Gophers coach P.J. Fleck shares emotional message on Minneapolis shooting

Gophers football coach P J Fleck spoke from his heart after the - season-opening win over Buffalo on Thursday His nearly -minute opening announcement didn t have anything to do football he longed to address the mass shooting that killed two children and injured at Annunciation Catholic Church in south Minneapolis on Wednesday We ve been through a demonic tragedy over the past inadequate days and that s felt by every single person in our city in our state Fleck disclosed I m a husband and a father first so are our coaches Our players are sons And I think I speak for everyone when we say that our thoughts our hearts our prayers are with every single family that is going through an unthinkable horrific tragedy Unimaginable The Gophers football association discussed the tragedy after the win at Huntington Bank Stadium We stated that we re playing for so numerous more people than just our locker room and our fans Fleck continued We re playing to give hope to people for maybe a minute Fleck created his Row the Boat mantra after the death of his infant son Colt passed away to a heart condition in It remains a part of his initiative at Minnesota Row The Boat is about putting your oar back in the water and rowing Fleck commented And that s what this society and the state has reliably been about That s why I have fallen in love and my wife Heather has fallen in love with this public and this state Then Fleck s voice cracked It s unthinkable to know what those families are going through he continued And I m sure that this doesn t make anybody feel any better but I truly hope that we brought a little glimpse of hope with our backs against the wall to our city where they can excel for a minute and smile with a Gopher football win Fleck stopped short of offering specific solutions to the tragedy I m not a politician nor do I act as one but there s a lot of things that need to happen and should happen and we need to hold people accountable to make sure that happens he commented These are our kids So I ll leave it at that and just know that we re thinking about all of you Related Articles Gophers pull away for a - win over Buffalo in season opener Gophers defensive depth hit by absences in season opener Gophers to pay Buffalo million to play season opener Get to know new Gophers quarterback Drake Lindsey Gophers football former players make NFL rosters