Jan 3, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck prepares for the mayo dump after his teams’ win over Virginia Tech Hokies at the Duke’s Mayo Bowl at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Anonymous Big Ten coach thinks P.J. Fleck could be 'on the hunt' to leave Minnesota

Originally posted on Minnesota Golden Gophers on SI
By Tony Liebert | Last updated May 23, 2025 1:59 PM ET

P.J. Fleck was one of the hottest names in coaching when he came to Minnesota in 2017. It has been an up-and-down tenure, but there seem to be annual rumors of him potentially looking for other jobs.

Athlon Sports does an annual "Big Ten Coaches Talk Anonymously About Conference Foes" piece for its preview magazine, and one coach seems to think Fleck could be looking for other jobs.

"It’s no secret Fleck wants to be at a high-end, title-contending program. This doesn’t look like a (2019) season on paper, but if they win nine games or so, he’ll be on the hunt to move," one coach apparently said.

Last offseason consisted of rumors that Fleck "hunted other jobs," mainly UCLA, and the interest was later confirmed by University of Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle. Athlon Sports does not specify if these are head coaches or assistant coaches, but it's clear someone within the Big Ten thinks Fleck wants to get out of town.

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With redshirt freshman Drake Lindsey as the Gophers' projected starting quarterback alongside first-year defensive coordinator Danny Collins, there are a lot of questions heading into 2025 for Minnesota, but other coaches seem to think it'll be a similar story for the program this year. Fleck has gone 56-39 in Minneapolis, with a 33-36 record in conference play. The Gophers have five winning seasons in his eight-year tenure but have only won double-digit games once, back in 2019.

"P.J. [Fleck] has built a consistent winner even though it’s not at an elite level. So the good news is the bad news, depending on your expectations, because it is more of the same," another coach said.

Minnesota has tough road games against Oregon and Ohio State, but the rest of the schedule is quite doable this year. If Lindsey breaks out and the Gophers go 9-3 or 10-2, Fleck will once again be a very hot name in the coaching world.

As long as Fleck is still employed as the head coach of Gophers football, we'll never know the validity to the rumors he wants to leave. The program is objectively in a healthy spot, and after last year's UCLA situation, it's hard to ignore.