Sid Hartman: Gutekunst says Gophers landed exceptional coordinator in Roof

John Gutekunst, a Gophers football assistant under Lou Holtz in 1984 and '85 and then head coach from 1985-1991, has been a longtime friend of new Gophers defensive coordinator Ted Roof. He worked for Roof last season as the linebackers coach at Duke.

Gutekunst said Gophers coach Tim Brewster hired an outstanding coach.

"Well, it's like any other place," Gutekunst said. "You have to make sure you get some talent, but if the kids will run and hit and play with effort, they're going to be in the right spot [because of Roof]."

Gutekunst, who lost his job after last season when Roof was fired at Duke, is taking it easy this year. He describes Roof as one of the smarter coaches he has worked for.

"He has a firm idea of what he wants done, he knows how to get it done, and he goes about it enthusiastically and with a positive attitude," said Gutekunst, one of the more popular coaches to work with the Gophers. "Even with the struggles at Duke, the kids played hard every game and he was positive. He loves to compete on Saturdays. ... He's going to be positive, enthusiastic. He sets the expectations and doesn't waver."

Duke was 1-10 last season, same as the Gophers, but Gutekunst said the Blue Devils could easily have beaten Virginia, Navy and North Carolina, three of the better teams they faced.

Gutekunst said he learned to respect Roof while Gutekunst was coaching at South and North Carolina and those teams faced Duke.

Gutekunst had a respectable 29-37-2 record as the Gophers' head coach. He did a great job at Minnesota and should never have been fired. Had then-athletic director Rick Bay not left the Gophers to become general manager of the Cleveland Indians and interim director Dan Meinert taken over, Gutekunst might have coached at Minnesota for a long time.

After leaving the Gophers, Gutekunst coached one season with the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League, then went back into college coaching at Wake Forest (1992) and South Carolina (1993). He was then at Rutgers as defensive coordinator (1994-95) before taking 2 1/2 years off to work at Madison Square Garden and care for his ailing father. He returned to coach defensive backs and kickers at Rhode Island in 1998.

He reunited with Holtz at South Carolina and coached the defensive secondary from 1999-2003, then coached linebackers and tight ends for three seasons at North Carolina (2004-06) before moving to Duke last season.

Talking about defensive coordinators, my opinion is that Gutekunst was the best they ever had here.

Foye making progress Randy Foye played 35 1/2 minutes Tuesday as the Wolves upset the Jazz 111-100. It was without a doubt his best game since he came back after sitting out 43 games because of a stress reaction in his left kneecap.

"Well, like I said, we just have to be patient," Wolves coach Randy Wittman. "... You know it's tough when you sit out that long to really get your rhythm. This is a game of rhythm and confidence and if you have neither, you don't have a shot to be very productive and he hadn't had a lot of confidence. I thought [Tuesday he did], even though he goes 8-for-16 and missed a couple chippies in that.

"So, he was aggressive. That's the main thing I want him to be: being aggressive, with his aggression taking good shots and making good decisions."

Jottings The Gophers' first game in their new football stadium in 2009 will be against Air Force, but their opening contest that year could be at the University of Houston. There was some talk of Texas being added to the Gophers' schedule, but the Longhorns apparently wanted two home games from Minnesota for one here. ... The Gophers' spring football game will be held March 25 at the Metrodome. Brewster's goal is to set an attendance record.

Gordie Shaw, Gophers offensive line coach for 14 years and developer of some of the top lines in school history, has been named offensive coordinator at the University of South Dakota. While with the Gophers, Shaw helped develop 11 All-Americas and recruited six of them. Shaw had an opportunity to be a member of the University of Houston staff, but turned that down because his family wanted to remain in Minnesota.

Don't be surprised if you see schools such as Alabama, Virginia Tech, LSU and Virginia on future Gophers men's basketball schedules. ... The Gophers athletic department has budgeted $900,000 to install a new basketball floor and new baskets at Williams Area, with work to start on March 1, 2009.

Former Vikings quarterback Todd Bouman has signed a one-year contract with Jacksonville. ... The Gophers will hold their annual pro day on March 4, when local players will work out for NFL players and scouts.