Has Gophers coach lost credibility?
Posted: Monday June 09, 2008 04:44AM ET
Upon his hiring, Minnesota coach Tim Brewster proclaimed his goal of winning a Big Ten Conference championship and playing in the Rose Bowl. Then his team lost 11 of 12 games. And in some Gophers followers' minds, his team also lost credibility. In retrospect, had he overhyped the program? "I don't know that was an overhype at all," he said. "This is who I am, so I've got to be who I am. What I wanted to do was raise the level of expectations of the fans and people of this state. I wanted the people of this state to think, 'hey, yes, we can; yes, we will.' I think they've lost that some. I think people in this state, people who backed the Gophers, had really lost a little bit of their optimism toward winning a championship and taking the Gophers to Pasadena. So I wanted to re-establish that as, hey, this is the mind-set."
Tim Brewster, Doug Pensinger/Getty Images
Comments (32)
Brewster lost credibility the day he showed up in Minny.
Dandy Lions | 06/09/08, 07:13 AM
Report Offensive CommentMinnesota has a football team ... ?
Cheesy Texan | 06/09/08, 08:11 AM
Report Offensive CommentMaybe they should go retro with a coach, Holtz may be availible, couldn't get any worse, could it?
Airborne72 | 06/09/08, 08:41 AM
Report Offensive CommentMinnesota has a football program?
*LSU* Bye week | 06/09/08, 08:48 AM
Report Offensive CommentI know it's hard to believe, but once he gets his recruits in, they'll have enough talent to be relevant in the Big 10.
D. SLIQ | 06/09/08, 09:53 AM
Report Offensive CommentHe has to earn credibility before he can lose it right?
Basic Blues | 06/09/08, 10:23 AM
Report Offensive CommentI was going to make some smart as.s comment about having no cred to begin with, but I think that has been taken care of....
xxx84xxx | 06/09/08, 10:49 AM
Report Offensive CommentAt least the chicks are good looking at the U of MN.
The Warden | 06/09/08, 10:55 AM
Report Offensive CommentFor someone like Brewster, who's known as a great recruiter but not necessarily the best X's and O's guy, to go into a program like Minnesota and instantly proclaim that they are going to reach the pinnacle (Rose Bowl, BCS, etc)... is just silly.
Set reasonable goals. Try .500 football and some solid fund raising for that new stadium first, then try 8-4. Then start talking about reaching the next level.
Kraz | 06/09/08, 11:14 AM
Report Offensive CommentAlverez @ Wisconsin did the same thing when he took over. He told people to buy their season tickets while they still could.
It takes a while to turn a program around.
Basic Blues | 06/09/08, 12:17 PM
Report Offensive CommentIt's going to take awhile. The man can recruit. This we know. Give him time to build the program.
J. HOVA: BROOKLYN'S OWN | 06/09/08, 12:34 PM
Report Offensive CommentSI took this article out of context. It was actually about that Brewster has not lost credibility but in fact has gained more credibility with the fans and players after getting a top recruiting class despite goin 1- 11. He still has lots of time to turn things around.
DCsportsman | 06/09/08, 01:00 PM
Report Offensive CommentIt takes a while to turn a program around.
PS Forever | 06/09/08, 12:17 PM
You're right. Those wisconsin fans are still waiting. At least Alvarez kept his word.
Dandy Lions | 06/09/08, 03:04 PM
Report Offensive CommentSI took this article out of context. It was actually about that Brewster has not lost credibility but in fact has gained more credibility with the fans and players after getting a top recruiting class despite goin 1- 11. He still has lots of time to turn things around.
DCsportsman | 06/09/08, 01:00 PM
Yeah I was about to say, it's kinda hard to lose credibility after your first season
conesy | 06/09/08, 03:43 PM
Report Offensive CommentWhat was he suppose to say that would have made his team look better than his prediction - that they would not win a game?
Geeze - give the guy a few years before we roast him. I think they were within a TD in half a dozen or so games, and he still put together 1 heck of a recruiting class by any standards, let alone the fact he was 1-11 and is in a state with a total population of under 5.2 million.
Prove It | 06/09/08, 10:30 PM
Report Offensive CommentDid he just plageurize "The Little Engine That Could"?
Hillary Clinton | 06/09/08, 10:53 PM
Report Offensive CommentYour only as good as the players you recruit. This will be his first year with his recruited players. Give him time.
shahoem11 | 06/10/08, 12:01 AM
Report Offensive CommentMinnesota has more national championships than Texas and LSU and Ohio State still. So the answer to Cheesy Texan and LSU Rocks and Buckeye 84 is YES indeed. The hardware is in the building. We even have Hockey and Wrestling to boot.
Thank goodness we are getting rid of the Metrodome and hopefully those days will return.
TTT | 06/10/08, 12:09 AM
Report Offensive CommentIn the comment above I must say in Football that is. 6 National titles.
Brewster has the best recruiting class at Minnesota since the star system started and he is getting critisized. Give the guy a chance. He still has all of Masons stiffs on the roster. The talent is coming this fall. Not to mention a state of the art new stadium. The worm is about to turn. No more bowls in Nashville against Alabama and Arkansas. New Years day is on his mind.
TTT | 06/10/08, 12:26 AM
Report Offensive CommentMinnesota has more national championships than Texas and LSU and Ohio State still. So the answer to Cheesy Texan and LSU Rocks and Buckeye 84 is YES indeed. The hardware is in the building. We even have Hockey and Wrestling to boot.
Thank goodness we are getting rid of the Metrodome and hopefully those days will return.
TTT | 06/10/08, 12:09 AM
True, but not since 1960. With that line of thought, we should also raise a toast to Yale, Harvard and Cornell. And please don't bring wrestling and hockey into this.
Cheesy Texan | 06/10/08, 06:11 AM
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