The short, tender tenure of football coach Jerry Kill perfectly captures the zeitgeist of modern Gophers athletics. Even when they get it right, it doesn't quite work out.
Taken to the precipice of national relevance, the Gophers once again have fallen backward. Kill's surprise resignation for health reasons on Wednesday left the team and its fans rubbing their heads and wondering what the heck just happened.
We'll never know whether Kill would have led the Gophers back to the Rose Bowl or a Big Ten title, but it quickly became clear that he knew what he was doing.