Perhaps one of the most telling moments from P.J. Fleck's boisterous and lengthy opening news conference Friday as Gophers football coach came when he was asked about his personality.
Fleck talked about how he has an elementary education degree and how that background helps him in a setting where the stakes are higher and the students are much older.
"It's my job to find the most cultural way to teach the old lifetime lessons," Fleck said. "If you're going to teach a rivalry you can't teach Jordan and Bird anymore. They think Jordan is the guy that makes the sneakers, right? You have to use Kanye and Drake. That's the rivalry they think about."
It's an interesting point because it speaks to Fleck's potential ability to relate to players. At 36, he's the youngest major-conference head coach in college football. If an older coach talks about Kanye and Drake, players might roll their eyes. Maybe Fleck can pull it off?
Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. michael.rand@startribune.com.
