Tony Dungy with current and former Gopher football players outside the Minnesota State Capitol Thursday morning.

The rally featured U alum Tony Dungy, head coach of Indianapolis Colts, and came just two days after the Minnesota Senate passed a bill to create an on-campus Gopher football stadium. That bill is markedly different from one passed earlier by the Minnesota House, and the two versions must be reconciled in the next few days before it can be voted on and forwarded to the governor. Bruininks concluded his remarks by asking Gopher fans to call their senators, representatives, and the governor as soon as possible to urge action. If a stadium bill is not passed this session, costs will rise $35 million and up to $55 million in private donations could be lost.

The rally, held on a cold, windy day, featured maroon-and-gold donuts, mini footballs, buttons, and short speeches. Current and past football players attending included Amir Pinnix, a junior-to-be and the first-string running back in 2006, senior offensive lineman Tony Brinkhaus,

An enthusiastic crowd turned out despite the cold and wind.

and junior defensive lineman Steve Davis; all-Big Ten guard Mark Setterstrom, who just completed his eligibility and was drafted by the St. Louis Rams; all-American center Greg Eslinger, drafted by the Denver Broncos; and Ezell Jones, who played on the 1967 Big Ten championship team.

Dungy, who had just finished meeting with Governor Tim Pawlenty and legislative leaders, talked about how much on-campus football meant during his years at Minnesota (he lettered in 1974-76) and how much he’d like to bring his sons to games on campus and show them where he went to college. Dungy, who was a long-time Vikings assistant coach, said that when he took the head coaching job at Tampa Bay in 1996, the community voted to build a new stadium, which opened in 1998. He moved to Indianapolis to coach the Colts in 2002, and a new stadium was approved in 2004 and is expected to open in 2008. “I like to say I'm two for two [on stadiums] and looking forward to this being the third," he said.