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P.J. Fleck takes full responsibility for Minnesota loss: ‘I coached poorly’
By Nick Schultz
Published:
Last week, Minnesota beat Colorado State 30-0. This week, the Golden Gophers lost to Bowling Green 14-10 at home.
Life comes at you fast, right?
It sure wasn’t how PJ Fleck expected his group to play, especially considering Bowling Green hadn’t won an FBS game since 2019. The Gophers trailed 7-3 at halftime, but scored on the first drive of the 3rd quarter to take a 10-7 lead. But BGSU responded after a missed field goal and marched 65 yards to score a touchdown on the ensuing drive.
Things got worse when the Gophers’ top receiver, Chris Autman-Bell, went down with an injury. That didn’t help an already sloppy offense. Fleck will certainly have to address these issues as B1G play starts next week against Purdue.
Fleck was (understandably) blunt in his postgame press conference. Here’s what he had to say:
#Gophers Fleck very critical of passing game. Passing, catching, protecting, etc
— GopherHole.com (@GopherHole) September 25, 2021
#Gophers Fleck: “We didn’t have it today, and that’s 100% on me.”
— GopherHole.com (@GopherHole) September 25, 2021
#Gophers Fleck: “couldn’t have played any worse…undisciplined…couldn’t get into any rhythm. 100% falls on me, this is 100% on me. I apologize to our fans.”
— GopherHole.com (@GopherHole) September 25, 2021
Nick Schultz is a columnist and breaking news writer for Saturday Tradition. A 2020 graduate of Loyola Chicago, he covered the Ramblers' 2018 Final Four run from beginning to end and has worked at NBC Sports Chicago. Follow Nick on Twitter @NickSchultz_7.