AJ Barker quits Minnesota FB & obliterates Kill on way out

Wow. I thought that program was heading upwards. I guess not.

From what I've heard about Kill, I'm not surprised by the motivational tactics he seems to use.  But, to be honest, the way this kid presented such a long winded rant that is purposefully made public, makes me have a lot of doubt about the legitamicy of his complaints.    And it kind of makes me lose a lot of repect for him. 

I guess Kill forgot to tell this kid that football is more important than going to class.  

Usually, I take stuff like this with an entire shaker of salt, but Barker's piece is fairly persuasive.  It actually looks like more than a disgruntled kid bitching about a coach.  If Kill actually was bitching to a walk-on for not being able to play soon enough and wanting the right to make his own medical decisions, it doesn't look very good for him.

Just... astounding. 

Should have left the P.S. out, though.  I think he said everything he needed to before that point.

Wow, that was a lot to read. I made it thru almost all of it, and its hard to get a feel for what to think. Couple of thoughts

1. Asshole coaches are straight up no fun. There's a difference between being tough and challenging, and being a dick. Sounds like kill could be the latter?
2. To the coaches perspective, I have seen coaches push athletes to get back quicker, especially if they think its a mental thing (which ankle/lower body injuries can be... Confidence). Players can receive and interpret that differently, who knows with this dudeman.
3. I don't necessarily like that he posted this rant, mostly because it reads like a spur of the moment rant (and trust me, I know a thing or two about those... Eh hem...). Referencing your moms girlfriend does not seem like a very strong argument, no sexism implied or intended. This reminds me a little of the Boren exit.
4. This is not a Michigan player leaving and bashing his former coach, so actually I like this rant because SCANDALOUS!!!

either way, tough way to go. I might have to follow this to see if there's any response or fallout.

This going to be a major problem for Minnesota in recruiting as long as Kill is there.

Actually read the entire thing....

Hate thinking badly about Jerry Kill, especially with his health issues and stuff, but damn....

but this is another piece of news that is bad for the conference: http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/8649670/maryland-terrapins-...

Damn. I'm gonna have to agree with AJ Barker here... best player but no scholarship? srsly.

Frankly I'm really surprised how many people in this thread are just blindly buying everything Barker has to say.  Did it occur to any of you that maybe this kid might be massively overreacting and not giving the whole story?  I guess not.

of the thing. Certainly casts doubt on Kill and his methods. If things are truly ugly inside the program and it influences a few more kids to move on/speak out, that might be healthy. Otherwise, it's hard to see how it wouldn't have been better to sit on this one for a few days, edit a little, etc. Open letters have their place, though. When it's a highly respected player, that carries weight, too. 

Hoke has said that he has the highest respect for Jerry Kill ... so I don't know what to make of this.  To me, both Jerry Kill and AJ Barker have faults in this situation.

Reads like a whiny high schooler.

That's pretty deep and specific.



Tough to think about Kill like that but behind closed doors, people can be totally different.



I like to reserve judgement on people until you have sufficient evidence supporting one side...so I'll wait this one out and store this info in the memory bank before judging.

I don't know. It's never a good idea to hear one side of an argument, especially when someone has taken the time and effort to prepare and present their case publically. A lot of the incidents in this could have gone very differently than this player remembers them, especially when you're dealing with kids and the people with authority over them.
I don't have the slightest idea whether any of this is true, I'm not trying to defend Kill per se. BUT- even if I knew a college student who told me something like this, I'm sure I would be supportive, but I also know the story might sound entirely different if I heard the other side.

of it. Since Barker is a economics I have to assume that one of his parents(or both) are psychologists.

Wow, when these things come out it makes me feel blessed to be a Michigan fan. It feels good to have stability and excellence on and off the field. I would say we have that going pretty well here.

Seems that if this was a pattern with Coach Kill, it would have been heard of before. Jerry Kill has worked his way up through the ranks of coaching, so until other players validate Barker's story, it's all hearsay.

AJ Barker and Marquess Wilson to transfer to the same school to form the the rantiest/quitiest/whiniest WR duo in NCAACF history?

generation Y.

I don't mean that in a derogatory way.  

Balls of brass in the face of authority, demanding a quality life experience, but at the same time way too emo and "entitled" for my taste.