Gophers enduring growing pains in Year 1 under P.J. Fleck

Jeff Potrykus
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
First-year Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck has urged Gophers fans to be patience with the rebuilding process.

MADISON – Year 1 for P.J. Fleck at Minnesota has been akin to rebooting a computer.

The Gophers, who finished 5-4 in the Big Ten and 9-4 overall last season under Tracy Claeys, are starting over.

Minnesota (5-6, 2-6 Big Ten) enters its regular-season finale against visiting Wisconsin (11-0, 8-0) still striving to find consistency on offense and defense, as well as a victory over a high-quality Big Ten foe. 

The Gophers’ two league victories this season came against Illinois (2-9, 0-8) and Nebraska (4-7, 3-5).

Illinois has been outscored by 160 points and Nebraska has lost five of its last six games. 

MINNESOTA AT A GLANCEResults | Roster | Stats | Potrykus' scouting report

The Gophers are tied for 95th nationally in points scored (21.4 per game) and 120th nationally in passing offense (133.9 ypg).

Last season, they outscored teams by a combined 206-102 in the first half of games, which allowed them to rely on their running game in the second half.

This season, the Gophers have been outscored by a combined 137-128 in the first half, and when they’ve had to rely on their passing game the results have been ugly.

“We have a very young and inexperienced football team,” Fleck said after his team’s 39-0 loss to Northwestern, which built a 25-0 halftime lead. “We’ve got to be better in the weight room. We’ve got to develop our players. 

“We’ve got to be in our scheme longer. We’ve got to be able to recruit at an incredibly high level and that’s on the way.”

Fleck took Western Michigan from 1-11 in his first season in 2013 to 13-1 last season, with the lone loss to UW in the Cotton Bowl. He cautioned anyone willing to listen at the Big Ten meetings that fans would need patience.

“I can’t control the patience level of how people look at it,” said Fleck, who went 30-22 overall at Western Michigan. “I’ve laid out our entire plan.

“I said: ‘If you think this is going to be a quick deal when you haven’t won a championship in 50 years. …’

“I’ve just told people we’re going to continue to do what we do. ... We’re going to recruit our tails off. We’re going to develop our student-athletes, on the field and off the field. 

“When you haven’t won a championship in 50 years, that can take a toll on a program. That can take a toll on a fan base. That can take a toll on how you believe."

The Gophers are 1-3 in league games decided by seven points or fewer.

Maryland scored twice in the fourth quarter for a 31-24 victory in Minneapolis. Ty Johnson scored the game-winner, a 34-yard run, with 1 minute 10 seconds left. 

Michigan State built a 17-point lead through three quarters and held on for a  30-27 victory in Minneapolis.

Iowa pitched a shutout for three quarters and prevailed, 17-10, in Iowa City.

Then one week after rushing for 409 yards and six touchdowns in a 54-21 victory over Nebraska, the Gophers had their worst performance of the season at Northwestern. 

They turned the ball over five times and Northwestern turned four of those mistakes into touchdowns.

The lengths of the scoring drives after the turnovers were 36, 15, 27 and 24 yards. 

“The magnitude of the score was five turnovers,” Fleck said. “When you turn the ball over, when you turn it over inside your own red zone as many times as we did, that team is going to score every time. 

“We gave it to them, and they took advantage of every opportunity we gave them. We moved the ball pretty well at times, but then we’d give the ball back to them.”

Because Fleck and his assistants are new to the UW-Minnesota rivalry, they haven’t felt the sting of 13 consecutive losses to the Badgers.

Minnesota’s older players have, however. They understand the Gophers last held Paul Bunyan’s Axe in 2003. 

“I just think they’re going to be playing their best,” UW left tackle Michael Deiter said. “They’re going to give us their best and we need to be able to play our best.

“Because if not, we’ll fall.”