P.J. Fleck shares Minnesota’s travel plans for first ever game at Oregon
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P.J. Fleck shares Minnesota’s travel plans for first ever game at Oregon
Oregon will be hosting Minnesota for the first time ever in 2024. The Ducks play at Iowa the week before hosting the Friday night game. The Golden Gophers have a bye before coming to Eugene. It’s one of three Friday night games at West coast Big Ten teams in 2025 in which the home team is coming off a road trip and the visitor is coming after a bye. It was “not feasible” last year with the Spartans coming off playing Ohio State before facing Oregon, Ducks coach Dan Lanning said.. Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck said his experience from Western Michigan playing midweek games in the MAC will be useful when preparing to come to Autzen Stadium late in the fall.
LAS VEGAS — In 16 weeks, Oregon will be hosting Minnesota for the first time ever and that isn’t the only unusual aspect of the Big Ten matchup. The Ducks play at Iowa the week before hosting the Friday night game against the Golden Gophers, who have a bye before coming to Eugene.
“That’s unique,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said. “If you’re aware of it, you communicate it and don’t make the moment bigger than the moment — go play the game not the occasion, we’ll be fine.”
It’s one of three Friday night games at West coast Big Ten teams in 2025 in which the home team is coming off a road trip and the visitor is coming off a bye — Washington hosts Rutgers and USC hosts Northwestern under those same circumstances.
Minnesota, which went 8-5 last season, ended the 2024 regular season with a Friday day game at Wisconsin. It has also played several Friday night games and taken multiple West coast trips during P.J. Fleck’s tenure, including to Oregon State in 2017.
Fleck said his experience from Western Michigan playing midweek games in the MAC will be useful when preparing to come to Autzen Stadium late in the fall.
“I like to keep everybody on Central time and keep it pretty standard,” Fleck said. “I don’t like to get out somewhere 2-3 days early. I’ve never been that way.”
The Ducks played two Friday night games last season; at home against Michigan State and at Purdue.
Unlike Fleck, former Oregon State coach Jonathan Smith said he’d prefer to get to a West coast site two days before the game in the future, but that was “not feasible” last year with the Spartans coming off playing Ohio State before facing Oregon. The Ducks faced the same issue when traveling to West Lafayette.
At least entering the season, Fleck’s plan is to arrive the day before Minnesota’s two West coast games — the Gophers play at Cal on Sept. 13.
“We take all the information and data from the National Football League when they travel internationally and when they’re going so many time zones over,” Fleck said. “We have certain routines we use on the plane; what we do on the plane, before we get on the plane, when we get off the plane.
“There’s all these little 1% advantages you’re trying to grab because you’re doing a huge trip and a lot of people are going to set the narrative of talking about (it) and create a distraction. … It’s all about presentation. I think presentation is a big key of it. How do you present that to your football team.”
— James Crepea covers the Oregon Ducks and Big Ten.