Is It Important For Golden Gopher Fans to Beat Ohio State?

This may sound like an obvious question, but what do Minnesota Gopher Fans want to come from the game at Ohio State on Saturday? 

You may ask why even ask the question?  

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Well, I’m new here and I’ve noticed there’s a good number of fans who are ready for U of M to move on from Head Coach PJ Fleck.  So that’s one reason I ask the question. Do you want the team to win? 

If the Gophers were to go on the road to the “Horseshoe” and knock the 3rd Ranked Buckeyes, Coach Fleck would pick up his 50th win as the Golden Gophers Head Coach.  

The win would also be the 6th of the season making Minnesota bowl eligible, which is a goal the team and its fans have at the beginning of the season.  

Not to mention what beating a team like Ohio State on the road could do for recruiting. Players want to play, but they also want to play for teams that win.  

One of the things I’ve noticed fans say about Coach Fleck is that he’s not getting enough high caliber recruits, so a win like this could take a player that’s on the fence between Minnesota and another team and push them to commit to the Gophers.  

Most of the News Cycles last 24 hours at the most, if that, but with football recruits, they take notes, and their memory can last longer than the average news cycle.  

There’s one thing I learned after spending 15 years working in college athletics, the things that cause a 17- or 18-year-old kid to favor one school over others could be as simple as liking the school colors better, or that one big win at Ohio State. 

So, with a Top 5 win, it’s hard to think that a change would be made. And I’ve seen nothing to suggest that Coach Fleck would be fired. Even if he loses the last 2 games, his record at Minnesota will still be 49-34.  

Then I guess the “fire PJ” fans would have to turn their hopes to another school being impressed with the win and hiring Coach Fleck away. 

Another reason I ask the question is from what I’ve seen and heard, not many Gopher fans expect the team to play well let alone win the game.  

There are plenty of stats to back up those feelings for sure, again OSU is the 3rd ranked team in the Country for a reason. They have a 10% chance to win the National Championship, which may not seem like much, but with the current playoff structure, Minnesota is not even in the equation, so 10% seems pretty high from that perspective.  

Here’s another question, would you be happy if The Gophers take the game into the 4th quarter close and loose it late? I don’t believe in moral victories, but for a team that’s been a bit “Jekyll and Hyde” this year, playing well and proving to yourself and fans that you can play with one of the best teams in the nation could go along way heading into the final game with Wisconsin.  

So, with all this being said, do Minnesota Gopher fans want the team to win or not? One thing sports fans should have learned by now, when your team is in the position Minnesota’s in, it’s really hard to get everything you want from this game, so what do you want more?