Jerry Kill Will Be Minnesota's Next Coach
by PJS on Dec 5, 2010 6:25 PM CST
Email
PrintRivals is reporting confirmation that Northern Illinois' Jerry Kill will be the next coach of the Golden Gophers. Joe Schad of ESPN is reporting the same on his Twitter feed. And the STrib is confirming as well. It's real.
Use the thread below to say nice things about Joel Maturi and his coaching search.
Here's some Jerry Kill Wikipedia fun. He's already listed as the Minnesota head coach.
And here's a poll!
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I was pretty sure that the poll results would skew towards fail and fire Maturi.
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
by PJS on Dec 5, 2010 6:31 PM CST up reply actions
Shrug is now an option! I still be fail wins.
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
by PJS on Dec 5, 2010 6:32 PM CST up reply actions
Really
A guy who failed to produce a winner with top 5 recruiting classes in a weak ACC and has no Big 10, midwest thing about him. Good call. lmao
He made Miami respectable off the field
Sure he’s probably not the greatest coach in the country, but I have a lot of respect for him
Save BSD
Well...I'll give Kill a chance
But damn what a complete Buzzkill, (no pun intended). Just wow…It’s like..Maturi just used Kill as a fall back option after all the big names told him to basically screw off
No kidding. I thought PR guru Dave Mona was part of this search ...
He should have known that by having bigger names getting floated (Petersen, Mullen, Edsall, Shannon) the fanbase would be let down if the hire came from the MAC.
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
by PJS on Dec 5, 2010 6:34 PM CST up reply actions
For helpful consumption: Kill’s records at Directional Illinois.
2001 Southern Illinois 1–10
2002 Southern Illinois 4–8
2003 Southern Illinois 10–2
2004 Southern Illinois 10–2
2005 Southern Illinois 9–4
2006 Southern Illinois 9–4
2007 Southern Illinois 12–2
2008 Northern Illinois 6–7
2009 Northern Illinois 7–6
2010 Northern Illinois 10–3
I maintain my shrug. I’d like to see some indication of success at a higher level, but Kill did everything you could ask for and/or expect at this lower level of competition.
Sounds like Kill is a good recruiter and good football coach..the Success speaks for itsself
But the same thing was also said about Brad Childress…how did that go…
I'm giving Kill a chance ...
but talking about his recruiting in the MAC when he’ll now be in the BIg Ten, recruiting against OSU, PSU, Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska …. well, it’s a different ball game.
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
by PJS on Dec 5, 2010 6:40 PM CST up reply actions
I don't think he was hired for his recruiting prowess
I think he was hired as having the skill to turn programs around and doing more with less.
From Doogie
Darren Wolfson
Tweets to me about Kill: three like… 50+ can’t stand it… already hearing from former players/boosters who are in a state of shock.
2 minutes ago
Ruh Roh
Sure, but Florida fans were also apoplectic about hiring Urban Meyer. I bet there were a lot of pissed-off Buckeyes when they took some clown from Youngstown State instead of a proven-ish Big Ten coach. Initial fan reactions tend towards hyperbolic and chicken-little.
I feel better about it now than I did thirty minutes ago, certainly.
Meyer and Tressel are exceptions though
Meyer had at least led Utah to a BCS victory, and Tressel won championships with OSU.
Save BSD
But we’re not Florida or tOSU. I’m not calling him a slam-dunk, but this deserves about a thousandth the freakout that the Brewster hire did. Quite successful lower-division coach with a history of building programs from the ground up? Sure, I’ll try that.
I'm not saying it's a bad thing
It’s just a little disappointing after you hear some of the other guys that were rumored ya know?
Save BSD
Count yourself among the folks who legitimately thought we had a chance at a big name.
Are fans who thought we were going to get a big name coach gullible or just stupid?
We are Minnesota. To get a guy who has turned around two bad programs, has 17 years of HC experience, was a DC and an OC in his assistant days and has kept the majority of his coaching staff and system consistent together for over 10 years is a coup!
I’ve been trumpeting Jerry Kill for over a month, and while I would have obviously preferred other guys, I can’t believe folks aren’t more realistic about who we are and how great of a fit Kill is.
This dude can coach, has a system and will stick with it, and has a proven track record of developing players. He’s a football coach who knows how to be in charge and knows how to delegate to his long-tenured and trusted assistants.
by foobee on Dec 5, 2010 8:23 PM CST up reply actions 1 recs
Oh, and one more little detail...
… all he’s done in his HC career is win and turn around bad programs.
I have no problem with Kill
Does it piss me off that Maturi has no ability to set expectations and just not say anything that he doesn’t have to that would give the fanbase differing expectations than what the likely outcome is? Sure. I think he is a horrible AD who lucked into Tubby and would have never picked Kill if there wasn’t a lot of oversight on this search.
No one is getting Rubio's rights unless they pry them from our cold dead fingers.
by TheEvilProfessor on Dec 5, 2010 9:46 PM CST up reply actions
Hey this is really the first year I've paid attention to the Gophers
I started grad school here over the summer, and did my undergrad at PSU. I’m not trying to pretend like I know a ton about how this program should be run, or know a ton about the history of how you’ve hired coaches. I was simply stating my initial reaction. When you hear some bigger names rumored to be interested, it’s just a little bit of a let down when you don’t get one of those guys. I really hope that Kill has the same success with the Gophers that he’s had with the NIU and Southern Illinois.
Save BSD
good point
when viewed next to Brewster…
I'm feverished, or the way you want to spell it
by plinytheelder on Dec 5, 2010 7:18 PM CST up reply actions
I think he got hired to replace Goldy.
by StegerWithSwagg on Dec 5, 2010 6:43 PM CST up reply actions
haha!
he does kind of look like a gopher! Also, what is he wearing, a suit jacket with some weird zip-up sweater underneath, dang he should be fired immediately just for that
I'm feverished, or the way you want to spell it
by plinytheelder on Dec 5, 2010 7:20 PM CST up reply actions
Oh man,
maybe I will feel better if I type something. Struggling mightily to find something to say, but what??? Probably the most anti-climactic hire in recent memory. As always, regardless of the coach, I will stay a U of M supporter but geez, I can’t help but feel letdown. Time will tell and maybe this will look like genius someday.
Let down?
How? Because Petersen’s name popped up yesterday? Because Leach came out and said he really wanted to coach at the U…..of Minnesota….then Miami….then wherever, just wanted to coach?
I guess a few weeks ago I joined foobee asking, “why the hell aren’t we talking about Jerry Kill”. I read about him in an article having nothing to do with the Gophers. I said, “this is our guy, this is the guy who has done all the things the Gophers wanted to hire…head coaching, turned around crappy programs, kept his staff in tact, done well recruiting and running a clean program”. Oh, and he did it all in the middle of a piece of shit cornfield that is NIU (apologies to my wife, an alum there).
So a few weeks pass, and finally a few days ago it pops up that Kill is a “dark horse” candidate. I was happy, thinking we may actually make an intelligent move. But 24 hours ago Petersen/Peterson spell it however you want, everybody wants him but nobody knows how to spell his name…pops up and from there, any hire we made today who wasn’t Leach or Petersen was a fail.
Now I hear players talking shit on Facebook? To them I ask this, “you don’t want a coach who used 3/5 the talent you had to beat your ass at your own stadium to take over and coach that higher caliber of talent?”.
People are generally overreactive and under-educated. This is a classic case of that. Alumni are furious over this, boosters are angry, people are not renewing season tickets? What? Or better yet, WTF? Hiring Jerry Kill is reason not to renew your cheap-ass season tickets? Are you serious? Not you as in Tejas…but “you” as in the general horse-shit reaction we’ve gotten to this hire.
All in all, people were going to bitch about anybody other than Petersen/Leach. I just hope it passes in a few weeks/months so we can start realizing we just got the guy we said we always wanted…from a smaller conference, proven success, builds programs, develops players, understands X’s and O’s, and can do a decent job of recruiting…..that’s what we just got.
Most people seem unhappy
…but then again, most people are uneducated.
That is not directed towards people here, but rather on twitter and other message boards who just react based on his name and Northern Illinois.
I know not everyone here will like him either, but who else was really an option? Leach was out of the question because of conduct (2006 Insight Bowl) unbecoming of a head coach. And yes, that stuff does matter.
Other than that it was Randy Shannon, who was a bit underwhelming at Miami, Edsall would have been decent but gotten a lot of the same complaints. Brady Hoke was probably in a similar tier as these other guys. I’m not really sure who people expected. This is not exactly a job that people are competing over.
I think we got the skills we wanted in a head coach when you look at the resume. He has head coaching experience. He has turned around a few other programs. He has managed his staff well. What else do you want? Be realistic.
by rencito on Dec 5, 2010 7:05 PM CST reply actions 2 recs
I love his name!
Loved these ideas from a poster at GH.
* Student section now has a name-Jerry’s Kids
* Springer like chants of “Jer-ry! Jer-ry! Jer-ry!”
* Offer cheese puff snack in concession – Jerry Curls
* Winning streak now referred to as ’Kill’ing spree
* Shots of Newman on the scoreboard while grimmacing “Jerry!” after each Gopher score
* Seats behind Gophers bench is now the “Kill Zone”
* Road loss – Road Kill (oops, already covered in another thread and not a positive one)
* Old timer fans are now Jerry-Atrics
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
by PJS on Dec 5, 2010 7:10 PM CST up reply actions
hehe agree
I'm feverished, or the way you want to spell it
by plinytheelder on Dec 5, 2010 7:22 PM CST up reply actions
I hope
Kill does good things here and the student section is permanently “Jerry’s Kids.” Awesome.
St. Cloud Gopher
by StCloudGopher on Dec 6, 2010 12:58 AM CST up reply actions
much rather prefer Kill
to Shannon or Edsall.
No one is getting Rubio's rights unless they pry them from our cold dead fingers.
by TheEvilProfessor on Dec 5, 2010 9:48 PM CST up reply actions
Hmmm
I’ll give him a chance, but fire Maturi
seriously, if Kill turns out to be another used car salesman….
"Baseball is the only major sport that appears backward in a mirror" ~George Carlin
by thewild_viking_twins on Dec 5, 2010 7:13 PM CST reply actions
Okay
now the next question, how many of our highly touted recruits are going to bail on us? :P
"Baseball is the only major sport that appears backward in a mirror" ~George Carlin
by thewild_viking_twins on Dec 5, 2010 7:25 PM CST reply actions
Can any of our football experts ...
give us some insight into Kill’s philosophies, offensively and defensively?
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
well didn't they have no.1 RB in the country a couple years back?
am I remembering that right? Sounds good to me if so.
I'm feverished, or the way you want to spell it
by plinytheelder on Dec 5, 2010 10:12 PM CST up reply actions
From what I know, traditional Big Ten football
Defense and running game… I’m curious what he’s gonna do with Marqueis Gray, like everybody else.
Here’s his profile from the NIU website:
http://www.niuhuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/kill_jerry00.html
wow says he
called every season ticket holder to thank them for their purchase
there’s gotta be a joke in there somewhere
seriously though, thanks for posting, looks like this dude works his butt off at the very least
looks like he’s got some great academic credentials too – I mean, not him, but his players:
Northern Illinois is one of the Top 10 teams in the country in the Academic Progress Rate (APR), which is used by the NCAA to measure academic performance, and Kill’s APR as a head coach for 2008-09 was a near-perfect 997.
SIU earned the Gateway Football Conference All-Academic Award, given to the football program with the best overall cumulative GPA, in both 2004-05 and 2005-06.
I'm feverished, or the way you want to spell it
by plinytheelder on Dec 5, 2010 10:40 PM CST up reply actions
Looking ahead to 2011
Gophers Schedule:
@USC – Looking like a sure loss, but USC isn’t what they used to be with the sanctions
New Mexico State – A team that was actually worse than us this year
Miami (OH) – Revenge game with Kill? This time he has some more ammunition
North Dakota St – Kill knows something about beating teams from the Dakotas. He beat North Dakota this year.
@Michigan – They obviously have problems
@Purdue – The Boilermakers had the same conference record as the Gophers this year
Nebraska – This will be tough. At least it is at home.
Iowa – You read this right…we play the Hawkeyes in a place where they have never won.
@Michigan St – Probably tough, but you never know with Sparty
Wisconsin – Another tough one, but at least it is at home where we play the Badgers pretty tough
@Northwestern – Even with a subpar coach we should have beaten them this year
Illinois – This game always seems to be a toss up
I think we could get to 6 wins next year…maybe even 7 if Kill lives up to his resume and we are right that this team is in better shape than when Brewster took over.
By the way, a lot is made of that team being so bad. But no one ever seems to want to blame the record on Brewster. He lost 6 games by one score or less. We probably should have won 4-5 games that year, not 1.
There is not a game there that we cant win
With good solid coaching and no OSU hurray! Im not saying we will go undefeated that would be stupid but i guarentee a bowl game and a trophy win next year.
Jerry Kill and his long-tenured staff of assistants...
… will have The Gophers humming along by the time Wisconsin comes to The Bank. I’m predicting that we take Bunyan’s Axe next year in the win that makes us bowl-eligible.
This program has a LONG way to be a Top-3 Big Ten team, but a solid football guy like Kill (and the staff he’ll bring with him cannot be downplayed) will get them to the middle of the pack and some mid-tier bowl in 2011 or 2012.
And...
The best part is, in those years we avoid OSU, there is an upset or two that could lead to a Big 1(2)0 title game. Hey, If 8-4 UConn can do it-wait, that’s the Big East.
St. Cloud Gopher
by StCloudGopher on Dec 6, 2010 1:04 AM CST up reply actions
One of only 2 games I did not catch
this year and I really regret it now—-the U of M vs. NIU game.
A bunch or 2-3 star recruits at a MAC program is a good thing.
26 recruits in 2009, 24 so far in 2010. Were you expecting a MAC team in a crap town like DeKalb to be flush with 3-star and 4-star recruits?
Get real.
2-3 stars at a MAC team
equals 3-4 stars at a Big 10 team with our facilities. If we win the recruits will come and Kill can win.
Recruiting knock on Kill is overblown
I can’t imagine that he won’t be able to recruit better to the U of M than he has to NIU. That said, he probably would have won 3-4 games this year out of 8 if he played against the Big Ten with his NIU team. From what I have read regarding him, he is a tireless worker, straight shooter, and very likeable guy. The Tubby-Like hire comment from Maturi was completely assanine and he didn’t have a clue as to how in-demand the MN coaching job was. New stadium or not, there is work to do on this program as a whole. Maybe he will keep some of the current coaches who seemed to be pretty good at recruiting. (Hammock, Butler)
What is a Tubby like hire though
I like Tubby but how much has he done here 0 tourney wins. Got ran out of Kentucky for being a poor recruiter. Won a NC with Paterno recruits. Its not like Tubby is frikken Coach K or Izzo or Dean Smith come on guys. Kill made every teams hes gone to better then before he got there plus they got better every year under him. Tubby arguably could be said to have made Kentucky worse then they were before. No its not Harbaugh or Bellotti or Leach but it is a good hire.
???
Tubby got Tulsa (mid major to sweet sixteen), brought Georgia (a school that neglects their basketball program for their football) to the tourney, Kentucky (won a national championship in first year…and don’t give me that it wasn’t his players crap)…and won 20 games with Minnesota his first year with virtually no talent on the roster. I say that I like Tubby’s resume.
Preaching to the choir
I like Tubby I’m just saying hes not a top 10 college basketball coach like everyone in here thinks he is. I’m as big a Gopher fan as anyone in here but was he or was he not run out of Kentucky, did he or did he not have less success then his predisessor Patino. Kill got a NIU team that started in the espn bottom 10 to a bowl game in 08(like bringing Georgia to the NCAA tourney), he got an SIU team to the FCS playoffs every year. He has a winning record. I’m just saying he and Tubby were both good hires.
Tubby
Yeah, he’s probably a little overrated. However, I don’t think he left Kentucky in shambles. They were still going to the tourney every year…they just didn’t get the obscene talented recruiting classes that Calipari brings in every year. Remember, Gillespie didn’t last more than 2 years after Tubby left, before Calipari conveniently left Memphis (under a dark cloud) to become the next basketball coach. So, if we’re saying Tubby was forced out in favor of Gillespie…I think that’s false.
by DeepThoughts on Dec 6, 2010 10:48 AM CST up reply actions
next year's tubby team will be quite good
with Andre Hollins coming in. We have had a lack of good guard play and the point in particular since Tubby has been here.
No one is getting Rubio's rights unless they pry them from our cold dead fingers.
by TheEvilProfessor on Dec 5, 2010 9:52 PM CST up reply actions
Really Guys
I think Kill is a great hire. He has had success as a head coach in div 1 college football and didnt get run out of his last job for not winning enough. I put him in the Golden, Hoke category and why not. NIU was a very good team this year heck they beat us and after watching the last 2 games you know we have more talent. This guy can coach the fundementals and thats what this team has been missing the last 4 years. He might be like Glen Mason but is that a bad thing think of what Mason might have done with Minnesota with the facilities we have today. He did beat every team in the Big 10 and had a 10 win season, plus made it to a bowl every year and beat the likes of Oregon and Alabama. Not to shabby.
No way was Kill the first choice
I’m in the “give him a chance but fire Maturi camp”… You can’t promise a Tubby-hire and end up with Monson (whose Gonzaga team beat us in the tourney that season before getting the job, so there are similarities). Kill may be able to do something with the Brewster recruits, but can he bring us Chicago-area talent? And will the new president/AD give him more than 3 seasons before wanting to put his stamp on the program?
I agree with PJS that Mona should have known this would be seen as an EPIC FAIL based on the names floated out there.
What "names" were floated out there?
I never heard one name from the U. All the names were thrown out by the likes of us—uninformed people who happen to have a twitter account.
Untrue
Hoke acknowledged he interviewed. Also well known that Chryst was interviewed. There is no doubt that the search firm reached out to many many more. Nobody wanted the job (except Leach). Maturi settled for Kill. It was the only thing he could come back with to save his face. I feel bad for Jerry Kill. Everyone knows that Leach was there for the taking and there will be a lot of couldve, shouldve being tossed around.
Like I said...
the U never mentioned one name. There were all sorts of names that were thrown out there that supposedly interviewed for the job and never did it.
“Well known” seems to be used a lot when it is a rumor that is well circulated, but not necessarily true. It was “well known” for a while that Gruden was going to Miami as well.
Semantics
What does it matter what the U officially said. They aren’t going to issue a release for each interview. Hoke for example confirmed interviewing.
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
by PJS on Dec 5, 2010 8:24 PM CST up reply actions
My point...
was in response to the comment that this hire is a disappointment based on “names floated out there” when MANY of those names floated were complete speculation.
Kill and Hoke were pretty similar on paper. I’m not sure who these other “names” are. I didn’t hear a single name that you could say was a better candidate than Kill. Hoke was probably on par.
Hoke hasn't accomplished nearly as much as Kill.
That is, I mean, assuming that wins and losses are actually important.
Um Leach, Bellotti, Fulmer, Golden, Calhoun, and Mullen were all better candidates than Kill
Leach never got interviewed, and it sounded like Fulmer wanted the job too. If they talked to the other guys first and they all said no, then you hire Jerry Kill. If you take Kill above all of those guys…just another sign Maturi should be fired.
I disagree
that Golden and Calhoun would have been better. I think it is pretty debatable.
We all know Leach’s story and he was never considered. Notice how he isn’t being considered for other jobs either? That should tell you something.
I’ll give you Bellotti and Fulmer. I would side with you on Mullen only because what he did was in the SEC.
I will grant you Golden and Kill is debatable
But Calhoun has won in a better conference than Kill has.
Bottom line, Kill is the guy we have and I hope he does well.
He could have really saved face by hiring Leach
But i still like the Kill hire. I dont understand why people think Golden or Hoke would have been better. Shannon, Fulmer type hire would have been the disaster hire to me.
Maturi Confirms via Text to the AP
Jon Krawczynski
Maturi confirms in a text message to AP that they have hired Jerry Kill to coach football team.
15 seconds ago
Deep breaths
I think most of the reaction is because of who it wasn’t, as opposed to who it was.
It wasn’t Edsall. It wasn’t Mullen. It wasn’t Harbaugh (but c’mon, it wasn’t evergonna be him).
What it is is a guy that can take bad programs and make them very good. Minnesota had a bad year, but isn’t anywhere near the level of suck that the directional Illinois schools were when he got there.
I say give the guy a chance. He has talent on the roster, good facilities, and a decent schedule in front of him next season.
The Daily Norseman
Off Tackle Empire
SB Nation Minnesota
"A parent's only as good as their dumbest kid. If one wins a Nobel Prize but the other gets robbed by a hooker, you failed."
According to our very scientific poll :-)
Most want to give Kill a chance. But Maturi and Mona bungled the PR of this big time. It was the Tubby-like hire comment. It wad Maturi saying he was surprised at a coach or coaches who were interested.
If it’s true, and we don’t know, that some coaches that might have been bigger gets than Kill wavered because of Maturi’s tenuous position, then Bruininks deserves considerable blame for allowing Joel to make this hire in the first place.
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
by PJS on Dec 5, 2010 8:31 PM CST up reply actions
Oh, absolutely agree on the PR
And if bigger fish didn’t want to bite because of Maturi’s position, they should’ve hired Leach, who seemed like he really wanted the job regardless of the position of the AD.
But I think Kill will be okay. Can’t be worse than Brewster.
The Daily Norseman
Off Tackle Empire
SB Nation Minnesota
"A parent's only as good as their dumbest kid. If one wins a Nobel Prize but the other gets robbed by a hooker, you failed."
Winning is good.
Darko is my bodyguard.
by Premier Cherdenko on Dec 5, 2010 8:43 PM CST up reply actions
1 reason we are where we're at
Joel Maturi… no one wants to work for him. I can’t dig on Kill because if he is as advertised I am on board. I definitely don’t have the been punched in the gut feeling this time like I did when they hired Brew.
Welcome Coach Kill
LOL awesome name….
Darko is my bodyguard.
by Premier Cherdenko on Dec 5, 2010 8:43 PM CST reply actions
star trib poll
Check out the star trib poll it is pretty telling what people expected.
Some reax from NIU fans at the Red and Black Attack
http://www.redandblackattack.com/2010/12/5/1856978/jerry-kill-to-take-minnesota-job#comments
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
More Video
1. A bunch of answers to a bunch of questions – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGDsw2ZE6ho
2. Praising fans after an NIU game – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-bdEFTtb40&feature=related
Isn't it perfect when a team is angry
it lost its head coach? Livid even! Betrayed!
hehe
yeah tough to imagine ;)
I'm feverished, or the way you want to spell it
by plinytheelder on Dec 5, 2010 10:21 PM CST up reply actions
Check out Kill's assistant coaches
I don’t know the first thing about any of these guys, but look at where they’ve coached (most of them have been with Kill back to Saginaw Valley, Emporia, Southern Illinois…). A lot of us have legitimately griped with Brewster about his inability to establish an identity and to develop and retain a coaching staff. This entire group has stayed together for years.
http://www.niuhuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/niu-m-footbl-mtt.html#coaches
That said...
I’d like to see Kill find jobs for Hammock (almost as much for his recruiting than anything else), Cross and Horton.
Hammock
is an NIU alum and coach, but worked for the previous administration, increases the odds a little bit that he stays on?
I think so, but...
… the main reason Hammock has a chance of staying is that he has done a hell of a job coaching RBs, then serving as co-OC and his recruiting is the best on the current staff.
Hammock was also never at NIU when Kill was there, so other than sharing stories about their non-overlapping years in DeKalb, they don’t have anything else in common.
yeah, previous administration
by a little bit, I mean like 2%
Establish identity and manage staff
Those are the types of skill you want in a head coach—leadership and management. Brewster sorely lacked those skills and it showed.
This wasn’t a sexy hire, but it was a solid one. I cannot wait to see what he can do. Conversely, when Brewster was hired, I was shaking my head and puzzled. I get why Kill is a good candidate.
Meet your new defensive coordinator...
Sorry Kevin Cosgrove… make way for Tracy Claeys, who has been Jerry Kill’s DC for the past 10 years (and on his staff for the last 15 years.
http://www.niuhuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/claeys_tracy00.html
A decade of defensive coordinating
can’t argue with that. I do like the cohesive staff, if we can keep/bring in a strong recruiter or two into the bunch, I think that would be ideal.
Continuity is HUGE...
I mean, just imagine if Brewster could have kept his first two coordinators together (Dunbar & Withers – neither of whom impressed me much). Just keeping terminology and systems intact could have possibly saved Brewster’s job.
No doubt that Kill, DC Claeys, OC Limegrover and the majority of that staff that has been together for at least 10 seasons are on the same page with every little detail. Getting a group of players on the same page is a tough enough task by itself… learning who your coaching with every year only further complicates things.
This juxtaposition in itself probably explains Kill’s success and Brewster’s failure more than any other facet.
Let's give him a shot
how much worse could he really be?
At least he has experience, and a proven track record
"Baseball is the only major sport that appears backward in a mirror" ~George Carlin
by thewild_viking_twins on Dec 5, 2010 9:13 PM CST reply actions
People are going nuts on facebook about this
I don’t understand where all the anger is coming from. A proven winner who recruits well and turned a forsaken program into a perennial bowl team sounds pretty good to me.
"If the world were perfect, it wouldn't be." - Yogi Berra
in the end
it doesn’t really matter what the initial facebook reaction is.
If Kill can come in a win 6-7 games and build the program to a 8-10 win level, then there’s not going to be a problem with the reaction or recruiting.
Winning recruits, Winning fills up the seats and Winning is what Jerry Kill has been pretty damn good at over the 17 years of head coaching.
If you don’t believe that, ask Auburn how that initial reaction worked out for them.
http://www.trackemtigers.com/2008/12/13/691638/news-bulletin-gene-chizik
Coaching Staff Prediction
I believe that Kill will bring the majority of his staff with him… just like he did from Emporia State to Southern Illinois; and just like he did from Southern Illinois to Northern Illinois.
But I think Jeff Horton is gone. He was just popular enough in Minnesota that having him on the staff could create the possibility of a split locker room, which isn’t worth the trouble. I’d like to see Horton get the NIU job!
That said, Kill’s OC and DC served in those same capacities for Kill’s entire tenures at Southern Illinois and Northern Illinois (at least 10 seasons each). I hope he makes Thomas Hammock his co-offensive coordinator and retains Tim Cross (his DL coach at NIU wasn’t one of his long-term guys).
I hope he keeps Hammock
But not as RB coach just for recruiting. Cross can go the line didnt get enough sacks and were pretty poor at tackling. Good ridence to Cosgrove thank god. Steve Watson is another guy id like them to keep hes done a great job with the WRs this year McKnight and Grey were great by the end of the year. McKnight could be the Big 10s best WR next year.
A few problems there...
1. Cross is one of the best recruiters on the staff, has done an excellent job IMO of developing the young, returning bucks on the DL (it’s probably our best stocked position and his work with them is a big part of that). Plus that’s one of the holes in Kill’s long-term staff.
2. I think Hammock has earned the right with his play-calling to be an OC somewhere. I’d like to have him here as opposed to somewhere else.
3. I also like Steve Watson, but Kill has had the same WR coach since 2001. And I’m actually not very impressed with the production and development of two 4-star recruits (Hayo Carpenter & Brandon Green) over whom Watson presided.
yeah I agree on Horton
I doubt that Kill takes that risk.
I’m sure he’ll land on his feet though, finishing strong makes him look pretty good.
I'm feverished, or the way you want to spell it
by plinytheelder on Dec 5, 2010 10:24 PM CST up reply actions
Gophers new coach
I’m sorry but this is very disappointing. I wanted Leach despite his problems, he would have brought big time excitement. I’ m sorry again but Kill looks like he is right out of the gopher alumni band tuba section.
by bobbyspringfield on Dec 5, 2010 9:46 PM CST reply actions
If we aren't at least 3-1
heading into Big Ten play, Kill’s reputation will be set. He needs to win right away to settle down a fan base that bought into Maturi’s inflated expectations. Good luck, Jerry and I sure hope you are the right guy.
by Gopher Fan from Wisconsin on Dec 5, 2010 10:01 PM CST reply actions
shrug
Make sure you don’t ask Kill to squeeze the Charmin. What a resemblence…
Point is, there is no way a “Tubby Smith” coach was going to come to Minnesota. We have nothing to offer except for a shiny new stadium with a seating capacity that is 1/2 that of tOSU, scUM, and PSU, and even then we can’t fill it up.
lol why “uneducated”?
I'm feverished, or the way you want to spell it
by plinytheelder on Dec 6, 2010 11:25 AM CST up reply actions
Because there is little substance to it
It is basically an Op-Ed piece and lacks any real thought.
His reaction is stereotypical of twitter and a lot of other message boards. People react just off of the name and declare it a failure without actually looking at the skill set.
I think a pretty good metaphor is the college football polls. At the beginning of each year, schools are ranked based on reputation and name rather than current state (see where Texas, USC, and Florida all were ranked at the beginning of the year and where they are now).
To label Kill’s hire as a failure before he even showed up, despite his resume, is completely uneducated in my opinion.
“Op-Ed piece” – well, he is a columnist, so his job is to write what are essentially regular op-ed pieces. Anyways, to me, when he says “failure,” he’s not making a prediction on what Kill’s w/l record might be. I think he’s echoing a lot of people here, saying that Maturi said he was going to hit the ball out the park…and he most definitely did not. I think Reusse thinks that Gopher football has likely been set back a couple of years by this – a guy like Leach would have immediately a. filled the stadium b. brought in recruits just by virtue of his name. I agree.
It would have taken both guts and vision to hire Leach. By not doing so, I think Maturi once again fails to realize what a critical state Gopher football is in.
(Don’t get me wrong, for me this isn’t about Kill. Dude looks like he can really coach, and I wish him the best.)
I'm feverished, or the way you want to spell it
by plinytheelder on Dec 6, 2010 11:48 AM CST up reply actions
New Coach
First, I’m a pretty big football fan and I know nothing of this guy. In that case, why the heck would the best high school players from around the surrounding states want to come play for a nobody!?!?!?!?!?
Second, when there have been other, bigger named coaches openly stating they would like this job what the heck is the “advisory committee” doing hiring this guy who’s biggest game ever was a MAC title game that he lost!?!?!?!?!?!?
Lastly, Maturi and all his cronies need to removed from the athletic department ASAP, you’re killing the football program and have already killed the hockey program, which back in the day both were two of the most prominent programs ever……CHANGE IS NEEDED!!!!!!!!!!!!!! but for the better of the Athletic Department and for the athletes themselves!
Jerry Kill isn't a big name, but most "big football fans" have heard of him.
It’s the casual fans who don’t know about how much this guy wins everywhere he goes.
Other, bigger named coaches?
The only significantly bigger named coach who wanted the job was Leach, and while most people would have loved that hire a million times more, myself included, we’ve already discussed in this and other threads why that was never gonna happen. Other than him, we most likely got turned down by all the “big name” coaches
I’ve worked my way up to ‘great’. I’d love to see a repeat poll, with the same options, on Thursday.
I voted "great" only beause...
… I think there’s far too much of a gap between “shrug/I’ll give a try” and “great.” I’d vote for “happy with the hire” or “good hire,” but “great” should be reserved for Mullen, Peterson, Leach, etc.
Video of Kill arriving in MSP
It’s amazing what the Internet can do these days…
http://kstp.com/article/stories/s1868324.shtml?cat=7
Journalism. Enhanced.
I laughed when Maturi slipped on the ice.
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
by PJS on Dec 6, 2010 8:35 AM CST up reply actions
A chance to sleep on it.....
…..and I have concluded this. If the administration does not increase the football budget to allow for a coach to bring in a bigger staff then we are doomed, not matter what. I think some of the big name or big program coaches wanted nothing to do with MN due to the lack of funding and attention to the nuts and bolts of building a great program. While Mich/ WI, OSU are using top notch building materials we are stuck with a guy that will be short handed and expect to build a mansion out of particle board.
So until that happens it didn’t matter who we brought in. I think the admin. has it backwards, they want a Rose Bowl first, then they will think about making the staff size competitive with the winners in the Big 10. You get what you pay for more often than not…and it was not “Black Friday” in the case of hiring this coach.
So good luck Jerry, I hope things change with a new President and the departing AD(hopefully sooner than later).
Two responses, DallasGopher
1. We don’t know that The U doesn’t have plans to increase budget. An increased coaching-salary budget was rumored during the search.
2. This may be the reason why this hire will work… after all, Jerry Kill is gonna bring nearly his entire staff with him and even if Minnesota continues with a small payroll, that budget will represent a nice salary increase for Kill’s staff compared to NIU’s. And based on how important I think “identity” and continuity are to a football team/staff, I think the best staff Kill could hire is the group he’s worked with day and night for 10+ seasons in a row from both NIU and SIU.
Upon further review
Couple of quick thoughts: 1) Jerry Kill looks like “Minnesota Nice” personified. I can’t help but think of Leo Durocher’s famous line though. 2) There is a lot to like about Kill’s story but also concerns (his health history). 3) time will tell as always and maybe this will look like genius by Maturi someday. I will remain hopeful but not in the mood to be turning cartwheels down the hallway today!!
I bet people would've gotten excited about Kill
if they hadn’t built up expectations so high. The comments about Tubby-like hire and being pleasantly surprised at the caliber of coaches who showed interest only served to undermine what in reality might have been the best hire they could have made.
I agree 1000% with this sentiment
I think once everyone has a couple of weeks to blow off steam, I think most Gopher fans will see we got a pretty solid guy in Kill. But Maturi looks so stupid for making grand annoucements about a “Tubby-like” hire without knowing if, you know, a Tubby-like hire was actually available.
I am happy with this hire
People need to get over the big name guys that were being thrown around. Each candidate had flaws, but I feel like we hired a great coach that knows how to win. As for recruiting, we shall see what come out of this, but from what I hear, he is a straight shooter and I am sure that will resonate with some recruits.
Interested
To see changes of heart as the angry mob becomes educated on the coach, the thoughts of his peers, former players, etc.
The low-point was last night’s outrage. Should soften and take new polls.
I feel worse today than I did last night because of the embarrassing Gopher fan reaction. I am embarrassed by some of the trashy posts, and the fact that the negative positions have gotten so much press. Kill has enough of a challenge teaching kids who have had a crappy head coach and constantly changing coordinators how to play god football, he doesn’t need an entire fan base already giving up and crying about not getting a “big name”…though most people in football know Jerry Kill…
by jimipig on Dec 6, 2010 10:06 AM CST via mobile reply actions
Essentially every coach in the history of ever (well, since the immediacy of the internet) has received the same reaction.
While this is correct, Maturi and his PR people should have known this
and therefore never mentioned ANYTHING about a “Tubby-like” hire. Fans want to believe the best in their team, and that we could have had a “big name” coach. When Maturi proclaims this, and then we get a coach only hard core college football fans have heard of? This is the reaction he gets. It’s not fair, but it’s Maturi’s fault. I hope, and expect, Gopher football fans to give Jerry Kill a chance.
I 2nd that
Kill is a solid hire, the problem is that expectations were raised by Maturi with that comment. I believe Kill will be a good coach, but will he be able to get us over that hump that Mason could not and become a 10 win team with a chance to go to a BCS Bowl? Seems a lot like Mason, except Kill sounds like a stand-up, humble, and likeable guy lacking the smugness Mase had.
NIU has the 25th ranked team in the country at NIU, obviously Kill can coach. BTW- I caught the end of the MAC Championship game and Miami caught a deflected ball that was almost intercepted on 4th and long to keep them alive, then scored a couple of plays later. The receiver was 6 or 7 yards behind the intended receiver and it went right to him. Kind of a fluke win to pull that out and Haywood has done a nice job coaching Miami of Ohio as well. His name was also mentioned as possible hires and Haywood will get a shot to move up soon as well.
The good news is after Horton showed us we could win with this talent in the last couple of games, we should not have to wait for a complete rebuilding project and should be a bowl eligible team next year with good coaching.
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