P.J. Fleck on closing the gap: "We have to get better in every aspect"
The Minnesota Golden Gophers on Friday night at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon, were blown out for a third-straight road game.
After falling to Ohio State earlier this season 42-3 in Columbus and getting routed by rival Iowa 41-3 in Iowa City a few weeks ago, the Gophers fell again — this time 42-13 to Oregon. In their four road losses this season, Minnesota has been outscored 152-33.
The gap between Minnesota and the upper echelon teams in the Big Ten appears to be as wide as it has been in quite some time as both the Golden Gophers’ offense and defense have struggled mightily in their three conference defeats.
Following the Gophers’ latest loss, head coach P.J. Fleck was asked what his program must do to close the gap between themselves and the likes of Ohio State, Oregon, and Iowa.
“We have to get better in every aspect of our game,” Fleck said. “They’re a really good football team. I’d love to sit there and say we had some magic pixie dust that was going to make us play better but they executed at an incredibly high level today. That’s what a playoff-contending team does.”
Fleck would also note that the Ducks combine great resources with both great coaching and great athletes.
“They’ve got every resource known to man, but they also coach really hard, and they’re really good coaches,” he continued to say. “When you combine that really good athlete with that really good coaching, and that environment and that type of talent, that is what you see.”
He would also look at the bigger picture of the equation for the Golden Gophers this season, including their inexperience.
“We have a really good football team, but we’re playing a lot of guys at times that really need this experience, and I have no problem with the investment piece of that,” he said.
“I wish I had all the answers right now before watching the film,” he acknowledged. “I’ll have more information for you next week. It’s about getting better, that’s all it is. From tackling to execution, to the pitch and catch piece, all of it.”
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