On January 15, 2007 it was reported on ESPN.com that Brewster was the choice of University of Minnesota athletic director Joel Maturi to replace Glen Mason as the Gophers head coach. Various local news outlets, including WCCO and the "Star Tribune", could not confirm the veracity of the report. The following day, January 16, Minnesota associate athletic director Tom Wistrcill confirmed that Brewster was indeed the university's choice, with the contract signed in the early morning. He was officially presented as the new head coach on Wednesday, January 17 at the McNamara Alumni Center on the University of Minnesota campus. At his first press conference, Brewster stated that his long-term goal for the program was to "win the Big Ten championship" and "take the Gopher Nation back to Pasadena."