Minnesota Gophers 2020 Offseason

[OldDave]

Just so there is context.

Post number 68 by ARM..."First sport cuts at the "U". Only men's sports for now, but ..."

I respond with post number 69..."Seems inevitable this will affect women's sports as well."

Post number 70 from yourself..."I doubt that it will."

Not specifically about women's hockey other than noting how low their revenue is from the 2019 fiscal report.

And more context... ARM's post was about whole men's sports teams being cut and my post was about my confidence that no whole women's sports teams would be cut. So far, I am correct, and you are as well.

 

[ManBehindTheCurtain]

The Strib article about reducing women's roster spots in various sports had a supporting article detailing the cuts. The cuts were to three sports: Cross Country (where the NCAA average is 17 roster spots, the Gophers are cutting from 34 to 20), Rowing (NCAA average is 62, cutting from 75 to 60), and Track (NCAA average is 40, cutting from 68 to 50).

When you look at the details from the 2019 financial report, $1,444,000 of the "net loss" does not represent outlays that would go away if the hockey program were deleted. That means that less than $1 million, representing coaches salaries, travel, meals, equipment, and the like, would be saved by eliminating the sport. And then you are in Title IX trouble again if you do eliminate it. I'm not worried.

I find myself agreeing with those lamenting the loss of an Olympic sport in the loss of men's track and field. Track and field is one of the purest forms of sport, not much judging, just let's line up over here and the first one to get all the way over there is the winner, or the one who can throw this heavy weight the farthest is the winner. My personal greatest athletic achievements were in tennis and I hate to see that team go but realistically as a fan I have really only followed professional tennis, I can name only a handful of players for the Gophers over the years.

But looking at those numbers for the women's teams I find it hard to disagree with the cuts. 34 for cross country seems a little bloated.

 

[Steamboat]

Offseason will be over soon! Schedule is out! Time to get excited for Gopher Women's Hockey.
Who will start the new thread? Potential lines? Probable smack talk?
Let's go Gophers!

 

[Timothy A]

Probable smack talk?

Watts up?! Ya'll gotta be good to talk smack with the BADgers. I just don't know how they will split the PK 4 ways between Webster, O'Brien, S Shirley and Watts. If I was on twitter I would insert the GIF of the red puppet dude from Sesame Street shrugging his shoulder at the end of the post and a GIF of someone winking.

 

[Steamboat]

Smack talk challenge taken!

 

[Timothy A]

Watts up?! Ya'll gotta be good to talk smack with the BADgers. I just don't know how they will split the PK 4 ways between Webster, O'Brien, S Shirley and Watts. If I was on twitter I would insert the GIF of the red puppet dude from Sesame Street shrugging his shoulder at the end of the post and a GIF of someone winking.

I feel like I did not give Maddi Wheeler enough respect in the post above, so it will be a 5 way tie. Sorry Maddi.

 

[ManBehindTheCurtain]

I am going to hold off on signing up for BigTen+ for just a bit. I am beginning to have serious doubts that any games will be played this weekend.

 

[D2D]

I am going to hold off on signing up for BigTen+ for just a bit. I am beginning to have serious doubts that any games will be played this weekend.

As I type this this weekend's games against Ohio State are scheduled to be streamed on FLOHOCKEY. But they do not yet appear on the schedule for BTN+, as announced, so I'm not sure what's going on there.