They say that those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.  So what exactly does that say about the Minnesota Gophers football squad returning to the Insight Bowl for the third time in four years?

We'll get to that another time.  As for today, what is the history of this bowl?

The Insight Bowl is the third incarnation of the name of the bowl that started out as the Copper Bowl in 1989, then changed to the Insight.com Bowl in 1996 when Insight Enterprises took over the naming rights.  The game has been called the Insight Bowl since 2002.

The Big Ten got involved with the Insight Bowl in 2006 when the game began to feature a match-up between our beloved conference and a Big 12 school.  That, of course, was the year Texas Tech staged the biggest comeback in Division I bowl history, coming back from a 38-7 deficit mid-way through the 3rd quarter.  That utter collapse also proved to be the final straw in Glen Mason's undoing as head of the Gophers. 

In the three year history of the Big Ten v Big 12 match-up in the Insight Bowl, the Big Ten is 0-3, with Minnesota accounting for two of those losses (2006 v Texas Tech, 2008 v Kansas).  The other was an Indiana loss in 2007 to Oklahoma State. 

The reality of the situation is that, outside of the first two and a half quarters of the 2006 Minnesota v Texas Tech Insight Bowl, the Big Ten has not been competitive in this game.

Gopher fans and Big Ten fans alike can agree on one thing, that needs to change this year.

Call me Lt. Daniel Kaffee if you must.  If it was me standing there, yelling at Col. Nathan Jessep, demanding the truth, and he yelled back at me "YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!!!"  He'd be right.  I can't handle the truth, not today.

Here are the facts:

The Gophers finished the season 6-6, which happens to be exactly where a lot of people thought they would end up.

Unless you believed Graham, Law Buck and Bama Hawk.  And if you did, I'm sorry.

The Gophers beat Syracuse, Air Force, Northwestern, Purdue, Michigan State and South Dakota State.  They were absolutely expected to win 5 of those games, with Michigan State being the trump card.  They lost to Cal, Wisconsin, Penn State, Ohio State, Illinois and Iowa.  Five of those teams are very good teams.  Illinois is the game that stings the most.

So, the facts can be summed up as such: The Gophers finished the season with the record that many people felt they would, they won the games that they were supposed to win, most of the games they lost were to better teams, and they didn't do enough in the fence games to get them past a .500 record.

Now the truth...

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To bench or not to bench... THAT is the question
Whether tis nobler on the field to suffer
The sacks and throw-aways of outrageous fortune
Or to throw with your arm into a sea of troubles
And by opposing them, end them?

Ouch, that hurt my head.

HOLY CRIPES, the blogosphere has been abuzz today with Adam Weber talk... play him, bench him, lynch him, buy him a Coke.

It all started with this...

The Daily Gopher's "A desperate plea for Gopher fans to take a reasoned approach to the QB situation."

"The notion that Adam Weber is terrible or unwatchable or that another QB on the roster gives us a better chance to win is 100% wrong.  Adam Weber has been guilty of being horribly inconsistent, but the accusations and charges that he is unwatchable or has no business in a Gopher uniform are unfair and misguided."

It is a very well thought out post, and brings up some good points.  I encourage you to read it.

This was followed up by Gopher Football Blog's "Why Adam Weber should not be the starting quarterback by default."

"I love The Daily Gopher blog. Love it. Read it everyday, and link to it often. The guys on there are very intelligent, write well, are as passionate about the Gophers as any fans you will ever meet, and they have probably forgotten more about Gopher sports than I'll ever know. This is especially true about one of their founders, and head writer, Gopher Nation. GN is a quality human being, loves the Gophers, and only wants to see the football program succeed. But a post he wrote today over on TDG about Adam Weber makes me so incredibly frustrated, I can hardly stand it. In fact, I'm going to write a point/counterpoint style post about it because I just cannot believe someone as smart and passionate as him believes what he wrote about Adam Weber. I just can't."

A well thought out post, countering some of TDG's points.  I encourage you to read it as well.

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I was at The Bank (TCF Bank Stadium) on Saturday evening for a Halloween Gopher match-up with the Michigan State Spartans.  I was sitting in the top row of the upper deck (as a side note, still great seats).  I was wearing layers of warm clothing.  I was wearing a Gophers stocking cap (a tuque for you Canadians).  I was surrounded by other Gopher fans, and I was two sections away from a large group of Michigan State fans. 

As I walked out of The Bank the scoreboard read Minnesota 42, Michigan State 34.  I saw all of these things with my very own eyes. 

I also saw Adam Weber throwing to 6 different receivers.  I saw Nick Tow-Arnett lead the team in receptions.  I saw Da'Jon McKnight emerge as a Gopher receiver.  I saw the Gophers get yellow-flagged 17 times, and I saw those penalties cost them 157 yards.  Again, I saw all of these things with my very own eyes, so I have to believe that they happened.

Graham made a compelling case for benching Weber...

I talked last week about optimism leaving Gopher Nation after Decker went down...

But there is something else that I saw with my own eyes that I am just not sure I believe...

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... is whatever wind was left in the collective sails of Golden Gopher football fans quickly diminishing.

From Marcus Fuller at the St Paul Pioneer Press:

"University of Minnesota standout wide receiver Eric Decker has a sprained left arch in his foot that might need surgery and will miss the rest of the regular season, Gophers coach Tim Brewster said today.

It's still possible Decker would be available if the Gophers make it to a bowl game. They are 4-4 (2-3 in the Big Ten) and need two more wins to be bowl eligible.

Decker, a senior, leads the Gophers in receiving with 50 catches for 758 yards and 5 touchdowns. Earlier this week, he was announced as one of 10 semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award given to the nation's top receiver."

Two words come to mind...

OUCH!

And being as this is a family progrum, the other I can't repeat.

Something occurred to me while looking ahead to the Gophers game against Purdue. 

Joey Elliott (QB Purdue) = Joe Elliott (Lead Singer Def Leppard)?

Here's a look at the facts. You be the judge.

Both have great hair...

 

Both can direct traffic...

And both have great "singers face"...

Coincidence?  Or are they the same person?

The title of this post could be a description of one of two things.  The first could be the Gopher football team against Wisconsin.  Penalties, turnovers, penalties, lack of creativity... just get out of your own way already!

Or, it could be a description of me after the Gophers loss to Wisconsin on Saturday. 

Just for fun, let's pretend it's both.

Bama Hawkeye thinks this crap is funny.  It's not.

Graham has 5 Questions, but none of them involve Minnesota... you should read it anyway.

Hilary breaks down Wisky's win. She almost had a heart attack... she shouldn't have been so nervous.  The Gophers are a great shot when aiming at their own feet.

I'll have a tall Schell's please.

After looking at a house Saturday morning and subsequently going to our realtor's office to write up and offer on it, my wife and I walk into a local establishment with the score tied at 10, toward the beginning of the second quarter. 

We started walking toward one end of the place when I suddenly said to my wife "We can't sit here!"  As I turn around abruptly and walk to the other end of the establishment.  "What was wrong with over there?"  "Iowa fans... they're everywhere." Someday she'll learn.

I settle in to watch the game and order a beer.  During the time that I would be watching this game I would not see MarQueis Gray touch the ball one single time.

I watch the Gophers put together a 12 play, 81 yard drive that only ends in a FG, thanks to Chris Bunders and a chop block on 1st and goal from the 1-yard line.

I finish my first beer, and being as I hadn't eaten anything, I was feeling the beginning effects (perma-smile, warm cheeks, etc).

Sure, why not... I'll have another tall one.

I still haven't had anything to eat at this point, but my beer is nearly empty, and the waitress is offering, and who am I to turn down a beer?  As I sip on the sweet nectar of my second Schell's (I thought it was the Amber, but now I'm questioning myself... maybe it was the Octoberfest?) I am still steaming at the penalty.  It's 13-10, but it should be 17-10.  Penalties have been an issue for the Gophers most of this year, but this particular penalty is a glaring example of how untimely they have been.

The first half finishes with the Gophers getting the ball back deep in their own territory... however, they have 1:13 to play, 2 timeouts, and the best receiver in the Big Ten on their team.  Surely they will push the ball down.... oh, wait... I guess maybe they'll just run the clock out and GO INTO THE LOCKER ROOM HAVING NOT USED TWO TIMEOUTS!!!! 

WHAT THE DEUCE?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

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Do you know who will win?  Make sure to go back and submit your picks for Week 4 of the Obligatory Predictions Contest. Weekly winners get a chance to write 500 words on the site. NEW this year is our season long competition - win the whole damn thing and we send you something amazing.

Graham did an admirable job laying out Why Northwestern Will Beat Minnesota... but I think he's just trying to get Gopher fans fired up.  I happen to think that he has a soft spot in his heart for the Gophers and he's doing his best to talk himself out of it. 

Here's my non-barrister-esque attempt to respond to his points.

Mike Kafka is leading the NCAA in pass completion percentage and can gallop like a horse. He has astonishing potential.

True, true.  True.  But who cares?  NWestern hasn't played a defense like Minnesota.  Kafka absolutely destroyed Minnesota last year, and I get that, but this is a completely different defense than last year.  The line-backing group is one of the best in the Big Ten and the defense continues to show the ability to make in-game adjustments to whatever they are facing from the opposing team... which is good because NWestern is schizophrenic.  Kafka was unreal against Syracuse, but he was average against something called Towson (15/20 192 yards, 6 yards rushing) and Eastern Michigan (14/24 158 yards, 24 yards rushing).  

All the injured NW linebackers and cornerbacks will return to play against the Gophers, meaning NW will feature a fully healthy defense for the first time this year. Plus, the Wildcats return their top running back, who didn't play against Syracuse because of injury.

NWestern's defense does make me a bit nervous, but mostly because the Gopher offense has not shown anything of substance as a threat this year.  Having said that, injured players alone cannot account for what Paulus did to NWestern's defense, and it's not like he was spreading the ball around that much... 11 of his 24 completions and 209 of his346 yards were to Mike Williams... those are very Weber-to-Decker-like numbers.

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People tend to mock what they do not understand, and no place in the sporting world is this more true than right here in the land of 10,000 lakes.  And with no team is this more true than with my beloved Gopher football team. 

To the average sports fan in Minneapolis, Gopher football doesn't matter.  Around here it's pretty much Vikings... and then everything else.  If the Twins are playing well, we'll pay attention, same for the T'Wolves.  The Wild have a very loyal and passionate fan base as well, but the Vikings still rule this town.  Gopher football hasn't mattered for a long time.

The Bank (TCF Bank Stadium) has changed some of that as the University campus has been revived on football game days, but, as a whole, there is still an apathetic attitude toward Gopher football.  I have friends who are huge sports fans, and specifically huge football fans, and yet, they don't watch Gopher football games unless there is nothing else on TV.  These same friends look at me like I'm crazy when I tell them I care more about the Gophers than the Vikings. 

These are the types of people who don't watch Gopher football games, and maybe just catch the highlights on the 10 o'clock news, but they will refer to the team as the "Goofers."  People who don't pay attention to the program will refer Coach Tim Brewster as "Punky."

To some, losing this apathetic attitude by local sports fans, who are already huge Vikings fans, is almost the litmus test for Gopher football success.  While I don't subscribe to that feeling, and choose to believe that success on the field is the real litmus test (crazy, I know), this still got me to thinking: Are the Gophers close to getting over the apathy hump?  Are they close to losing these nicknames with the local sports fan?

Poll

Is Minnesota doing a good job of working toward becoming a respectable Big Ten program?

21%

Yes, they are very close.

30 votes

49%

Yes, but it will still take a few years.

69 votes

28%

No.

40 votes

139 votes | Poll has closed

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Over at the Gopher Football Blog we interviewed the author of Excuse Me For My Voice, Ken Crawford, for our weekly podcast.  Ken's blog is a Cal football specific blog following the Bears and, obviously, still reveling in the memory of "The Play." 

The interview was conducted by my buddy and counterpart at the blog, Jeff.  Here is a recap of the interview which you can also listen to at the Gopher Football blog site.

Gopher Football Blog: Explain to us first what the heck the name of your blog means?

Ken Crawford: It goes back to the most famous play in Cal Bear history, "The Play" as we call it.  In the call, not long after the touchdown is scored, the video announcer, Joe Starkey, busts through and his voice has completely destroyed itself and he is pretty much inaudible when he yells "EXCUSE ME FOR MY VOICE!!!"  And then continues on.  A Cal fan will have listened to that audio enough times that they would know that right off the bat.

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