What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

[BCJacks]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

U of M? Well, can't say I'm too impressed by the place. To have a giant's footprint without a giant's accomplishments really doesn't do it for me.

What? Please elaborate.

If you are speaking of the school in general, it is a highly ranked, well repected public institution with one of the largest student bodies in the nation.

If you are speaking of the athletic dept., please go back and read the posts on the Sears Directors Cup standings.

Yes, the football team has not won big for many years, but for the most part has been an above average BCS-level program over the past 10-15 years. The rest of the athletic dept. is consistently solid-relatively recent national titles in men's and women's hockey, wrestling, and men's golf. Final four in women's basketball, women's volleyball #12 in the country and a regular in the NCAA tourney.

So, where is the "without a giant's accomplishments" in that?

[Jacks99]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

To answer an earlier question, I'm hoping for humble pie, to serve to the Gophers of course.

After tonights BBall games (assuming the men can hold a 20 pt lead), I'm hoping we can pull off the Trifecta!

Looking to board the Metro for 9:30 arrival, may have to get there sooner...

[zooropa]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

"without a giant's accomplishments"

60 some schools sponsor hockey & wrestling, so pardon me if I'm less impressed by success there than success on the basketball court or football field.

Maybe you don't like a small school alum dissing your athletic program, but seriously, it's not that great. Not by Big Ten standards, and not by big school standards.

Yeah, I know "directors cup...." well, here's the thing about that: Know why Stanford always wins that? Because they sponsor like a hundred and eighty varsity sports.

Heck, SDSU finishes ahead of NDSU in the equivalent Summit League competition by virtue of four more varsity sports than NDSU.

Don't get me wrong, the Big Ten is a whole world apart from SDSU, but just because you've got the money to spend doesn't mean you're spending it well.

Like I said, maybe you don't like hearing it from a guy who graduated from an ag school in a farm state, but look at the visibility of your athletic department---for as much money as gets spent, I don't see much to show for it.

Granted this is anecdotal, not substantiated, but I think you guys lost South Dakota to Nebraska y-e-a-r-s ago. And maybe that's not much, but what's it say about how your school is viewed outside the upper midwest?

Sheeeyooot, you just built a smaller stadium because you couldn't fill up the Metrodome, which only seats 65k or so for football.

---

I don't mean to offend (well not much, anyway), but c'mon: maybe you all are a bit too satisfied with being Big Ten and having a Big Ten budget--or at least that's the attitude you take whenever some small school fan pops off about the U of M not getting a good return on its investment.

Heck, look at Texas, virtually the same enrollment, and look at the support their FB program gets; ditto Florida. The U of M should not be content with middling performance in the Big Ten---you guys should, well, maybe not -own- it, but heck at least be making more of it than what you're doing now--IMO, of course.

(BTW: Texas A&M is, if anything, less impressive when it comes to students, dollars, and visibility)

[klomp44]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

Marshall (MN) Independent Article on Kyle Minett: http://marshallindependent.com/page/....html?nav=5021

[SD-STATE]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

60 some schools sponsor hockey & wrestling, so pardon me if I'm less impressed by success there than success on the basketball court or football field.

Maybe you don't like a small school alum dissing your athletic program, but seriously, it's not that great. Not by Big Ten standards, and not by big school standards.

Yeah, I know "directors cup...." well, here's the thing about that: Know why Stanford always wins that? Because they sponsor like a hundred and eighty varsity sports.

Heck, SDSU finishes ahead of NDSU in the equivalent Summit League competition by virtue of four more varsity sports than NDSU.

Don't get me wrong, the Big Ten is a whole world apart from SDSU, but just because you've got the money to spend doesn't mean you're spending it well.

Like I said, maybe you don't like hearing it from a guy who graduated from an ag school in a farm state, but look at the visibility of your athletic department---for as much money as gets spent, I don't see much to show for it.

Granted this is anecdotal, not substantiated, but I think you guys lost South Dakota to Nebraska y-e-a-r-s ago. And maybe that's not much, but what's it say about how your school is viewed outside the upper midwest?

Sheeeyooot, you just built a smaller stadium because you couldn't fill up the Metrodome, which only seats 65k or so for football.

---

I don't mean to offend (well not much, anyway), but c'mon: maybe you all are a bit too satisfied with being Big Ten and having a Big Ten budget--or at least that's the attitude you take whenever some small school fan pops off about the U of M not getting a good return on its investment.

Heck, look at Texas, virtually the same enrollment, and look at the support their FB program gets; ditto Florida. The U of M should not be content with middling performance in the Big Ten---you guys should, well, maybe not -own- it, but heck at least be making more of it than what you're doing now--IMO, of course.

(BTW: Texas A&M is, if anything, less impressive when it comes to students, dollars, and visibility)

Just throwing my two-cents in. I would say that the UofM is solid in just about every sport other than football, except maybe basketball, but who really cares about men's basketball anyway

When it comes to the gophers, by far the biggest disapointment in the overall athletic department has always been the fooball team. Of course that can only be limited to my lifetime, which only goes back to the Jim Wacker years. For me the only Bowl games that really count as highly successful, is BCS bowls. When a team only needs six wins to get to the Music City bowl, it doesn't equate to great football at the FBS level. Wrestling, hockey, track, gymnastics, heck even men's gymnastics was fairly decent if I rember right not sure if they even have it yet. Many of the UM sports are competitive on the national level.
The short of it though, is that knocking the gopher athletic department doesn't really hold water, because again, other than football, they have been solid for many years, again other than football. SDSU should only hope to reach the status of the UM in wrestling and other sports. Yes, I do realize the two schools' time frame at this level is different.
Hockey is hockey, but one can not knock the success they have had with it. Basketball, despite it's past and recent troubles, is ranked in the top 25. Volleyball is competitive usually.
When one stops and think about athletics at the UM it is pretty good, because alot of other schools can feed off the support and money that is generated by a successful football team. UM athletics has not enjoyed any of that. The majority of UM coaches, even their most succesful ones with J Robinson being probably their most successful with wrestling, still work with year-to-year contracts, if i'm not mistaken. The baseball team at the UM is lacking facility wise. The basketball team does not have the same practice facilities other quality Big-Ten teams do. So in terms of all-around athletic departments in the Big-Ten, UM works at a disadvantage compared to the more recently premier programs in football... i.e. Wisconsin, Michigan, OSU.
UM is also a land grant school, with a heavy focus in agriculture, if I'm not mistaken much like SDSU. There are actually many similiarities to both schools, academically and athletically, obviously two different levels though as far as enrollment, conference affiliation, and the like. UM faces similiar obstacles at their level, that we are facing at our level.

Okay, maybe not so short, but hey just like a term paper due the next day, sometimes one just gets rolling. That "rolling" sometime turns into rambling, which I apoligize for and hopefully can be easily ignored.

[BCJacks]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

Like I said, maybe you don't like hearing it from a guy who graduated from an ag school in a farm state, but look at the visibility of your athletic department---for as much money as gets spent, I don't see much to show for it.

I don't mind it at all. I graduated from the same ag school in the same farm state that you did. I just happened to also graduate from the U of M as well (they have ag degrees, too). What I do mind is the logic for your thougts. I think the other posts after yours explain it pretty well, the U of M athletics are strong all around with football being possibly the weakest link. And many BCS-level programs would be happy with the U of M football record this year. More should be, and is, expected. Hopefully better days are ahead. The visibility is lower than it should be-at least for football. The empty seats today proved that. But, remember, that the competition during the football season includes the Vikings, the end of the Twins season, and the beginning of the Wild and T-Wolves seasons, not to mention the U of M hockey team which sells out every game (despite being amongst an apparently meaningless group of competitors) and a basketball team that has been very popular the last few years.

The comparison to Texas is fair only in that the student population is similar. Otherwise, Texas has more high school talent to draw from, no pro teams in their market to compete with (perhaps the San Antonio Spurs could be considered in their "market") and a much larger football budget. Ditto for Florida.

Granted this is anecdotal, not substantiated, but I think you guys lost South Dakota to Nebraska y-e-a-r-s ago. And maybe that's not much, but what's it say about how your school is viewed outside the upper midwest?

No disagreements here. I think South Dakotans can associate with Nebraska a lot more than Minnesota. I have lived all three places-Brookings, Lincoln, and Mpls, and Lincoln fits a lot better with South Dakotans than Minneapolis does. However, I don't really know how this supports your argument. Yes, Nebraska is better in football, but I wouldn't say their overall athletics are better than Minnesota, despite probably having a similar budget and a similar number of teams.

All that being said, I had a great time at the game today. Proof that SDSU is a very solid team, and easily could have pulled that out. The U of M, that's another story.

[Jacks99]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

Win = Huge
Stay within two scores = content with the showing
Lose by, 17+ = disappointing
Out of it by halftime like ISU '08 and SIU '09 = unacceptable

I was wrong. A loss by 3 and I'm not content. Mad no, but not content.

Although we stopped just outside Madison, WI for the night and a Mich and Wisc fan were watching TV. The Mich fan kept checking out the SDSU gear. Couldn't help feel a bit of pride knowing he at least knew we gave a good show and were recognized.

[zooropa]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

competition during the football season includes the Vikings, the end of the Twins season, and the beginning of the Wild and T-Wolves seasons, not to mention the U of M hockey team which sells out every game (despite being amongst an apparently meaningless group of competitors) and a basketball team that has been very popular the last few years.

I noted earlier that hockey is a revenue sport for Minnesota (as at UND), but it's not a sport that raises the profile of the institution.

The comparison to Texas is fair only in that the student population is similar. Otherwise, Texas has more high school talent to draw from, no pro teams in their market to compete with (perhaps the San Antonio Spurs could be considered in their "market") and a much larger football budget. Ditto for Florida.

The U of M is the only D-1 program in a state of 5M, Texas has 24M, but also has Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Baylor, TCU, and OU and LSU in bordering states. Iowa & Wisconsin ain't exactly Oklahoma & LSU where football is concerned (anyone who saw the Iowa/Indiana 3rd quarter should have wept at the mere thought of Iowa representing the Big Ten in a BCS bowl).

Regarding sports, that's fair enough, as long as one overlooks the significantly larger MSP metro (over twice the size of Austin). And one realizes that if one includes Houston & DFW, both of those cities have pro sports options comparable to MSP.

Lincoln fits a lot better with South Dakotans than Minneapolis does.

TAKE IT BACK!! TAKE IT BACK!!! I WILL KILL YOU!!!

But seriously, I have been to Lincoln enough to hate dang near everything it is possible to hate about that place. Urg. Everytime I leave, it is with gratitude that I am free to return to Sioux Falls.

However, I don't really know how this supports your argument.

Well, what it comes down to is having something you can hang your hat on. Hockey, well, shoot, 'no one' cares, and like Minnesota-Duluth and UND have hockey. Heck Colorado College has hockey and I think all their other sports are club level, basically (I mean that's all D-III really is--club sports).

[BCJacks]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

I guess we will have to agree to disagree. Particularly if you are going to cherry-pick my arguments and take points out of context.

The game is over, Minnesota won, SDSU definitely could have, and no doubt in my mind that the U of M is capable of much more in football than they are achieving right now. On that point, I agree with you.

[SturgisJeff]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

Hey Zoo. If you hate Lincoln, don't go to Yankton. At the WallMart and Dunhams Sports you will see more red and white sports gear than any other color and it aint USD or Yankton High School. Say something bad about the Husksters and you will get run out of town.

[zooropa]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

Hey Zoo. If you hate Lincoln, don't go to Yankton. At the WallMart and Dunhams Sports you will see more red and white sports gear than any other color and it aint USD or Yankton High School. Say something bad about the Husksters and you will get run out of town.

They should've gotten rid of the 81 bridge as soon as they started selling Fat Tire in SD. Keep them Huskers in Nebraska!

BTW: I like Yankton. It's an old town (very old for these parts) and scenic.

[CCdeville]

Re: What are your hopes for the Gophers game?

guess i was wrong with the gophs score, but i refuse to eat crow, because how embarassing is that gophers program? they lose decker and they cant do anything, not to mention their coach is a jackass, i like his postgame wcco interview "#1, we are bowl eligible, blah blah blah" ah, no, #1 you're an embarassment to all minnesotan's everywhere!