By Courtney Baumann | [email protected]
Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck speaks to members of the media at the Big Ten media days to discuss the upcoming 2017-2018 season.
- “This is the honeymoon stage, and it’s coming down to the end here. It’s been a fabulous six months.” Fleck was hired as Minnesota head coach in January.
- During the off-season, 22 “impactful” players had surgery. “To be able to get those guys back here coming up next week will be really exciting.”
- Fleck has grown to be very close with Rodney Smith, Steven Richardson, and Jon Celestin. “I tell them I love them every day. They’re very special. They sacrifice in everything that they do, and I think you’ll really enjoy spending time around these players.”
- Fleck is the subject of the ESPNU miniseries “Being P.J. Fleck,” which will air in August. “So it’s an honor to be able to have a reality show on the University of Minnesota Golden Gopher football. That is truly an honor. I have not seen the show. I’ve lived life, so I kind of know what that’s like. But I don’t know what the show is going to be like. I don’t know if this is going to be like the Kardashians, or they’re going to spin it that way, or it’s going to be a little bit tamer. But it will be a little interesting to see what comes out of the reality show.”
- “One thing about our program, I think it’s just different. You don’t try to be different, you are just bringing in your stuff. So from your culture to your program to your systems, everything that you do, your leadership abilities.”