11-15-2004, 10:35 PM
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http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercu...s/10169857.htm
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EDIT: Article was also written Nov. 12th.
Quote:
Mason's job safe, Maturi says
BY BOB SANSEVERE
Knight Ridder Newspapers
<!-- begin body-content -->(KRT) - Heard from anyone about your football coach?
Joel Maturi nodded.
Oh, yeah, he has heard from people.
There is a mob out there that wants Maturi to use his power as the University of Minnesota athletics director and fire Glen Mason.
Maturi won't do it. You won't hear him pulling a Donald Trump and telling Mason, "You're fired."
"I don't think it's the right thing to do,"
Maturi said. "A lot of people tell me I don't have the guts or courage."
Sometimes, it takes guts and courage to stick up for a coach whose team has lost four of its past five games.
"I believe I'm doing the right thing," Maturi said. "I'm doing the right thing for the right reasons."
So, to the anti-Mason crowd, accept the fact that he isn't going anywhere.
"Unless Glen has other plans," said Maturi, mindful that Mason has two years left on his contract, "he'll be our coach."
Maturi discussed a contract extension with Mason after last season, but nothing materialized. Asked if he has offered Mason a contract extension, or plans to do so any time soon, Maturi said, "Glen and I have not spoken much (about an extension) during the course of the year. We'll meet when the bowl game is finished and go from there. It's not a panic issue on my part, nor do I feel it is one on Glen's part."
After that somewhat vague response, Maturi was asked if he was purposely not giving a direct answer. He said, "I can't go there. It's something we discussed last year. Those are things Glen and I will talk about, as we did last year. He has two years left. It's nothing to panic about."
You want panic from Gophers fans? Just see what happens if Maturi does give Mason an extension.
Chances are, other universities aren't lining up to lure Mason away from Minnesota. Maybe if the Gophers had beaten Michigan and Michigan State and not folded against an inferior Indiana team, maybe then he would be a hot coaching commodity.
At the moment, though, he is as cold as the sheet of ice at Mariucci Arena.
It doesn't really matter what happens in the final regular-season game today against Iowa. The Gophers can win big, and it won't change that this was a season squandered.
Even with a bowl game yet to play, the time to feel warm fuzzies about this team and this season is long past.
What it is time to do is look ahead, to shift into the maybe-next-year-will-be-better mode.
It can be better, too.
It can be if Mason and his staff learn from the mistakes that turned this season into such a disappointment.
Some of the problem is psychological. The Gophers are an emotionally fragile bunch. They have yet to figure out how to handle more than just moderate success.
Finishing with a record better than .500 is moderate success. The Gophers have that down. Playing a bowl game on Jan. 1, being considered among the top teams in the nation, that's the next leap and the one the Gophers have been incapable of taking.
Once this season ends, all the players and coaches need to start having a daily affirmation. Something along the lines of, "We are worthy. We are good. We will not screw it up the next time we hold a lead over Michigan."
Other than addressing the psychological issues, the most important thing Mason can do this offseason is take inventory. What worked? What didn't?
What needs to be worked on?
At the top of the needs-work list should be a commitment to integrate the running backs into every facet of the offense. The Gophers have two of the best running backs in the nation in Laurence Maroney and Marion Barber III, and two more, Gary Russell and Amir Pinnix, who could start for many programs.
It is a major failing of the coaching staff to use these backs primarily as runners and not involve them in the passing game. In 10 games, Barber and Maroney each have three catches. They should be the team leaders in receptions because they are the best players the Gophers have. Maroney had two catches against Wisconsin. Until then, he hadn't caught a pass since the Sept. 4 season opener.
It boggles the mind that Mason and his assistants haven't gotten the backs more involved as receivers.
Apparently, the decision was made in preseason workouts not to use Maroney and Barber in the passing game. Which means the season might have been squandered before it even began.
Mason cannot make that decision, that mistake, again. If he does, Maturi might be more inclined to pull a Donald Trump this time next year.
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The lot on the lake won't hurt either...
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