P.J. Fleck has done a lot of great things at the University of Minnesota.
Among coaches with 80 games under their belt at Minnesota, Fleck ranks third all-time in winning percentage and fourth in wins. He’s defeated Iowa and Wisconsin and led Minnesota to one of its best runs of success in over a century.
But when it comes to his tenure with the Gophers, nobody will think of him with the words “Big Ten Champion” or “College Football Playoffs.” Instead, his time with the Gophers can be described with three different words: “It’s on me.”
Those three words have become the soundtrack of Fleck’s time in Minnesota. While they win games, they also leave a feeling of disappointment. When a path to do something great is in front of them, they’ve routinely come up short.
The latest example came in Saturday’s loss to Illinois. The Gophers entered the game in a four-way tie in the Big Ten West and controlled their path to the Big Ten championship game. The Illini were without standout defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton in the first half due to a targeting penalty in the previous game and the Gophers had a chance to go ahead early.
Instead, the Illini jumped out to a 14-7 lead in the first quarter before Athan Kaliakmanis hit Brevyn Spann-Ford for a 31-yard touchdown. The Gophers drove deep into Illinois territory late in the first half but instead of going for a touchdown, the Gophers called six straight rushing plays before settling for a 36-yard field goal by Dragan Kesich to go ahead 17-14 at halftime.
The Gophers continued to keep Illinois in the game by settling for another field goal to take a 20-14 lead before Illinois took the lead back on a 54-yard screen pass from Luke Altmyer to Kaden Feagin.
With Illinois’ lead holding up in the fourth quarter, the Gophers finally went for the jugular after Isaiah Williams fumbled, taking the lead on a 31-yard touchdown pass from Kaliakmanis to Daniel Jackson with 5:53 to go.
WHIPLASH. #Gophers
Screenshot: Polarizing swings on ESPN’s win probability in Illinois’ 27-26 win. From when Minnesota took 26-21 lead with 6 minutes left to putting Illini in 4th and 11 from own 15 and long, game-winning touchdown pass 2 plays later and 50 seconds left in game. pic.twitter.com/tEMF154CO6
— Andy Greder (@andygreder) November 5, 2023
A couple of key stops on defense and Altmyer’s departure from the game due to injury put the Gophers’ win probability through the roof, but backup quarterback John Paddock helped the Illini march 85 yards in four plays, hitting Williams for a game-winning 46-yard touchdown.
“I think both teams showed a lot of resolve,” Fleck said during his postgame press conference. “I think it was a heck of a football game. Unfortunately, we came down to a few plays that we weren’t able to make. [We] weren’t able to finish the game on offense. [We] weren’t able to finish the game on defense. And that starts with me. 100 percent. [We] weren’t able to get it done.”
Two days later Fleck uttered the “on me” phrase again.
“One play, breakdown in communication. Shouldn’t happen, can’t happen. I gotta do a better job coaching it. Simple. It all falls on me anyway, but you can’t have that lack of communication where you think you have a little bit more support inside than you think you do when you don’t,” Fleck said Monday. “That’s a miscommunication piece and that falls on the coaching staff.”
This is the refrain that has defined Fleck’s tenure. The Gophers went 11-2 and finished 10th in the AP Poll in 2019 but also beat South Dakota State, Fresno State and Georgia Southern by a combined 13 points to begin the season.
While the Gophers started 9-0, they stumbled late to dismantle their College Football Playoff hopes. A few weeks later, the Gophers laid an egg against Wisconsin, falling 38-17 with a trip to the Big Ten Championship Game on the line.
The 2020 season never got off the ground due to the COVID-19 pandemic but the 2021 season was over before it started after losing at home to Bowling Green and a bad Illinois team at home.
In 2022, the Gophers won their first four games by a combined score of 183-24 including a 34-7 victory on the road at Michigan State. The Gophers lost to Purdue at home the following week and suffered two more losses at Illinois and Penn State.
The Gophers still had a chance to win the Big Ten West but threw the ball just 15 times and averaged 2.8 air yards per attempt in a 13-10 loss at home to Iowa.
“It’s 100% on my shoulders, as I’m the head football coach,” Fleck said after the collapse against Northwestern in September.
After the 2021 disaster against Bowling Green, Fleck said: “We didn’t deserve to win that football game whatsoever. Whether we won the game or not, we didn’t deserve to win that football game, and that 100 percent falls on me.”
Two days after Wisconsin whipped Minnesota in 2019, Fleck said: “I apologize to our fans for not being able to get it done, because it falls on my shoulders. 100 percent of it. Nobody else. Not staff, not players, me. I did not get it done for our fans. And we’ll make sure that happens.”
Four years later the same issues have Fleck saying the same words: “It’s on me.”
Minnesota took a 21-point lead into the fourth quarter at Northwestern earlier this season and watched it evaporate in a shocking 37-34 overtime loss. Then came Saturday’s late-game collapse against Illinois.
Even with those disappointments, the Gophers still had the Big Ten West crown within reach if they just took care of business. Instead, the Gophers fumbled another chance to do something great and exacerbated apathy among the fan base.
What just transpired in the last minute of this game will define Fleck and Rossi for the rest their #Gophers careers. As much as any big win, this loss is a defining moment with last chance to make a BT Championship. Any and all criticism towards the coaches is warranted. pic.twitter.com/BKlXLuCrRE
— GopherHole.com (@GopherHole) November 4, 2023
This game encapsulated the PJ Fleck era so well. Alway in position to do something special, but just one step short.
— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) November 4, 2023
I’ll say this…
It’s really frustrating knowing that there are more than just a few #Gophers losses where Fleck has gotten in his own way.
You could put today’s game on that list.
— Noel Thompson (@N0ELTHOMPSON) November 5, 2023
#gophers there went your one chance to win the west. you got beat for the 10th straight time by the great pumpkins, bielema. fleck can't handle the big time. got scared against a backup qb with the game on the line. pic.twitter.com/HTc69qTRrf
— Bro2 (@Jamiebroman2) November 4, 2023
Even with all of this, there are still positives in Fleck’s tenure. If the Gophers win two of their last three games and win their bowl game, it will mark the first time Minnesota has had eight or more wins in three straight seasons since doing it six years in a row from 1900 to 1905.
Fleck has also cleaned up the culture and sent several players including Antoine Winfield Jr. and Rashod Bateman to the NFL. But these slip-ups leave a feeling of disappointment.
It stands to get even worse as Fleck’s offense could get buried by USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington, who are all coming to the Big Ten next season after putting up video game numbers in the PAC-12.
Fleck has made it clear that it’s on him. But what is he going to do about it to bring the Gophers to another level?
