Everything P.J. Fleck said following Minnesota's 42-3 loss to No.1 Ohio State
Following Minnesota’s 42-3 loss to the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes on Saturday evening in Columbus, Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck met with the media to discuss the game and how the Golden Gophers (3-2, 1-1) will move on from the week six defeat.
OPENING STATEMENT
Like I told our team in there, some nights you get your butt kicked, and we got our butt kicked. We got to give credit where credit’s due. They dominated all three phases and won the last scrimmage.
Really proud of our players’ fight, their effort, and their never-quit mentality. But when you’re one-and-11 on third down, that was the main thing going into the game. We’re going to have to sustain drives. They make it very difficult to do that. When you look at their statistics, I mean, we’re doing what everybody else has done against them, unfortunately. They put you in a corner and mix up so many different coverages and fronts.
After that first drive, I thought we had them in their base defense, their base coverages, and we had a really good beat on them. And then we came back off, and they changed it, and it’s really good coaching. We just couldn’t create any separation on the outside.
We didn’t protect very well, and we couldn’t run the football. On the defensive side, we got dominated in the line of scrimmage. They’re really big, really powerful.
They force you to put more people in the box, and they throw it over your top with two first-round draft picks. You’re picking your poison, and I said that leading into the game. They know how people are going to defend them. And the minute you pick something, they go ahead and take what you’re giving them. They’ve got the playmakers to do it. I thought their quarterback played really well and threw the ball really well. The receivers caught the ball really well. They created separation. We couldn’t get any pressure on the quarterback.
If you do that, you’re exposed on the outside. Unfortunately, that’s where the game went. So I’m proud of our players’ fight. We didn’t turn the ball over, which is really positive for us. We knew we were going to do that, but we said we were going to have to get multiple takeaways on defense. We didn’t get any takeaways on defense.
We have a really good football team, though. We really do. Sometimes you get a fight and get your butt kicked, and we got our butt kicked. You have to be able to swallow that pill, and it’s all of us—me included—as a team, to get your butt kicked.
We’re only going to get better from it. It’s like sharpening a sword on iron; you have to make it sharper, and we have to be sharper. That’s a really good football team too. That’s why I told him: I said, you play a really good football team. We’ve got to learn from this, we’ve got to grow, and we’ve got to move on.
So congratulations to Ohio State. You have to give them a lot of credit. This isn’t like, I’m not sitting here saying, “Hey, we screwed it up.” I mean, we got our butt kicked. They came out and dominated the line of scrimmage and made the plays when they presented themselves. They executed at a very high level.
I mean, they had 474 yards of offense, we had 162. We were one-and-11 on third down. They were seven-of-10. I think that tells the story. So with that, not sure if you have any questions after that—I just told you everything.
On the offensive line
Fleck: Yeah, I mean, we’re just looking for the best five. We’re looking for the right combination. We knew we were going to have to adjust some things based on what their defense presented, and we did that. I know that kind of surprised some people—didn’t tell you that. But I feel like we’re on to something. And again, I say that after we just got dominated in the line of scrimmage.
We have to find the right five, and then in what order we need them at. Because in the first four games, we had to respond to that, and I thought we did a good job doing that. I think it might take a game or two, but I feel really good about where we’re at there. They were just better than us tonight.
On Darius Taylor’s return and any sort of limitations
Fleck: Yeah, he was. It’s not a snap count — it’s a workload number. From the start of the game until whenever the trainers pull him, that’s a medical staff decision. He practiced on a workload, but we didn’t know exactly how much he’d play.
They managed him really well. No matter how the game went, that was the plan. If it had been 3–3 in the second quarter, we might’ve played him less to extend the workload. But being down, we needed our best players on the field. He felt really good, which is a great sign. He got game experience coming off injury, so I feel good about him going into next week.
On the value of Drake Lindsey getting to play a team like Ohio State
Fleck: “I think it was important for our whole team. That’s one of the best defenses I’ve seen in 13 years. And I mean that. I finally met Coach Patricia after the game — it’s not just the talent and depth, which are exceptional — it’s the schematic complexity.
Every play is a different front, blitz, or coverage structure. In the second half, they went to more “one rat,” and since we couldn’t create separation and they could stop the run, that was pretty dominating. They’ve got great players and a great scheme — they complement each other really well.
That’s why I went for it on fourth down when it was 14–3. It was fourth-and-one — I could punt, but would you rather give them a 90-yard touchdown drive or try to get a first down? They didn’t turn the ball over all game, and they could go 90 yards in five plays. I had to give something to our team. It was the right call — we just didn’t get it.”
On what he talked to Koi Perich about at the end of the game
Fleck: This is a results business — we get paid to win — but my job is to teach. Those are great teaching moments, even if they’re not fun.
I had those conversations with a few players — maybe five or six — because I want them to know where my head is, how I want them to respond, and what leadership looks like. Gratitude and empathy connect a locker room. Our team has both.
So it was about leadership and how to respond from this. It wasn’t about the game — it was about moving forward and the demands of leadership from here on out.
On his in-game conversations with Danny Collins about the pass defense issues
Fleck: I don’t think it was necessarily pass defense issues — they just have really good players. They force you into being one-dimensional. It’s pick your poison.
If you stop the run, they hit you over the top. We couldn’t get any pressure on the quarterback, which allowed those guys to run down the field and the quarterback to throw unpressured. That’s all 11 working together — not just coverage.
It didn’t matter what we called — they executed against everything. Whether it was run or pass, they just beat us.
On the challenges of competing with a team like Ohio State (rosters, resources, etc)
Fleck: Well, we’re 0–1. It’s a great question and one for another day. But college football is changing. That’s a really good roster and a really good football team.
You’ve got to credit them for doing things their way and adapting to the new era. Every program adapts differently. Tonight, we just weren’t good enough. It’s one game — we’ll respond.
