built a statue for the guy if the game only had 3 quarters.
Exactly, you guys would rather lose before the game starts than face the chance of losing late. I would rather have a chance to win even if we lose in the end.
In the end, the big programs will have the depth and player choices to figure it all out as the games progress. That is why they are top programs, they have it all.
But, you guys won that fight. We are back into an era of five year coaches, a new savior every few years. Girl’s football with an endless supply of hopeful recruits revolving through the airport every few months.
The biggest proplem we have is not in the coaches, it is in the lack of grit we have in our fans. When, if, I live to see the day when we have 20,000 fans giving our actual players a standing ovation as they leave the field after a loss, I will know we have finally grown up. Sadly, last year was the exact opposite.
Wren and Loon, please stop all this negative stuff now! You are not helping the program. I have said it once and I’ll say it again, the Train is moving forward, hop on or get left behind!! Go GOphers!!!
Goon barfs:
“….When, if, I live to see the day when we have 20,000 fans giving our actual players a standing ovation as they leave the field after a loss, I will know we have finally grown up.”
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So if we take your example of how a true fan should behave, we should do the following:
1) Stay the entire game and criticize the players, coaches, and administration the entire time.
2) Give the players a standing ovation all the while bashing them on message boards and in public.
3) We are critical and hope that the recruited players make a mistake so we can be proven right.
4) We bash opportunities for all students because they are involved in “non-revenue sports”. Even though the reason for a higher education is to be involved in real world experiences.
Goon you are a hypocrit
Loon says …The biggest proplem we have is not in the coaches, it is in the lack of grit we have in our fans.
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You are right … we don’t have the rabid fans. But that doesn’t stop the Twins from winning baseball games and putting together a competitive team. I have a lot of respect for Ron Gardenhire and the Twins organization.
Instead of complaining that they don’t have the resources of the Yankees or Boston … they plug away (in the face of retraction and regardless of the lack of fans).
Another example is Tampa Bay in First place with no fans to speak of at all. And they’re located in a state with 20 Million people!!!
“an era of five year coaches” Funny since Mason was here for ten years. My public education math could be wrong, but isn’t ten more than five?
When have I criticized the players? Which players? You must be thinking of dac. I’m the one that thought and said the coaches made a total mess of using the players they had last year. A record breaking mess.
We are now into the five year cycle of coaches because the fans have now bought into the idea that college programs are all about the head coach, I have not.
Please taylor, what does bringing up the Twins have to do with the Gophers AT ALL? If we had their draft system and free agency we would have been to the Rose Bowl three or four times over the past forty years. Our problem has been exactly that we can not force players to play here or stay. Unless we cheat.
I will assume that is not the real Big Al. He knows that I had zero imput into pushing any coach out the door, unlike what the Goal Line Clubs types have had and do have. This train is his train, not my train and I can niether move the train nor stop the train. I am sick to the point of puking over the Big Men saying that I have to be loyal to THEIR thinking while THEY are free to support or NOT support whomever and whatever they bloody well want to do. Big Al is a great fan of Gopher football but he KNOWS exactly why I am angry about this program. Exactly.
Loon, I don’t know who you are talking about “buying into the idea that college programs are all about the head coach.”
The coaches themselves may think that way but the majority of fans are smart enough to know otherwise.
Some famous quotes …
“When did I criticize the players”? A Loonatic.
“Black players are criminals and will ruin the community.” A Loonatic.
“Speed equals black and black equals high risk players.” A Loonatic.
“Brewster is bringing in the foreign legion to play for us.” A Loonatic.
“Our players from the south are thugs.” A Loonatic.
“Only white players from Minnesota and North Dakota should be on the team.” A Loonatic.
“Every player not white and not from Minnesota or North Dakota is being paid.” A Loonatic.
“If you don’t like those lies, I’ve got plenty more.” A Loonatic.
Why don’t we start today and hope for a good yr in 2008 instead of all this crap for the last 30 yrs., thats water over the dam. Big Al is right, jump on or shut up! Maybe it would be better if you tried to jump off, then we could run over you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hey did everyone hear that the Gophs went 1-11 last season with no Big Ten wins? Might as well shut the program down.
Dac you are a liar. Flat out. As you know very well, you should only put quote marks around things I have said or written. I have not said one of the things you wrote above. You have now clearly shown for everyone to see that you are a dishonest person. Is it that you do not understand quote marks? Or are you so driven by your needs that you can not control your emotions?
Seriously dac, don’t you know that a liar is a liar and you have now shown that you are a liar?
little big boy,
If I do not agree with the silly direction the program is going, why should I shut up? Sorry, I won’t. I don’t agree and will say so.
Let me add that I say nothing last year which even might have caused me to change my mind about the Maturi/Brewster mess.
Did all the hype improve attendance? It did not.
Did the hype improve the loyalty of those fans who did attend the games? No it did not. It was stunning how fans left the games earlier and earlier. Indeed, I can never recall such a shallow show of support.
Did the new coaches show the ability to get the best out of the players they had? No, not at all. Players like Davis seemed clearly less effective than they had been in previous seasons.
Did the new coaches show flexibility? No, no matter how many times we blized and that did not work, it was not until the Badger game that we showed the ability to back off a tactic that was clearly counter productive.
Did the fish fry approach work as advertised? No, we did not land a single Minnesota player who’s coach was bribed or fed.
Sorry littlebigboy, I am going to call them the way I see them because I know the moment you want to stop supporting Brewster you will start the booing again. I have seen nothing to support since the day one hype began.
Yes, Gopher 1, we were exactly 1-11 last year. That is the reality we face. You can ignore it all you want. My philosophy has been long known around gopher football. “Every legal win helps, every legal loss hurts.” The notion that we can lose ourselves to the Rose Bowl is stupid.
Nonetheless, watch how the Brewster fans try to spin the losses that are coming this year, in spite of the easiest schedule I can recall. 5-7 will not help our program in the slightest with that schedule and the schedule coming up in 2009.
Here you go Taylor. Next time you see Joel Maturi, ask him this question: Does he know of any former Gopher players who were paid by our coaches? Any coach, any employee of a coach?
Report back here what he says to you, I will then answer your question to me.
I know you don’t know anything or are lying, what I want to from you is for you to come to understand that Maturi will lie to anyone.
Now would you like to continue this line? If so, speak to Maturi first.
d_a_c and jimbo and a few others are huge liars. Of course, d_a_c and jimbo and a few others are also the same person. Huge liars though. They love to make up false quotes to attempt to attribute to anyone that any of the monikers used disagree with.
Of course, every time d_a_c and jimbo and a few others type any kind of response they are totally transparent.
The gh/gi/booster club trickster person…has to rely on dirty tricks and lies.
Loon says …”Please taylor, what does bringing up the Twins have to do with the Gophers AT ALL? If we had their draft system and free agency we would have been to the Rose Bowl three or four times over the past forty years.”
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I brought up the Twins to compare the FAN BASE (see your quote below). And that you can still WIN in spite of a tepid fan base!!!!
(”The biggest proplem we have is not in the coaches, it is in the lack of grit we have in our fans.”)
The Twins still have to pay their drafted players and free agents … and they don’t have the Big Budget of the Yankees and Red Sox. It’s not unlike the football budgets of Minnesota versus Michigan and Ohio State.
And instead of WHINING about we DON’T have, Gardenhire fines a way to Win. That is what I admire.
The Loon says:
Here you go Taylor. Next time you see Joel Maturi, ask him this question: Does he know of any former Gopher players who were paid by our coaches? Any coach, any employee of a coach?
Report back here what he says to you, I will then answer your question to me.
I know you don’t know anything or are lying, what I want to from you is for you to come to understand that Maturi will lie to anyone.
Now would you like to continue this line? If so, speak to Maturi first.
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I am not going to dignify your silly posts by asking Maturi anything. I don’t know him personally.
Why don’t you man-up and say exactly what you mean. I’m not going to play you silly little game.
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Loon … “Now would you like to continue this line? If so, speak to Mason, Yudof, Haskins, and Dienhart first.
Who is more childish??? Loon or Wren???
Loon, you might not like the way the pgm is going after 1 yr, but there is nothing you can do, no matter how much you piss and moan, for at least another yr. or two. So groan all you want if it makes you feel better,but know nothing will change for awhile.
I have said that many times. My best hope is that Maturi is not renewed in 2009 (come on Notre Dame), Dunbar will be dumped in 2009 and Brewster will have to be renewed or bought out in 2010. That is the best scenario possible, all others are even worse disasters.
We don’t have a probem here, you guys have totally destroyed what progress was made over the previous 10 years. With the new stadium coming on, it is such a shame we have just the wrong coach, with just the wrong system, with just the wrong stategy at just the wrong time.
You are 100% correct, we are in a huge, long term, mess. Next step could easily be the death penalty from the NCAA for “lack of institutional control, second offense.”
Taylor,
It seems you know no one and know nothing. For a person with a lot of opinions, what do you base those opinions on?
If you think the big fuss over Gary Russell was about a laptop computer that was loaned to him, I have got a bridge I want to sell to you.
I ask you again Taylor, do you want to continue this conversation?
Taylor, we are not at all like the Twins because we do not have the player draft, free agency or any ability to claim players dropped from other teams. NCAA football is all about the same teams winning nine years out of ten unless you cheat or get lucky.
We need excellent, gritty fans who can support us inspite of the very uneven playing field and stick with the program through thick and thin until we can build ourselves out of the “have not” catagory. Instead we are trying this “recruit like Zook” stategy which has never worked here.
In any case, joe Mauer would NEVER have played for the Gophers.
The Loon says:
June 3rd, 2008 at 7:21 pm
We need excellent, gritty fans who can support us inspite of the very uneven playing field and stick with the program through thick and thin until we can build ourselves out of the “have not” catagory. Instead we are trying this “recruit like Zook” stategy which has never worked here.
In any case, joe Mauer would NEVER have played for the Gophers.
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When have we ever had a “recruit like Zook” strategy here? I don’t remember ever having a Top 25 class in the pass decade or two? Plus the gritty fans that you are talking about are dying by the day (fans from the 60’s and before) the only we could replenish those is to go to the Rose Bowl. But I wonder what the Zook strategy do to Illinois recently…?????? Oh yeah…they went to the Rose Bowl.
They now rank fifth and sixth grade basketball players. Can the fantasy ranking if five and six year olds be too fra behind. We will know we have arrived on the fantasy football recruiting scene when we can sign a class of five star three year olds! The Rival’s subscriptions to gi will skyrocket! gophersports dot come will turn a huge profit!
That’s where the future of college football lies: fantasy fooball recruiting rankings!
Ok d_a_c….errrrr…I mean taylor: so we don’t need a good fan base…you say brewster will win any way? Or, you think brewster will lose any way? Or, maybe none of it matters. Jus trash every former coach, administrator. They were ALL horrible, idiotic, fools who could do nothing right.
I’ll give you that taylor. But, do you know what? maturi, the pathetic little ranger, prexy b, the over the hill prexy who needs to resign for health reasons because of his advanced age and general incompetence and this brewster used car dude are far worse than ANY previous coaches, ad’s and prexys. This current batch is the worst of the worst. The poorest of the poor. Tbhe most incompetent of the incompetent. They will have this program begging for mercy in oh, so many ways. 0-8 in the big Ten. 1-11 overall. It just never gets any worse than that…it is a tribute to macturi, brewster and prexy b.
“And if you don’t like those lies, I’ve got plenty more.” A Loonatic racist.
The person who wrote on this Blog probably was Big Al. He is the only one of the Masonites who has some sense. He was not happy with Mase getting fired but he didn’t wine about it like the rest. He realized that would not change anything.
“The Masonites greatest claim to fame was their undying support for ALL Gopher football coaches.” When nobody in the world supports the coach, the Masonites do. When Mase left, that claim to fame went out the window. Big Al was the only Masonite whose actions spoke louder then his words.
0-8 in Big Ten play speaks MUCH louder than ANYBODY’S words. 0-8 in the Big Ten says it all. Hype is hype. Big Ten wins are Big Ten wins. Big Ten losses speak MUCH louder than any loud-mouth ciould ever speak.
Big Ten wins are the ONLY thing that will save brewster’s coaching soul. Nothing goldohfour…Big Al or anyone else can say can drown out the loudness of 0-8 in Big Ten play. That says it all.
Wrenagain says …”Jus trash every former coach, administrator. They were ALL horrible, idiotic, fools who could do nothing right.I’ll give you that taylor. This current batch is the worst of the worst. The poorest of the poor. Tbhe most incompetent of the incompetent.
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It’s obvious that you have been unhappy with Gopher Football for a long time, Wren. Maybe you should find another team to support. I’m sure Mason (and I mean this sincerely) will find another team to coach in the near future.
Or maybe you could follow Yudof at Texas and Dienhart at St. Thomas? Your hatred for everything at the University of Minnesota is nauseating!!!
The Loon says:
Taylor, It seems you know no one and know nothing. For a person with a lot of opinions, w