Without a game to coach, how did P.J. Fleck spend his weekend?

During his team’s bye weekend, Coach P.J. Fleck of the Gophers football team took the opportunity to watch some non-team games. He was particularly impressed with No. 7 Washington’s incredible 36-33 comeback victory over No. 8 Oregon.

The game reached its climax in the final minutes of the fourth quarter when the Huskies scored the winning touchdown with just 1 minute and 38 seconds left. The Ducks had a chance to force overtime but failed to make a 43-yard field goal on the game’s last play.

“That’s exactly what college football is all about,” said Fleck. “It’s one of the most exciting games I’ve seen in a long time. And that’s precisely the kind of energy that’s coming into our league.”

In addition to the thrilling games, Fleck also used the bye week for recruiting. He and safeties coach Danny Collins traveled up north via I-35 to watch Koi Perich, a four-star safety and Gophers commit, from Esko High School playing at Hermantown. Perich put on an impressive display, with seven rushes for 94 yards and two touchdowns, two interceptions returned for touchdowns, five tackles, and one sack in a convincing 41-7 Esko victory.

Game time for the Gophers’ upcoming home game against Michigan State on October 28th has been set for 2:30 p.m. with coverage on the Big Ten Network, according to the official announcement from the Big Ten. This will be Minnesota’s third 2:30 p.m. start of the season, having previously played at that time against North Carolina and Iowa. The Gophers have also had games at 6:30 p.m. (Eastern Michigan, Northwestern, and Michigan), 7 p.m. (Nebraska), and 11 a.m. (Louisiana).