At the latest American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) meeting, Minnesota head coach Glen Mason said he regrets not taking the job at Georgia when it was offered after the 1995 season.
Mason, the new president of the AFCA, made his comments to a group of reporters at the AFCA convention in San Antonio earlier this month.
The following quote appeared in Sporting News college football writer Tom Dienhart’s football notebook Jan. 20:
“Flying into Athens, we flew over the stadium, and I looked down at the campus and said to myself, ‘This is a great job, and what a wonderful opportunity.’ I made a huge mistake not taking that job.”
Mason accepted the Bulldogs position, then changed his mind and remained at Kansas. One year later, Mason went to Minnesota.
Harrigan earns award
Minnesota runner Tahesia Harrigan was named the Big Ten Track and Field Athlete of the Week on Jan. 22 for her three wins at the Minnesota Quad on Jan. 19.
The British Virgin Islands native won the 60-meter dash in 7.42 seconds to claim the first NCAA Division I provisional qualifying time of the season for the Gophers.
The sophomore also placed first in the 200-meter dash with a time of 24.86 and ran second on the 4×400-meter relay team that finished with a first-place time of 3:49.99.
Harrigan currently holds the 60 and 200-meter dash records, which she set last season.
LeVesseur leaves
Minnesota wrestler Marcus LeVesseur has decided to leave the Gophers. LeVesseur is the second wrestler to leave the team in the last week, as Cory Cooperman announced Thursday he was transferring to Lehigh University.
LeVesseur, a Minneapolis native, came to Minnesota as a four-time state wrestling champion at Minneapolis Roosevelt and Bloomington Kennedy. He was listed as the second best recruit in InterMat’s 2000 top 200 recruits.
“We’re sorry to see Marcus go, but we’ll move on,” head coach J Robinson said. “He brought a lot to the mat, but he didn’t want to wrestle. I wish him well in whatever path he chooses to follow.”
LeVesseur did not lose as a Gopher, compiling a 10-0 record at 149 pounds, winning co-titles with Jared Lawrence at the Bison and Northern Opens and a title at the Kaufman-Brand 20 and under open.
Horak earns award
Freshman goaltender Jody Horak took women’s WCHA Rookie of the Week after making 41 saves against Minnesota-Duluth to help Minnesota win 3-1 over the defending NCAA Champions last Saturday.
Horak’s 41 saves on 42 shots were good for a .976 save percentage, helping the Gophers extend their unbeaten string to 18 games. The one goal Horak did allow came on a Bulldog power play.
In 11 starts this season, Horak is 9-0-2 in net for the Gophers.
