The Case For Brett Larson: Why the Gophers Might See What Others Don't

The University of Minnesota has hired Brett Larson as its new head coach of men's hockey. If you look at his last three years at St. Cloud State, you might question the decision, but fairly analyzing his eight seasons with the Huskies requires context.

Larson was the head coach who replaced Bob Motzko at St. Cloud State. He immediately led the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament in his first year, only to lose in the first round as the No. 1 overall seed. The tournament was canceled in 2019-20 due to COVID-19, and his Huskies proceeded to lose in the national championship in 2020-21, before two more NCAA Tournament appearances.

That is an impressive start to a career for any new head coach, but five years removed from the Motzko era, things began to trend in the wrong direction. Larson's Huskies failed to reach the NCAA Tournament in each of the last three seasons, compiling a record of 47-56-7 since 2023-24.

It's easy to say he struggled when Motzko's fingerprints wore off the program, but the introduction of player compensation and transfer portal movement also saw a huge uptick, and it coincides with St. Cloud State's downturn.

SCSU is still among the biggest universities in the state, but it's has faced significant challenges in recent years. St. Cloud Live reported last October SCSU had 9,646 students enrolled for the 2025 fall semester, which represented a 5.1% drop from 2024 and a massive decline from the university's peak of 18,650 students in 2010.

In the last decade, SCSU has discontinued several varsity sports, including football in 2019-20, which followed budget cuts that saw the elimination of men's and women's tennis, women's Nordic skiing, and men's cross country and track in 2016.

Specific numbers haven't been revealed, but it's fair to wonder how strong the resources were for Larson at SCSU, and whether he had the necessary ammo to compete in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) against the likes of North Dakota, Denver, Western Michigan, and Minnesota Duluth, not to mention their former I-94 rivals at the University of Minnesota (and now St. Thomas).

Minnesota is among the top programs in the entire sport, so it's almost guaranteed that he will have better resources. While many aren't convinced Larson is the home run hire Minnesota needed, Larson did get an endorsement from former Gophers star Brock Faber, who now plays for the Minnesota Wild and represented Team USA at the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics.

"I think he’s the perfect guy. He’ll be a great, great coach for the Gophers. You see, the game changes a lot. He’s a smart coach. I think he teaches the game the right way," Faber told Michael Russo. "He thinks it’s important to develop these kids the right way to give them opportunities to play in the NHL. He’s one of those guys that cares more about the people than the player. That’s what’s special about him. He’s going to do great. That’s an awesome hire for them."

Former Gophers captain Brock Faber on Brett Larson, who coached him at the 2022 Olympics: "I think he’s the perfect guy. He’ll be a great, great coach for the Gophers. You see, the game changes a lot. He’s a smart coach. I think he teaches the game the right way. He thinks it’s…
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) March 24, 2026

Recruiting players to St. Cloud State University isn't as easy as it used to be, and it's certainly harder when you don't have competitive resources. Clearly, Gophers athletics director Mark Coyle sees through three tough seasons at SCSU and believes Larson is the right man to lead Minnesota hockey back to the top of the college hockey mountain.

In the modern era of college sports, you need to have the university, its donors, and the fan base aligned. Larson may not have had that at St. Cloud State, but he has two-thirds of it at the University of Minnesota — and he can add the fan base to complete the trifecta by getting the program back on track next season.