Ag economy. Have two words ever been gloomier in rural America than they’ve been for the last several years? Well, we’ve had a bit of a turnaround, but my assignment was to find out not only the current state but what might be ahead in the future.
Dave Widmar is an agricultural economist with Agricultural Economic Insights in West Lafayette, Indiana. (Photo from www.aei.ag)
So, I gave Dave Widmar of Agricultural Economic Insights in West Lafayette, Indiana, a call to find out more about the ag economy. He has more than enough experience to make a rational judgment. Before launching out on his own, Dave was a researcher in the Economics Department at Purdue University, as well as the economist for the Kansas Department of Agriculture.
The first thing he told me was that the ag economy turned around quickly. “Not only is it a big difference from 2020 to 2021, but the turnaround also took place in a short period of time,” he said on the phone from his Indiana office. “Last summer, the outlook was very bleak, and it was hard to put together a list of positive things going on.
“Now, just past the midpoint of 2021, we have a very strong outlook with a long list of positive things going for us,” he added. “The biggest piece is higher commodity prices, which have really turned around.”
That turnaround didn’t start until last September, and it has played out quickly over the past several months. That rise in commodity prices has been especially good for corn and soybean producers.
While it’s not as true as it was earlier in 2021, another thing the ag economy and farmers were benefitting from was a low-cost environment. “Over the last six months, fertilizer went from about $9 an acre in the fall of 2020 to between $130 and $140 an acre today,” Widmar says. “Farmland values and cash rental rates have increased as well. But it’s important to recognize that last year and early in 2021, the lower cost structure helped profitability.”
Minnesota Gopher basketball can be a polarizing discussion among their fans. The team finished the 2018-2019 men’s campaign with a 22-14 record. While there are dozens of colleges and universities that would be thrilled with 22 wins and a victory in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, not all Gopher fans were pleased with the outcome. Mike Grimm is the 13-year radio voice of the Golden Gophers, who made a recent appearance on the Minnesota Sports Weekly podcast. He says it’s important to keep a little perspective when fans look at a basketball season.
“I think it’s all how you look at it,” said Grimm. “It’s hard to say it was a disappointment. I’ve seen people say that on social media and I think they’re wrong. It’s not worth getting into a disagreement with someone if they don’t have the time or patience to look at the history of Minnesota Gopher basketball. We don’t have the history here as a UCLA does.
“This program has only appeared in 14 NCAA tournament, with two of those appearances in the last three years,” he added. “Anyone who suggests they should be ashamed of a season in which they made an NCAA Tournament and won a game for the second time in 20 years is being silly. That’s just dumb.”
There’s no such thing as a perfect college basketball season. However, Mike Grimm, radio voice of Minnesota Gopher basketball, says the 2018-2019 campaign was pretty good, especially when you look at the history of men’s basketball at the University of Minnesota. (Photo from krocam.)
Grimm says if people really want to nitpick, they can. The
Gophers did let leads slip away in a few games and they lost a few they
probably shouldn’t have. However, they also beat Purdue twice and beat the
Badgers IN Wisconsin for the first time in over a decade. They knocked off the
PAC-12 champion Washington Huskies to win the Vancouver Showcase.
“There were a lot of good things that happened,” Grimm said.
“Remember, this was one of the toughest Big Ten seasons, top-to-bottom. The
Gophers didn’t have a bunch of easy wins anywhere on this season’s schedule. The
Gophers had to play a total of nine games out of a possible ten against the top
five teams in the conference.
“There’s really no reason to sit and argue about it,” he added. “If you want to call it a disappointment, then you haven’t done enough research or you’re just being lazy about it.”
One of the highlights from last season for the Gopher men’s basketball squad was beating Purdue twice in the regular season, as well as a third time in the Big Ten Tournament.
He’s quick to say there were things that could have been done better. However, to say a coach should be fired after leading a team to a win in the NCAA Tournament is “ludicrous.” Grimm took it a step further, saying people who think Minnesota Gopher basketball shouldn’t be proud of this past season is “stupid, really.”
One of the bigger issues when it comes to the Gophers and
social media was a sometimes-heated discussion over the contract extension given
to Richard Pitino. The agreement will keep Pitino at the University of
Minnesota for a total of another five years. It’s the third contract extension
for the coach since joining the U back in 2013.
“There are some benefits to doing it now, especially when it
comes to recruiting,” he said. “But I know it’s hard to forget the
disappointment of the previous season. At one point, that team was 14-3 overall
and ranked at No. 11 in the country. Then, the you-know-what hit the fan.”
That team went 2-14 the rest of the way as the wheels fell
completely off the wagon. There were so many injuries to contend with, and then
the suspension and expulsion of Reggie Lynch added a huge distraction to the
season. “I’m not saying what’s right or what’s wrong,” Grimm added, “but there
are probably schools where Reggie Lynch stays on the team.” However, there’s no
question it’s a university policy and an important issue.”
The main thing about the Lynch situation Grimm wants to get
across is it definitely played a role in the abysmal end to the season. Then,
there were injuries to several players, including Amir Coffey, Dupree McBrayer,
and Eric Curry, to deal with. That dragged everything down to a 2-14 record to
end the season and any momentum from the NCAA appearance the prior season was
lost.
“If he were sitting on three-straight tournament berths, which
likely would have been the case if the wheels didn’t fall off last season, I
don’t think too many people would be second-guessing,” Grimm said. “I know
people cite the 40-70 Big Ten record, but it’s important to remember that this
conference is tough every season. And, if you have two down seasons of 4-14 and
2-16 in the conference, it’s going to be hard to improve your record, even
during successful seasons.
“The extension is also really good for recruiting,” Grimm
said. “I know people want to dismiss it and say, ‘kids aren’t that dumb,’ but
it does make a difference. Everything makes a difference.”
Grimm was frank in saying that if the school does want out
of the deal with Pitino, it’ll actually cost the school less money next year
than it would have without the extension. “I don’t know why people lost their
minds over it,” he pointed out. “There are just some people that thrive on
negativity in this market.
There are things you can nitpick when it comes to Pitino as
far as in-game strategies and substitution patterns. However, that’s something fans
can do with any coach. But Grimm said you can take that too far.
“To sound off about contract extensions and ask why they
didn’t even have a news conference is crazy. There are certain people that love
to be negative and won’t give anyone the benefit of the doubt. It’s the world
we live in, and it’s an everywhere-thing, not just a Minnesota-thing.
Negativity sells and people seem to love it.”
