Gophers football fans should beware of the 'signature victory'

The Gophers football team should learn to beware the signature victory. The signature might be more John Gutekunst than John Hancock, the victory more Pyrrhic than promising.

When Jerry Kill's Gophers beat No. 21 Nebraska 28-24 in Lincoln last year, the victory seemed worthy of the "signature" designation. The victory made the Gophers 8-3, giving them a chance to vie for a Big Ten title and one of the shinier bowl games.

Kill had beaten the Cornhuskers in consecutive years, adding legitimacy to his team's two-year run of competence. Fans sensed great days ahead.

Since that victory, the Gophers are 4-5. Their victories have come against Colorado State (in overtime), Ohio (by three points), Kent State (by three points) and a blowout of Purdue. The Gophers are in danger of re-entering the atmosphere along a path blazed by their predecessors.

In 1981, Joe Salem coached the Gophers to an upset of No. 6 Iowa in Iowa City. Two games later, he led the Gophers to an upset of No. 18 Ohio State. A transformative victory? Hardly. After that, Salem went 1-19 in the Big Ten and got fired.

He was replaced by Lou Holtz. Strangely, given his reputation for working miracles at the Metrodome, Holtz is the only Gophers coach of recent vintage who did not earn a signature victory. He did not beat a ranked team.

Gutekunst, his successor, beat Clemson in the Independence Bowl after Holtz left following the 1985 regular season, then upset No. 2 Michigan at The Big House in 1986. He was 5-2 against the Big Ten at that moment. He would go 13-26-2 against the Big Ten thereafter, earning his own maroon-tinged red slip.

On Oct. 23, 1993, Jim Wacker led the Gophers to an upset of No. 15 Wisconsin at the Metrodome. Surely, this was a good omen. Or not. Wacker went 3-24 against the Big Ten between that date and his firing.

Glen Mason began coaching the Gophers in 1997. He had elevated a traditionally horrid Kansas program into the top 10, and had been the top choice to take over at Georgia. On Nov. 6, 1999, Mason led the Gophers to a victory over No. 2 Penn State at Beaver Stadium. Epic? Yes. Meaningful? Not really. Mason would go 26-32 against the Big Ten from that point until being fired.

He would also beat Michigan at the Big House in 2005, only to see his team go 2-4 the rest of that season.

Tim Brewster replaced Mason. In 2008 a victory at No. 25 Purdue made the Gophers 7-1. Fans began hoping for a major bowl invitation. From that point until his firing, Brewster went 7-18.

After a search that could be termed exhaustive because so many coaches turned him down, Gophers athletic director Joel Maturi hired Kill.

Kill asked for patience while he rebuilt the program, as his motto suggests, "Brick by Brick." He and his staff helped the Gophers become stronger and tougher.

Kill gave Gophers fans reason to dream, and when he beat Nebraska for a second consecutive season, they could envision a trip to the Big Ten title game, perhaps even something grander.

The week after winning at Nebraska, the Gophers went to Wisconsin and took a 17-3 lead in the second quarter.

If you are a keen Gophers historian, or if you can identify trends, you know what happened next. Wisconsin outscored the Gophers 31-7 the rest of the way.

Since taking that 17-3 lead against the Badgers, the Gophers have been outscored 226-167. They have barely beaten Colorado State, Kent State and Ohio. They have been shut out by Northwestern and shredded by a Nebraska team that entered last week's game 2-4. Nebraska had not scored more than 21 points in a Big Ten game this season before putting up 48 at TCF Bank Stadium on Saturday.

It's always tough in sports to know when a winning team is on a peak, and when it's on a path. For 30 years, the Gophers' biggest victories have provided reason to celebrate, but not to invest.

Jim Souhan's podcast can be heard at MalePatternPodcasts.com. On Twitter: @SouhanStrib. • jsouhan@startribune.com