P.J. Fleck is a name hardcore 49ers fans might well remember, and college football fans may soon learn.

Fleck is the new coach at Minnesota and many are figuring big things for the former undrafted rookie wide receiver whose catching ability helped him work his way onto the 49ers roster in 2004.

The Washington Post called Fleck “impossibly energetic, unusually charismatic human” in a feature that helps explain Fleck’s place in football now. The Post wondered if Fleck will draw attention to the Gophers despite the program’s status as long-suffering Big Ten cellar dweller.

“It’s possible that the last time some force of personality drew your attention to the footballing Minnesota Golden Gophers, it was a 47-year-old Lou Holtz in 1984-85,” the Post’s Chuck Culpepper wrote, referring to a coach whose two-year run is “largely forgotten” since he is best known for his time helming Notre Dame.

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Fleck forged success at Western Michigan from 2013-16, turning a 1-11 team in 2013 into a 13-1 team just edged by Wisconsin in the 2017 Cotton Bowl. That positive mojo helped him land the Gophers gig — which some consider less-than-ideal due to academic and off-field issues. Oh, and Minnesota hasn’t won an outright Big Ten title since 1941. Related Articles No reinforcements: 49ers’ Dee Ford will miss at least another game, per report

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“I almost compare it to the (Chicago) Cubs a little bit,” Fleck told the Post. “(Fans) love cheering for the Gophers, but they always have this thought in the back of their mind, ‘Yeah, but, doom’s coming.’ I’ve got to change that. And that is my personal responsibility. And that’s the pressure I feel every day to do, that I can’t wait to get to the office for.”

If his history in football is any indication, he’ll find a way to flourish.

Fleck had 2,162 yards and 11 touchdowns receiving in five years at Northern Illinois. After going undrafted, he latched on with the 49ers. Bay Area News Group’s 49ers beat writer Cam Inman recalled Fleck as a “traditional, under-sized receiver who caught everything that came his way to make the roster.”

Fleck spend a season on the practice squad under coach Dennis Erickson and he made one 10-yard punt return for San Francisco before hurting his shoulder. That injury seemingly led him toward the coaching world.

After a year as a graduate assistant at Ohio State in 2006, Fleck spent time as a wide receivers coach at Northern Illinois and then Rutgers before taking that position with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2012. Four seasons at Western Michigan later, he’s taking over a Gophers program bolstered by a new $170 million facility and coming off a 9-4 season that included a Holiday Bowl victory over Washington State.

Fleck’s coaching attitude displays why college football aficionado anticipate more success from him.

“We are as real as real can be, and we’re us. And we’re real and us all the time. And I think young people like that,” Fleck told the Post. “They know exactly what they’re going to get. We have high energy. I think young people like energy. They like vision, and they like to see how they plug into that vision, without being sold anything. We sell nothing. I don’t sell a kid anything. And I don’t convince a kid to come here. If I have to convince you to come here, I don’t want you. I want young people who need me, who need the hyper ‘Row the Boat’ culture in their life. I need parents who want that and need that for their son.”