SB Nation - Marcus Sherels

The Last Gopher Friday Preview Until Pizza Pizza? Minnesota at Iowa, November 21, 2009

JG2112 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:15:14 -0000

by Charlie Neibergall - AP

I knew life wouldn't be good once I got kicked out of the Institute of Technology.

Give me or Tressel the Patriots. We would have punted on third down. 10:06 AM Nov 17th from TweetDeck
- from the "Not Kirk Ferentz" Twitter stream - http://twitter.com/NotKirkFerentz

Saturday is the end of the college football year, for all intents and purposes. outside of some rivalry games and conference title games. Then onto the bowls. Really, other than Florida/Alabama and Texas (or maybe TCU?) , the 66 or so bowl participants will be taking part in exhibition games in late December and early January in mostly warm climates, of which the most impressive part of the experience is usually the gifts given to the student-athletes that somehow are allowed under NCAA rules (example: last year each Gopher got a Vizio 26-inch LCD HDTV, a Bulova watch, and a Hat at the Insight Bowl.) Besides the gifts, ask Corey Wootton, Willis McGahee or Glen Mason: only bad things really happen in bowl games for the participants.

But back to tomorrow, when Tim Brewster will try for a significant milestone - his first rivalry game win. Last week Brew got his first win in November as a college coach. This week, a Big Ten win in November will increase his record in rivalry games to a robust 1-7. This comes on the heels of Maturi's weird comments to Sid in Thursday's Star Tribune, which indicated an endorsement of the program's direction but a peculiar non-endorsement of the coach. And while we can be literal and say that the only way that Brewster's job comes under fire is if they lose the next two games by 100 in the aggregate, the fact it's even being suggested is foolish in my opinion, but could be suggestive of things going on at Fort Bierman.

Iowa enters this game having endured a rough November thus far. First off, Northwestern put paid to Iowa's national championship hopes in Kinnick, and then Kirk Ferentz's lack of backbone gave away the outright Big Ten Title to Ohio State (pending their beatdown of Michigan). Oh yeah, Minnesota won't be the beneficiary of any Stanzi-balls on Saturday, either.

That really is unfortunate, because the backup QB, freshman James Vandenberg, played rather well in the Horseshoe, completing 20/33 for 233 yards, 2 TDs and 3 INTs (one at the end of the 1st half, one in OT). Playing in front of friendly fans may make him more relaxed. Then again, the pressure of Senior Day and the Pig may make him channel his inner Stanzi and get acquainted with BIG PLAYE TRAYE.

Looking at the rest of the offense, you know what you're getting with Iowa. The big hogs up front are interchangeable and generally awesome. LT Brian Bulaga is the standout. The Hawkeyes like running stretch plays where a TE (normally Tony Moeaki) will go in motion to Bulaga's side, and whichever RB is in the game (Adam Robinson, Brandon Wegher, Paki O'Meara) will plow behind those two for big chunks of yardage. As has been the case this year, Minnesota's DTs need to keep Iowa's line occupied so Campbell, Triplett, Lawrence and/or Cooper can flow to the ball, attack the lead blocker, and cut the play back for the help to arrive. If the D-line is pushed around and Iowa's line can get to the second level, this game will get ugly.

That's without mentioning Iowa's passing game, which as mentioned above, went for over 230 yards on Ohio State last week. Marvin McNutt is a former QB with significant height (please grow six inches Carter kthx) and superb speed, and I think every Minnesota fan knows about Derrell Johnson-Koulianos. Simmons (who returned to practice Wednesday after recovering from a leg ailment) and Marcus Sherels are carrying injuries which may make them vulnerable in pass coverage.

As for Iowa's defense, yikes. On the line, meet 2007 Cretin Derham Hall grad Broderick Binns (7 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks), along with Adrian Clayborn (8.5 sacks, 16.5 tackles for loss and THAT punt block against Penn State) and Karl Klug. The linebackers include A.J. Edds (65 tackles), Pat Angerer (119 tackles) and Jeremiah Hunter (83 tackles), and if you look to the secondary, meet Tyler Sash (6 INTs, 76 tackles), Amari Spievey, and Brett Greenwood.

This is the kind of defense that will give the Gopher offense fits (namely, competent and well-drilled). Iowa rarely sends its linebackers on blitzes because the front four can get pressure by itself. In almost every Gopher game this year we've watched this happen, so I'm even more concerned about tomorrow's game. Other than against Sparty, the Gophers, since the Penn State game, have had horrific pass protection which has led to Adam Weber looking like a true freshman in the pocket.

And sorry everyone, but this isn't the game to fully let MarQueis Gray loose on the football world. Brewster had his chance last week and decided not to, which suggests either coaching stubbornness or player incapabilities at this point. Gray, at this point in his development, would have been most effective against a team with slower defensive players who were frequently blitzing him and leaving him wide open running lanes, such as on November 14th at TCF. The last place you want Gray deciphering coverages is against a Norm Parker-drilled defense of veteran players, whose LBs don't even need to blitz you to get pressure.

So tomorrow you can expect Weber to be in the pocket, with lots of max protect (TEs and RBs) to provide support for Alford, Wills and Carufel in the hopes that Weber is given more than 3 seconds to wait for his WRs to break free from what are excellent Herkeye defensive backs. Once again, Hoese and Tow-Arnett will likely be utilized extensively in the passing game, trying to break the tackles of those excellent LBs. Blergh.

Oh, and have I mentioned that Brandon Green missed practice Wednesday with a knee injury and is questionable for Saturday? Calling Messrs. McKnight, Stoudermire, and yes, Carpenter, please be ready for action.

Anything else? Yeah. The forecast Saturday: around 55 and sunny.

Also, an aside: yeah, I recognize this is a conspiracy theory, BUT. The slate of games on Saturday is one of the least attractive collection of games I can ever remember this late in the season (thanks Florida and Alabama, among others, for scheduling soup cans this weekend). One of ESPN/ABC's featured games is Kansas at Texas.

Anyone else find it uniquely coincidental that ESPN is releasing an amazing slow drip of information from multiple sources (where have these former players been since August?) about Kansas HC Mark Mangino's bad temper and abuse at practice the same week it needs to drum up interest in a rather lackluster prime time game? At all?

Okay.

So what about Saturday? Minnesota has a chance here. It needs to attack Iowa's defense straight-on, because it can be run on. Weber cannot expect to spend much time, if any, looking in the pocket, and Fisch should not abandon the running game and put Weber into obvious passing situations.

As for Minnesota on defense, they need to roll support over to whoever is guarding the tall McNutt. Of course, this leaves the Gophers susceptible to either Johnson-Koulianos or Moeaki, but, you've got to try something.

Bottom line: games this year in Iowa City have been close. Northern Iowa, Arkansas State, Michigan, Indiana and NW were really all very tense, close games. Saturday SHOULD be no different. If the Gophers are not competitive, however, I guess Maturi will be having a discussion with Mr. Brewster about what is expected when the Gophers get their new TVs in Arizona. I don't see it happening.

Iowa 27 - Minnesota 20.

Conversations with the Enemy: Talking Minnesota with The Daily Gopher

LVS — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:24:06 -0000

More photos » by Elizabeth Flores - AP

I have no idea what's happening here.

Browse more photos »

I traded a few questions about Saturday's game with The Daily Gopher, SBN's excellent Minnesota blog

EDIT: My answers to TDG's questions are posted at his site.

Below, I'm in bold:

The big story of the week for Minnesota is obviously the loss of Eric Decker. How devastating is his loss for your team? Is there any chance that the Gophers can even partially replace his output?

It is pretty bad. Look at last year's final 4 games when he was out or injured and look back at the last two games when he was covered so heavily he managed to catch just 4 balls for 69 yards. What did the offense generate in points during those two stretches? The 2008 slide at the end of the year saw the offense average just 13.8 points per game and over the last two weeks we've scored a total of 7 points (and that was garbage time).

So this hurts a lot. I really like a couple of our other receivers, but there has never been any chemistry between them and Adam Weber. And none of them have really had a big game to justify how I feel about them. The Gophers are going to have to get a ground game going but I don't see that as an easy task against the Spartans.

It seems like Minnesota fans are restless with the quarterback situation, with many saying that MarQueis Gray should take over for Adam Weber. What does he bring to the table that Weber lacks, and what's your sense of the situation -- do you think we'll see much of Gray on Saturday?

Gray brings athleticism to the table. He is in the mold (not an exact replica but in the mold) of Vince Young, Pryor, Juice Williams, etc. He brings the ability to make something happen with his legs when nothing is there through the air. I am in the ever shrinking minority that thinks Weber should still be starting. I personally will take his 2 year resume over the hype of a freshman who really hasn't played meaningful football since his junior year of high school.

Like I said, I am in the minority and my attitude is certainly shifting with ever poor performance by Weber. He really has earned himself a benching, but I still firmly believe that our offensive problems are much deeper than the QB position. If he gets sacked he is said to have not pocket presence, if a receiver drops a ball it was a bad pass, if a drive stalls it is his fault regardless of any terrible penalties. It is the classic case of the QB gets too credit when teams succeed and too much blame when they don't.

With all of that said Gray played well in garbage time at Ohio State, he does bring some athleticism that Weber does not possess and Weber has been so bad (AT TIMES) that we don't have a whole lot to lose by playing Gray. I'm sure we will see more of Gray on the field this week, the pressure is mounting to play him more and unless Weber starts playing better Brewster will have to make a move. Unfortunately making a QB change will not change the questionable play-calling and the rash of penalties that have taken points off the board all year long. But it may get us an extra first down or two because of Gray's athletic ability, if that leads to more points then I'm all for it.

[More, after the jump.]

Minnesota is ranked dead last in the conference in rushing offense. Is this a function of completely abandoning the run game (i.e., should we expect to see 40 or 50 pass attempts by Weber/Gray on Saturday?), or just a lack of talent at the position?

Yes. At times it seems like the ground game has been working and the coaching staff will forget about it for long stretches (Syracuse game is a great example). At other times we run, run, run. The Purdue game we attempted a total of 9 passes in the game. The Northwestern game we ran the ball down their throats the entire second half on the way to a road win. But the talent along the line and with those carrying the ball is lacking and that is part of the problem. Once we get things rolling (read - play against a poor run defense) we can get the ground game going. So I'm not sure what we will see on Saturday night. With Decker out and cold conditions I think you'll see a concerted effort to run the ball, but MSU's rush defense has been pretty good so who knows how long they'll stick with it.

MSU will certainly try to do most of its damage through the air (1st in the Big Ten in passing offense); the Gophers are currently ranked eighth in the conference in pass defense, but sixth in pass efficiency. How would you assess the play of your secondary this season?

Disappointing is how I would characterize the secondary. Our two corners are actually pretty good cover corners. Our free safety is a former corner who is better against the pass than he is against the run. But all have given up big plays this year because of breakdowns in coverage. Traye Simmons and Marcus Sherels are good cover guys who are capable of slowing down the Spartan receivers, but both have been burned by making bad reads or covering the wrong guy and then beat deep. Kim Royston at the safety position has been burned badly by play-action a few times for big plays as well.

The other problem with the secondary is the lack of pressure put on QBs by the line. Unless we blitz opposing QBs generally have ample time to find receivers.

Is there anyone on offense or defense for Minnesota that MSU fans probably aren't aware of, but that we should keep an eye on? (It has been three years since we've last played, after all.)

Wow, it's really been three years? So you completely missed the spread era of Gopher football. Despite our poor defensive stats you should really pay attention to our linebackers. Lee Campbell and Nate Triplett have had very good years. Those two, along with Simoni Lawrence have been one of the best linebacking corps the Gophers have had in a long time. Imagine how good they'd be had Greg Jones not switched over to the Spartans after Mason was fired.

The other player I enjoy watching is Troy Stoudermire. The WR / KR is fun to watch and a threat to go the distance on every kickoff.

How's the new stadium? Is the home field advantage much greater now than it was in the Metrodome?

The new stadium is the highlight of the season. It is really nice and something Gopher fans are really proud of. Our record may not indicate a home field advantage but for the first time in decades the team has a home that they can defend. In the Dome we were just as much visitors as the other team. Decker said during the spring that they feel like they have a home that is theirs to defend.

Finally, your prediction for Saturday's game, please:

I'm a homer and an optimist. The Gophers win this pivotal game. For this to happen I think they will have to establish some semblance of a ground game and get a turnover or two on defense. I think Gray will play quite a bit but he'll have a short leash if he has an early turnover then I think you'll see a lot of Weber to finish the game. But getting something going on the ground is the key for the Gophers. If that happens, I think Minnesota wins a close one.

Thanks to The Daily Gopher, whose prediction, I hope, is miserably wrong.

Let's go rob a Bank

BoilerTMill — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:05:14 -0000

I feel inspired this morning to rob a bank. It has nothing to do with me watching Point Break as I work on this preview, I promise. We are playing at TCF Bank Stadium though, so we need Joey Elliott to be our fearless Bodhi to steal a win here.

I'm doing things a little backward this week. Wednesday is normally podcast day, but I haven't heard back from the guys over at The Daily Gopher yet. I'll also be busy tonight at my normal podcast time, as I have tickets to see Katie Douglas do Purdue some good by winning a WNBA championship for the Indiana Fever. Yes, my addiction to basketball does run that deep.

In the mean time, there is still some football to talk about. It has been over two years since Purdue won a football game away from Ross-Ade Stadium. As it happens, we are facing the team we beat in our last road contest this weekend. Facing the Gophers at TCF Bank Stadium will be a little different from facing them in the Metrodome, but with a 1-2 record in the new gopher hole, Minnesota hasn't exactly shown that no one can crack this safe.

2008 Record: 7-6 (3-5 Big Ten)

2009 Record: 3-2 (1-1)

Bowl result: Lost to Kansas 42-21 in Insight Bowl

Blog Representation: The Daily Gopher, Buck Bravo, Golden Gopher Football blog

Series with Purdue: Minnesota leads 32-30-3

Last Purdue win: 9/22/07 at Minnesota 45-31

Last Minnesota win: 10/25/08 at Purdue 17-6

This is the last time we came home happy away from Ross-Ade

This year so far for the Gophers:

Minnesota is a team that has played better on the road than at home so far. They managed an overtime win at Syracuse (who is certainly not as bad as previously thought) and they won convincingly at Northwestern. At home, Minnesota barely squeezed by Air Force in the TCF Bank Stadium opener. Minnesota is the last team to give up a touchdown to a suddenly moribund Cal team, while Wisconsin did what Wisconsin does in the rivalry for Paul Bunyan's Axe: they won a close game.

Minnesota has been totally average of late. They have won the games they should have won, and lost the ones they probably should have lost. That is what gives me a little hope that we can finally stop this losing streak. Minnesota is a team that is hardly overwhelming. The same is true for almost everyone in the Big Ten, so who knows what can happen.

Minnesota offense:

The Gophers wanted to go back to being more of a running team when the season started, but through five games they have not had a lot of success in that department. This game should be a measuring stick for just how bad our run defense really is. As a team, Minnesota is averaging less than 100 yards per game on the ground. Duane Bennett (230 yards, 5 TD's) and DeLeon Eskridge (165 yards, 1 TD) have carried the ball the most. Most of Bennett's work came in an 89 yard, three score game at Northwestern two weeks ago. Eskridge had 14 carries for 60 yards against Wisconsin last week, which was by far his best week. We also need to keep an eye on Indianapolis' own MarQueis Gray. Gray is pretty much Minnesota's quarterback of the future. He steps in for a few snaps per game for Adam Weber. He has rushed nine times for 54 yards, but has yet to throw a pass. That does not mean he is not a passing threat, however.

Weber is one of the most experienced quarterbacks in the Big Ten. He took his lumps as a freshman during Minnesota's 1-11 2007 season, but he has matured into a solid signal caller. His rushing numbers are down this year, but he has been known as a runner in the past. So far he is 91 of 159 passing for 1,150 yards, six touchdowns, and six interceptions. Only Joey Elliott and Ricky Stanzi have thrown more picks than Weber. Weber has yet to put up huge numbers in a game this year, but you can count on him to throw for about 225 yards.

A main reason Weber has been able to throw for so many yards is Eric Decker. Decker is far and away Minnesota's best receiver. We actually did a pretty good job against him last year in a similar position, but everyone knows that he will be Weber's top target. We have to double team him and make someone else beat us. Decker's stats (43-639-5) represent more than half of Minnesota's passing game. Decker also has a seven yard touchdown pass to his credit. Troy Stoudermire (13-121-1), Brandon Green (10-130-0) and Nick Tow-Arnett (11-166-0) are other decent targets, but we must treat Decker as the first option on every pass play. So much so, even CFN had something to say about it today:

A little note for Purdue this week and the rest of the Big Ten. Minnesota QB Adam Weber is tipping his pitches. If I'm seeing this then I'm sure a highly-paid Big Ten defensive coordinator must notice the same thing. When a pass play is supposed to go to the left side, Weber dips his left shoulder when he's under center and has a severe body lean to the left when he's in the shotgun. When the play calls for the pass to go to star WR Eric Decker on the left side, Weber might as well be turned 90-degrees. -- CFN's Cavalcade of Whimsy

Our defensive line played a pretty good ballgame last week and they should be able to do the same against a good, but not great Minnesota offensive line. The Gopher O-line has given up 12 sacks on the year, and that is with Weber being a fairly mobile quarterback. Jeff Wills at 6'7" 375 is a massive tackle protecting Weber. Matt Stommes, Chris Bunders, Matt Carufel, and Jeff Tow-Arnett make up the rest of the line. Other than Wills, it is a relatively small line by Big Ten standards, so our defense should be able to make some headway.

Minnesota defense:

This is the key matchup of the game. As long as we are not giving Minnesota defense the ball like we did last week things should be fine. As bad as our run defense has been, Minnesota's has been worse. The fact they have faced possibly the nation's best running back in Jahvid Best may have something to do with that, as does Air Force's and Wisconsin's run-heavy attack. Minnesota is giving up nearly 175 yards per game on the ground. Though Ralph Bolden is not 100%, we have to exploit this with Jaycen Taylor, Dan Dierking, Frank Halliburton, or even Al-Terek McBurse. Boilerdowd made some salient points this morning about us needing more rotation in the running game. I know McBurse and Halliburton have yet to see the field, but this may be the week.

The Minnesota pass defense hasn't been that great either. They have generated 10 sacks, led by Eric Small with three, but they are still giving up over 200 yards per game through the air. Minnesota only has three team interceptions as well. Nate Triplett has two of those interceptions, so Elliott should be able to find some different receivers. The Gophers do have plenty of tackles for loss with 28 as a team. Lee Campbell, who is second on the team in tackles with 53, leads the team with five tackles for loss. Triplett leads the team in tackles with 56.

We have to run the ball this week until Minnesota proves it can stop us. This will help us with the time of possession that we keep losing as well as keep our defense more fresh. Our offensive line has to generate more of a push so we can run the ball as well. It is incredibly frustrating that we haven't been able to run the ball against teams we should have little trouble running against. Minnesota is like Northern Illinois in that regard. They haven't proven they could stop the run even when they know it is coming in all three losses.

Minnesota Special Teams:

Minnesota has already had to punt a whopping 23 times in five games. This is a testament to their offensive struggles. They use a dual-punter system as well. Dan Orseske has nine punts for a 44.6 yard average, while Blake Haudan has 14 for 41.6. They have combined to limit teams to just 3.4 yards per return. Minnesota's own punt return game is pretty stout. They have only returned three punts, but Marcus Sherels and Bryant Allen are averaging a combined 19 yards per return.

On kickoff returns Stoudermire is averaging 28.2 yards per return. Minnesota is also limiting teams to just 21 yards per return on kickoffs. We will need to have more discipline because Stoudermire is a threat to break one.

Finally, Eric Ellestad has been a solid kicker. He has not missed an extra point while connecting on seven of eight field goals. Range could be an issue, as he has missed his only attempt beyond 40 yards.

Intagibles:

First of all, it is Minnesota's homecoming. We should get used to this, as it is not a surprise that we will be the scheduled homecoming opponent for some time. It will be interesting to see what kind of atmosphere homecoming is for Minnesota in the first on-campus event since the early 80's.

Second, Minnesota does not want to lose a game to a team it feels it should beat. We fill that role perfectly right now. Yes, we have been more competitive than expected, but Minnesota has to be thinking what I am thinking. Until we actually finish a game and beat someone we won't believe it can happen.

Finally, this is a game we should have won last year. Of all our losses, I think this was the worst one. Curtis Painter got hurt and we essentially had zero preparation for Justin Siller in case that happened. Minnesota hit on two big plays that set up their two touchdowns, but did little else the rest of the day. I think that if Painter had not gotten hurt we would have won and it could have salvaged the season a little. A healthy Painter gives us a win there and a possible win with better offensive play at Michigan State two weeks later.

Keys for Purdue:

I might as well start typing the same things here every week, but it is true.

Run the ball until they prove they can stop us
Hold on to the football
Don't even bother fielding punts. As soon as they kick it, I want all 11 guys to run off the field.
Cover Eric Decker

Bucky Coronary: Wisconsin Hangs On Against Minnesota, 31-28

hmlee — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 22:57:07 -0000

More photos » by Paul Battaglia - AP

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The college football gods seem to have it out for me. They would love nothing more than to fell me with a heart attack before bowl season even rolls around. I mean, okay, I know that all that beer and sausage isn't good for the organ in my chest (to say nothing of my liver), but do the Badgers really have to pile on too? I knew this game wasn't going to be a complete cakewalk (though I did have the spread at 14 - oops) - conference games never are. But, after seeing the Wisconsin secondary manhandle Blair White last week in the Sparty game, I thought that maybe they could do the same against the Minnesota duo of Adam Weber and Eric Decker. And, really, what is the Minnesota offense except for Eric Decker and 10 other supporting actors?

Well, it seems I got that one wrong too. Decker's line for the game:

140 yards receiving and 1 TD.

He had more than half the total receiving yards for the entire Gopher team. Ouch. It really should have been more too, except Decker uncharacteristically couldn't hang on to a few throws from Weber into tight coverage. It's almost funny, in a way. If any other receiver in college football fails to make those plays, the reaction is usually a shrug of the shoulders and a, "It's okay, it wasn't a good throw anyway," type of comment. But if Decker fails to make them? Well, after watching him make ridiculous catch after ridiculous catch, those types of grabs are almost expected and it's kind of a let down when he fails.

Despite the efforts of Decker and the Gopher offense (and their newest player, Zach Brown), however, Bucky managed to leave the Twin Cities the same way he entered - with Paul Bunyon's Axe still in the hands of its rightful owners.

This was largely due to the wonderful, absolutely marvelous play of Big Bad John Clay.

After the jump, I break down the game by unit.

Graham previews the Michigan - MSU game and explains the upset in East Lansing in the Big 10 game of the week...

My coverage of Wisconsin's domination vs. Michigan State in week 4....

Since my recap of last week's action by unit was followed by a Badger win, I decided to go with that format again this week. I'm not superstiious really, but if it works, why change it?

Offense:

Almost all of the Wisconsin offense this week came from Mr. Clay. He wasn't too active in the first half, aside from his 2-yard TD run, but in the second half he really broke out. I don't know why, but the Gopher D just didn't seem to be able to adjust to him. The Wisconisn offense looked almsot typical with run play after run play called... though, unlike typical Wisconsin teams, most of these run-happy drives resulted in points on the board instead of punts. Clay shook tackles and bounced off of defensive linemen almost like a human pinball. It was great to see him execute the fundamentals so well. He kept the ball secure and managed to keep his legs churning for the entirety of his runs, resulting in quite a few extra yards that managed to secure at least three third down conversions. If he keeps playing like he has in the last few games, I expect to see his name show up in the December balloting.

Scott Tolzien had a decent game, throwing for 159 yards and 1 TD. Most of his receptions came on mid-range throws to Garret Graham and Nick Toon, but he also managed to sneak a few into the arms of Lance Kendricks and Isaac Anderson. He did have some poor decisions, though, which resulted in 1 INT and a few other near-INTs. I chalk this up to playing in a road environment for the first time this season. I sincerely hope that it was just a result of such first-time jitters and not an indication that he is only effective as a QB at Camp Randall. If Wisconsin wants to succeed in the rest of their conference play, they need him to play like he has in the first few home games.

Finally, a message for Zach Brown.

Dear Mr. Brown, PLEASE, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD AND RIGHT IN THE UNIVERSE, LEARN HOW TO HOLD ON TO A FOOTBALL!

Brown had some decent runs in the first half but, for the third game in a row, fumbled the ball on a routine play. In this particular instance, it resulted in a nearly 90 yard TD return by Minnesota CB Marcus Sherels. It really could not have come at a worse time, as it let Minnesota back into a game that the Badgers were about to put away. Brown was just lucky that John Clay was able to bail him out with a touchdown on Wisconsin's next possession. I touched on this a little last week, but I'm going to bring it up again. If Wisconsin's run game is going to be effective, BOTH of the starting backs need to be able to hold on to the ball and make plays when called upon. The Badgers cannot be forced to rely solely upon John Clay (freshman Montee Ball is pretty much a non-entity right now) for the rest of this season and expect to have it go as well as it did today. I don't care if takes carrying a football everywhere including the john for a week, Zach Brown has got to get his shoddy play under control. If he doesn't, the trip to the 'Shoe next week will not be a pretty one.

Defense:

After the stellar play by the D last week, my remarks about them in this recap are going to seem slight by comparison. The D was not nearly as solid as they were in the Michigan State game, but this is a young unit playing in an extremely hostile environment. I was glad to see that even though they were a bit more porous than usual, they made the critical stops when they had to. I'd like to single out the third quarter intercepion by Patrick Butrym, the fourth quarter sacks by Louis Nzegwu and Blake Sorenson and the subsequent fumble recovery by Chirs Borland as the defensive plays of the game. If the D can make plays like that for the entire game next week, the Badgers might, just might, have a chance against a slightly more anemic than usual Ohio State offense.

Special Teams:

I didn't cover the ST last week, but I would like to touch on it now as it was really was the Jekyll and Hyde unit.

First off, holy moly is our kickoff return coverage bad. Here are the returns by Troy Stoudermire in chronological order:

Kickoff return for 41 yards
Kickoff return for 33 yards
Kickoff return for 26 yards
Kickoff return for 38 yards
Kickoff return for 10 yards (this one was not returned by Stoudermire)
Kickoff for a touchback

In sum, the only way that the Badgers were able to keep the Gophers from reeling off a 20+ yard return on a kickoff was when they either booted it into the end zone or when the ball was caught by the backup return man Jay Thomas. Yikes.

Stoudermire is one of the more dangerous return guys in the Big 10, but special teams cannot continue to spot our opponenets field position at midfield and expect the defense to come out and clean up their mess.

So, if the kickoff return coverage was Mr. Hyde, then who on the ST was Dr. Jekyll?

That honor would go to the punter, Brad Nortman, and the punt return team, with a special mention for Nick Toon. The few punts, aside from an early touchback, were good by and large, with one downed at the 13 and the other at the 5 yard line. Both of the Minnesota drives that followed those punts - one at the end of the first half, and the other at the conclusion of the game - were stopped without points going on the board, which just goes to show how important winning the battle of field position can be.

The special mention for Nick Toon is for his awareness and great handling of the last gasp onside kick attempt by the Gophers. Eric Decker had a hand on the ball, but Toon managed to corral it on the rebound. Had Toon not been there to grab it, I would likely be writing about a heartbreaker of a loss instead of a thrilling win.

From here, the Badgers continue the road festivities with a trip to the Horseshoe and an afternoon battle with Ohio State. I am hoping for, though not expecting, a victory. The realist in me says that such an occurrence is unlikely, but even if Bucky drops the upcoming game, the win against Minnesota will have positioned them very well in the conference. Until time runs out in the 4th, I will hold out my hope for an upset. I thus conclude my recap with:

On to the 'Shoe, On to 6-0, and ON WISCONSIN!!!

Clay wears down Gophers as UW keeps Axe for sixth straight year

Adam Hoge — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 21:38:09 -0000

Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema was so excited after Wisconsin's 31-28 win at Minnesota Saturday he wanted to stay and talk to the media a little longer than usual.

"We can go a little bit [longer]. Wanna go a little bit?," he said to Director of Athletic Communications Brian Lucas when the allotted time was up.

That's new. But can you blame him?

The Badgers survived another late comeback from an opponent, but this time from their bitter rivals who were hosting their first conference game at brand new TCF Bank Stadium. John Clay ran for a career-high 184 yards and three touchdowns on 32 carries, and once again took over a game that had been opened back up by a key Wisconsin fumble.

With Wisconsin settling for a field goal by running on 3rd and 10 with an 11-point lead with just under seven minutes to go, it looked like the Badgers would take a very comfortable 14-point lead. Zach Brown gained eight yards on the carry but coughed the ball up as he fell to the ground and Minnesota cornerback Marcus Sherelsreturned it 84 yards for a touchdown. A successful two-point conversion sealed an 11-point swing and cut UW's lead to three.

Clay and Tolzien picked up their teammate, however, and drove 74 yards in 3:50 to put Wisconsin back up 10 on Clay's third touchdown run of the game. The sophomore running back ran for 17 yards on the drive, but his 176 yards up to that point helped set up a 47-yard naked bootleg run for quarterback Scott Tolzien.

"We're like a family, man. We're here for each other," Clay said. "One of us messes up and then we're always there to pick each other up."

That includes the defense, who picked themselves up after allowing 78 yards on two pass plays after Clay's touchdown. Duane Bennett's one yard touchdown run made it a three point game again, but the defense got redemption when O'Brien Schofield forced a fumble and Chris Borlandfell on it to preserve the UW win with 30 seconds to go.

New stadium or not, it was another crazy finish to the longest standing rivalry in the football bowl subdivision.

"I thought it was supposed to be only in the Metrodome," Bielema said. "Every time we come up here it seems to be one of these types of games."

Early stops count late

Twice in the first half the Badgers defense held Minnesota to a field goal in situations where a touchdown appeared imminent.

The Gophers' first drive of the game took up 6:10 on the clock and encompasses 12 plays, but it stalled on 3rd and 7 from the 11 yard line when Adam Weber's pass to Nick Tow-Arnett fell incomplete.

Then on a similar 12-play drive in the second quarter, Minnesota drove 76 yards to the UW 4-yard line before settling for a field goal.

"That was critical. To be put in those situations and hold them to a field goal, there's a big difference between this year and last year in that department."

Secondary does enough on Decker

On paper, Minnesota wide receiver Eric Decker -- the Big Ten's leading receiver -- had another typical big day, catching eight passes for 140 yards and a touchdown.

Almost all of his catches came in 1-on-1 coverage and UW was forced to bring double-coverage in an interesting scheme that used safety Jay Valailike a cornerback, with the actual cornerback stacked five yards behind Valai.

"We had some calls to basically try and put two people on him," Bielema said. "Beat him up at the line of scrimmage. I don't know, as long as I've been in this league, if I've ever seen a guy that can make the plays that he can make ... Anytime we were able to get two on him we were able to get success."

Decker got his yards, but he only scored once and that was good enough for Wisconsin to win.

Turnover battle determines game

Turnovers decide almost any close game and Saturday was no different. In the end, both teams turned the ball over three times and scored 14 points off turnovers, but Minnesota's final turnover was a fumble by Adam Weber in the closing seconds that sealed the game for Wisconsin.

"I don't know who forced it, but I saw the ball on the ground and I was contemplating picking it up but I knew all we needed was the possession so I just dove on it," Borland said. "It was a great play by whoever knocked it loose. It was a great rush."

O'Brien Schofield forced the fumble, his second forced fumble of the season.

Borland enjoying every second

Wisconsin's 5-0 start can be attributed to a number of new faces filling the voids of last year's 7-6 team and true freshman linebacker has been among those key new contributors in all five games.

On top of his fumble recovery to seal Wisconsin's win, Borland was also credited with half of a sack and had another great game on special teams.

"I really didn't anticipate it," Borland said in regards to his playing time on defense. "I thought I would be doing some things on special teams but I didn't anticipate making such a splash on defense. It's been a thrill to play on base and defense."

Extra points.

Wisconsin did not appear to have any major injuries, although Nick Tooncame off limping after blocking on a long-run by John Clay in the second half but returned and appeared to be fine... The Badgers dominated third-down again, converting 8-of-13 conversions while the Gophers only converted 6-of-14... UW won the time of possession 34:41 to 25:19, holding the ball for over 21 minutes in the second half... Wisconsin has now won six straight games against Minnesota and 12 of the last 14 meetings.

A Friday Preview of a Big Ten Conference Tilt - Minnesota at Northwestern, September 26, 2009

JG2112 — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 17:18:49 -0000

More photos » by Kevin Rivoli - AP

I'm a man! But I'm not 40!

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And now it begins. The Gophers head to the shores of Lake Michigan to play the Northwestern Wildcats in both teams' Big Ten Opener (probably brought to you by Ro Tel). Both teams enter the game 2-1, but took different routes to get there. Minnesota, of course, recovered from slow starts to beat Syracuse in OT and Air Force, and played Cal even until 8 minutes remaining in the game. Northwestern, on the other hand, pounded Towson, had to eek out a victory against the Fighting Hurons of Eastern Michigan, and fell behind 17-0 to Syracuse and ended up losing to a late FG despite Mike Kafka's 8000 passing yards (by the way, how good is Paulus, or how bad is NU's pass defense?)

So, here we are, but what do we know?

We know depth charts, but I'm leaving them off here because injuries and production issues may change what the websites claim are the starting lineups. Specifically, Dinkytown is abuzz that RT Jeff Wills may be splitting time with Jeff Stommes, and Marcus Sherels should be back. Also, Northwestern will be regaining the services of various players who noone cares about because they play at Northwestern. But hey, they're smart and we'll probably work for them someday.

Here is some stuff from the Internets, specifically, the Northwestern Internets, discussing the Saturday matchup. Also, check today's and tomorrow's Nugz for more tidbits. As usual, I'm going to pick on five matchups you should consider for the game Saturday - some obvious, some pet projects of mine, some external and emotional:

(1) WR Eric Decker v. his ankle, chin and CB Sherrick McManis - the last thing I'd want to do upon returning from injury is have to defend a wideout who will be a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, and honestly, should start receiving some Heisman consideration (tell me who has performed the best this year - Decker, Tebow, Bradford, McCoy, or Snead. The answer's Decker. Let's get him to New York). The weather may limit his effectiveness tomorrow, but Gopher Nation is right - if Big Ten defenses cannot stop this guy from catching 35 passes a game, throw to him 35 times a game.

(2) QB Mike Kafka v. as usual, CB Ryan Collado - I'm beating a buried horse at this point. Great at run coverage, an absolute team killer in pass coverage. The two fourth-quarter dagger passes by Cal QB Kevin Riley were directly at Collado in coverage, and on Ross's reception to the 1 yard line, Collado turned his hips inside out and Ross had 10 yards of free space. This doesn't bode well against Kafka, who amazingly is first nationally in pass completion percentage. Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald is a smart guy, and his running backs are small and won't get anywhere against our veteran front seven. Unfortunately, if a team doesn't have a RB like Jahvid Best, for the rest of this season I think the Gophers are going to be treated in a similar manner to that of the Vikings in a memorable Monday Night Football game against the New England Patriots about 4 years ago: here are five wideouts. Let's find who Collado is defending, and throw to that guy all game long. Based on how Northwestern is playing ball this year (414 passing yards against Syracuse, for example), an air assault seems likely tomorrow.

Let's remember - while Cosgrove and Lee have done well making adjustments to the opposition this year, but Cosgrove's downfall in the Big Twelve, and Ronnie Lee's downfall since he left Wisconsin, has been pass defense. Starting tomorrow, they will be put to the test. We'll see how much Cosgrove learned last year coaching his son.

(3) Minnesota's tackles v. DE Corey Wootton - Wootton might not have returned to Evanston had he not tore his ACL in San Antonio last December against Missouri in the Alamo Bowl. Regardless, he's Duane Bennett-ing his way through this year with similar results.

Despite being a step slow, that likely is a few steps faster than RT Jeff Wills, who was responsible last Saturday for just about every bad result offensively against Cal, from the first snap, a false start, to numerous sacks, to his guy recovering the Hayo Carpenter fumble, to choosing the wrong guy to block on Weber's back-breaking INT to Mohamed in the 4th quarter. It is clear that slow developing plays cannot be run by the Gophers because weak side pursuit will get past Wills and Carufel's initial blocks and catch up to a play to make the tackle, recover a fumble, or make a coverage sack.

It now sounds like Matt Stommes will get some time at RT as well. Whatever is done, the offensive line is taking weapons out of the downfield passing attack (which should give you further indication of just how good Decker is because he is normally alone or in 2 WR route plays downfield) by needing multiple TEs and RBs to block defensive linemen which should be plugged by one O-lineman. Wills, Stommes, Carufel (who has also been very poor) and Alford need to improve in both rush and pass blocking for this team to be proficient beyond 22 ppg.

Note: For those of you looking for my play by play critique of OT Jeff Wills during the Cal game, I felt it was, despite my criticisms, premature and unfair to bring this assessment to print without allowing the Gophers to try and fix their schematic and performance mistakes. I will be charting Wills and Carufel again this week with the end result being a post comparing their Cal and Northwestern performances, cheering improvement or fearing for the Gophers as they enter the meat of their schedule. Look for it here by early next week.

(4) Minnesota v. a letdown - This is the trap game on the schedule. The Gophers were downright upset and downtrodden over losing to Cal last week. Despite that, they know that in eight days the premium game of the inaugural season at TCF takes place against their archrivals from Madison. We know they've had that game circled for a year after the epic meltdown last November. I could be saying the same thing about Northwestern, but the fact that this game is sandwiched between Cal and Wisconsin, on the road, in a pit, with hardly anyone there (lest we forget, Northwestern has the only stadium smaller than Minnesota in the Big Ten, and has scored incredibly unimpressive attendances at a CHICAGO school - 17,857 v. Towson, and 19, 239 v. EMU), makes this the trap game. Minnesota can easily win this game. They have to remember to show up at 11am to play it and not think ahead to The Axe, Tolzien, Clay and Schofield. That is on the coaches.

(5) Both teams v. Mother Nature - If you live in the Twin Cities, you'll notice right now (leave your cubicle!) the sky is grey and raindrops are falling. The forecast in Evanston, IL for tonight is rain, and for afternoon showers tomorrow. However, forecasting the weather is like forecasting a football game (unless you're me, and predicted Missouri would pound Illinois, Central Michigan would defeat Sparty and Fat Charlie would leave Ann Arbor whining), so it may very well be raining during the game. Advantage: who? Both teams are pass first squads, but if either team is cut out to try 1 FB, 2 TE downfield running with solid WR blocking, it's Minnesota. I'm looking at you, Bennett and Eskridge. Pound the Rock.

So, Big Ten opener, on the road, a comparable team, but Minnesota has more talent. Ready?

Bang your head (against a table) if: Collado and Wills and Carufel play to form, Kafka plays like 2008 Sam Bradford, and the Wildcats get any kind of run attack going.

Bang your head (like you're at a rock concert) if: More of the offensive playbook is revealed, Decker plays according to form, and Kakfa throws under 400 yards - yes, that'll be enough for the Gophers to win because Northwestern can't run.

My prediction for Saturday: Enuff Z'Nuff with the last second Northwestern victories. Minnesota will wear out Northwestern with a dose of Decker, Carpenter and Green. Kafka goes existential. Minnesota 33 - Northwestern 20.

Roll On: How Cal's Offense Should Attack Minnesota's Defense

Avinash — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 11:51:20 -0000

For those who want to look at a breakdown of Cal's defense versus Minnesota's offense, click here.

(Note: I tried to bold sentences that you should pay attention to in this preview, so if you just want to quickly hit through the main points, focus on the bold stuff. Like this.)

Here are the three distinct ways an offense attacks any defense:

1) Establishing the run and testing the ability of the front seven, which will help set up the pass.

2) Establishing the pass by testing the secondary, which would help set up the run.

3) A balance of playcalling between the two areas, where neither pass nor run have a huge emphasis in the early going.

Against most teams, many Cal fans would probably opt for the former. Cal's run blocking has been a cornerstone of their success and this offensive line has proven that they're equally as capable as their predecessors. Jahvid Best and Shane Vereen can break games wide open by accumulating huge yardage in big chunks, turning close games into wins.

I'd also expect a majority of Cal fans to go for balance. It's the logical move. You really want to keep the opponent guessing and adjusting play-by-play, and I figure that this will be the option the Bears end up taking Saturday morning.

Me on the other hand? At the outset, I'd like to risk it and try out the second option. I'll elaborate why (with video evidence) after the jump.

How do you feel Cal's offense should operate versus Minnesota?

I wish I could put some hard-hitting analysis on Minnesota's defensive scheme and come up with a great and innovative way to beat them. I can't. They run a pretty simple defense, as The Daily Gopher discussed in our Q&A yesterday.

The defense is basically the exact same thing as a year ago. Cosgrove came in as co-defensive coordinator and inherited a defense that was bringing virtually everybody back, so the plan all along was to keep things as similar to 2008 as possible. We run a 4-3, we are strong at DT and LB as those guys have done a nice job against the run through two games. The secondary has a couple solid corners and then the safeties so far have been better against the run than the pass but they haven't been tested all that much yet.

Ugh. Boring. Looks like I'll have to resort to our favorite cliches, "Talent" and "Execution". We have plenty of talent. Can they execute?

Running

Indeed, Minny's run defense has been pretty solid. They're allowing 3.51 yards per carry through two games, and although they gave up 261 yards total to Air Force, that's pretty average for the triple option crazy Falcons. It's not crazy to think our running duo of Lightning and Lightning will have a much tougher go against the Gophers front seven, which, as of last week, sports all seniors, including the fierce Lee Campbell down the middle.

Here's a video of their tackles for loss against Air Force.

You can see how big that defensive line is. The average weight of a Gopher D-linemen is around 280 lb, which puts them a little bit over the mean of Maryland's linemen. Based on the decent pressure the Terps got on Riley in the first half, Minnesota should have their opportunities at rushing Riley out of the pocket; it'll be up to him to make the right decisions when he's on the run.

As for run blocking, I doubt we'll see too much variation from the tactics we saw against the Terps. Hydro clarifies the type of run schemes we showed against Maryland.

Against Maryland in 2009, Cal used both zone running and used some of its classic power running game too. The amount of zone runs and power run plays were roughly equal so I suspect that Cal will be a more balanced run team in 2009 with respect to whether they are using zone or man blocking.

I'd be interested to see if Ludwig will set up plays for Best so that he maximizes his speed against the lumbering Big 10 defenders, or if he tries to put him in a power back situation and matches power with power. Given the creative ways they've showcased his abilities the past two weeks, I doubt we'll see him revert to a pure down and distance runner.

Look for a few wrinkles early on, like Jahvid lined up at the LoS or streaking down the sidelines. Nothing is really conventional with the Jet. Let's hope Minnesota isn't the first team to expose weaknesses in our O-line and a possibly groggy Brian Holley.

Passing: Get Kevin Riley into Carl Spackler mode.

Let me get back to why I like option #2. One reason is tactical, the other is strategic.

I've always liked the maxim of hitting your opponent where they're at their weakest. I'm always a big fan of this, especially in college football, and it's a bonus if it's early in the season. Oregon did this to perfection in last year's Civil War. They ran to the edge, met little resistance, and continued to do it unfettered the rest of the night.

In this case, the Golden Gopher front seven is stronger than their secondary, so I'd like to direct our attention away from that area. In this case, play action is the way I'd go.

Play-action is one of my favorite plays in football, and it's one of my favorite plays of the Tedford offense. Aaron Rodgers is probably one of the best play-action quarterbacks in the NFL thanks in part to Tedford's tutelage. Nate Longshore wasn't too shabby himself, and Kevin Riley isn't far behind.

A weaker secondary begs for play action or play fakes. If you can get the secondary to bite on the fake, whether you're selling the run or pumping for a screen or intermediate read, you can own them. When your running attack is as good as Cal's, it leaves the secondary vulnerable, and Minnesota's secondary is vulnerable.

When you watch the above vid, you can see the corners biting on either the first read (like Paulus on his touchdown throw), or on the playfake (the two Air Force plays). If Riley can sell the playfake early on with Best (and Minnesota's defense will be aiming to stop Best, they'd be foolish not to) in the back, I feel he might have a chance to nail Jones or Tucker downfield for a few quick scores.

You also see Minnesota's corner playing well back on the second clip--if this is any indication, Minnesota drops back in their coverage on long down situations in order not to give up the big play. If Cal can get away from the strength of the defense and hit the secondary over and over, that'll force the linebackers to drop into coverage more.

As for grand strategy-wise? This game could also tell us whether Kevin Riley is capable of leading the Bears to early scores.

For all of Nate Longshore's deficiencies, he was competent at leading the Bears to an opening first quarter score, or at the very least getting the Bears offense clicking early on (it was later in the game that was the problem, but we've discussed that enough). Riley has thrown three touchdowns in the first quarter in his college career, and only one of those was on a true scoring drive (vs Oregon in the rain). The other two came off a long Best kickoff return (Oregon St.) and an interception by Syd'Quan in the red zone (Washington State).

The Jet has been responsible for many of Cal's early scores the past fifteen games, and we should be thankful for having the luxury of a player who can make our offense look great with just one or two plays. However, when Best gets stuck against a physical defense that can seal and contain, it's been up to quarterback play to bail him out. There was precious little of that help last season.

Thus, it'll be crucial for Riley to develop his rhythm and timing from the opening kickoff rather than working his way in as the game goes along. His ability to get Cal's offense moving early and often will be critical to our success later in the schedule, because Pac-10 defenses have seen us too much to be overwhelmed by our running game. You need balance to win a conference championship, and Riley has to start providing that balance for Cal to gain those accolades.

If he can start showcasing an ability to pick apart secondaries game-by-game, it'll go a long way towards making him just as deadly as Best in the backfield. Remember the last time we had a duo like that? Think it was five years ago...

This strategy does have its flaws (if Riley struggles our offense could be mired in mud longer than it needs to be), but if it works, it could pay off huge dividends going into conference play.

via blog.pennlive.com

And that's all she wrote.

Poll

How should Cal attack Minnesota on offense to start the game?

Establish the run first.

42 votes

Attack through the air.

57 votes

A balance of both.

74 votes

I'd like to see them try something else.

8 votes

181 votes | Poll has closed

Three Things to Like About the State of the Gopher Football Program

Buck Bravo — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 19:51:17 -0000

Saturday's victory versus Air Force was a historic experience for Gopher fans, the University and the State of Minnesota. While the casual observer reveled in the fanfare and the splendor of TCF Bank Stadium, die-hard football fans watched a Gopher team defeat a disciplined Air Force squad that had won their previous game by a score of 72-0 versus Nicholls State. Granted that Nicholls State was not a top tier opponent, but do consider that Nicholls State defeated Duquesne this past Saturday by a score of 14-7. Air Force was no cupcake.

More important than a single victory is the direction in which the Minnesota program is moving. Is the program getting better, worse, or has it hit a plateau? Based upon my observations of the past two weeks, here are three points that indicate the program is headed in the right direction:

Player Development- The play of Nate Triplett and Lee Campbell over the last two weeks is indicative of a program in which players improve from year to year. Triplett was a three star recruit in 2005 on both Rivalsand Scout, yet played mostly special teams until this season. Campbell was a two star recruit on both Rivalsand Scout, and has improved markedly during each year in the program.

Taken alone, these players could be examples of "late bloomers." However, looking up and down the roster similar stories are evident with defensive tackles Eric Small and Garrett Brown, tight end Nick Tow-Arnett, cornerback Marcus Sherels, and safety Kyle Theret. All of these players received little interest from major college programs, yet have become solid Division I football players. As an obvious logical consequence, the future is bright for the development of players that entered the program with exceptional measurables and interest from other programs over the last two years.

In all fairness, the 2008 recruiting class is Tim Brewster's first full recruiting class, and when that class has redshirt seniors playing in 2012 the program should begin to fully reflect the efforts of the Tim Brewster era.
Halftime Adjustments - Over the last decade of watching Gopher football, fans began to expect a strong first half showing followed by secondhalf disasters. Opposing teams would make adjustments for the second half, while Minnesota would continue to run the same game plan from the first half. This year has been different. First, Kevin Cosgrove and Ronnie Lee deserve praise for their halftime adjustments. Air Force moved the ball against Minnesota into the third quarter, but adjustments in the Gophers' defensive scheme slowed them down as the game progressed.

One example, the Nate Triplett fumble recovery, was the result of Kim Royston adjusting his position to force the quarterback to cut inside on the option.

Here's a first and second half comparison of the Gopher defense this season:

Stat

1st Half

2nd Half

Opponent Points

23

10

Defensive Points

0

7

Interceptions

0

1

Three and Out %

31%

42%

As you can see by the above chart, the Minnesota defense improved in each of the listed statistical areas in the second half for the first two games of the season. The most likely reason for these disparities is a combination of good defensive adjustments and having players that tire out to a lesser extent than the opponents.

So how about the offense?:

Stat

1st Half

2nd Half

Total Yards

225

421

Points

17

19

Interceptions

1

0

Once again, the Gophers improved for every statistic from the first to the second half for the first two games of the season. Second half improvements are a new phenomenon for Gopher football, and if this trend continues throughout the season is a good sign for the future of the program.
Deleon Eskridge- Last season, Deleon Eskridge stepped in as a true freshman for the injured Duane Bennett to shoulder the bulk of the carries for the Gophers. Bennett exhibited good slashing abilities, but was fumble- prone and didn't often make the first tackler miss. Saturday, Eskridge looked bigger and faster than last year, and was able to shake the first defender more often than not. Unless Saturday was an enigma, the Gophers may soon have a duo of capable running backs in Duane Bennett and Deleon Eskridge. Such a luxury will pay dividends as Minnesota progresses through a grinding schedule.

Developing players in the system, out-coaching opponents with adjustments throughout the game, and having more than one capable running back are all signs of a program heading in the right direction. While I still believe that the Gophers will be fortunate to have a winning season due to an extremely difficult schedule, the future is beginning to look golden for the Gophers.

Know thy Opponent 2009: Minnesota Golden Gophers

BoilerTMill — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 12:00:14 -0000

The final entry of vacation week takes us to the halfway point of the season. I view the Minnesota game as our most important road game of the season. We have not won a true road game since beating Minnesota two years ago in the Metrodome (Though the 2007 Motor City Bowl was a virtual home game for CMU). That streak will likely be intact coming into this game. If you give us wins in four of our home games, which is reasonable, we have to win at least two road games in order to make a bowl. Since we always struggle at Michigan and Wisconsin is a toss-up at best, that means we have to get this game in Minneapolis.

I don't think it is a stretch, either. The Gophers were ranked last year, but I feel it is a game we would have won if not for Curtis Painter's injury. The Gophers won 17-6 on a day where we showed virtually no offense. Both of Minnesota's touchdowns were set up by two huge plays, both of which could have been stopped. The first was a 71 yard pass that we tipped and missed tackles on. That set up a 4 yard run by Adam Weber. The second was a 39 yard run by Weber in the fourth quarter that set up the final score. That was really the only contribution from the Minnesota offense on the day. Kory Sheets' only lost fumble of the year, inside the Minnesota 20, sealed the game for Minnesota.

We were that close to Minnesota last year, and that was with a player at quarterback who had barely played in a collegiate game to that point. That gives me hope we can win a huge swing game on our schedule.

2008 Record: (7-6, 3-5 Big Ten)

Bowl result: Lost to Kansas 42-21 in Insight Bowl

Blog Representation: The Daily Gopher, Buck Bravo, Golden Gopher Football blog

Series with Purdue: Minnesota leads 32-30-3

Last Purdue win: 9/22/07 at Minnesota 45-31

Last Northwestern win: 10/25/08 at Purdue 17-6

Last Season for the Golden Gophers:

It was an up and down year for the Gophers, as evidenced by the fact we are the last team they have beaten. Even though we finished 4-8, we have more wins (2) in our last five games than the Gophers, who finished 2008 on a five game losing streak. For any Gopher fans that stop by I know the reason why. There was a very obnoxious Minnesota fan sitting a row in front of me at last season's game. When I visited Minnesota for the 2005 game we were treated to some of the most polite fans in the Big Ten. This guy, however, was loud, rude, convinced the Gophers were going to Pasadena, and actually cheered when Curtis Painter got hurt. I think the five game losing streak is karmic retribution because of that.

Minnesota did start the year 7-1, but it was against one of the weakest schedules in the country. Florida Atlantic and Montana State were the only wins over teams with winning records. The 27-20 win at Illinois was probably the best of the bunch, as it later prevented the Illini from going to a bowl. Minnesota finished the year by not scoring much against a bad Michigan defense, then not scoring at all in a 55-0 blowout against Iowa.

Minnesota's non-conference schedule this season is much tougher than in years past. They open at Syracuse before hosting Air Force, California, and South Dakota State. Going on the road to play a BCS conference team, even Syracuse, is always brave. Cal will be one of the best teams in the Pac-10, while Air Force is a solid team that has won at least 8 games each of the past two years.

Minnesota offense:

As stated in my interview earlier this week with the Daily Gopher, Minnesota is changing its offensive strategy a bit this year. Glen Mason's teams were known for having a power running game that sent backs like Marion Barber and Lawrence Maroney to the NFL. It is quite a change, as the Gophers were not a strong running team in 2008. They barely ran for more than 100 yards per game as a team, and sophomore Deleon Eskridge was the leading rusher with only 678 yards and seven TD's. He represented Minnesota's youth movement very well, as 13 players on Minnesota's offensive two-deeps were freshmen or sophomores. Fellow sophomore Shady Salamon contributed 181 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. Unfortunately for him, 122 of those yards came in the first four games of the season.

Minnesota will still have some elements of its spread attack because of junior quarterback Adam Weber. Weber was a threat on the ground last year, amassing 233 yards and four touchdowns. He led Minnesota in rushing during our game and had a first quarter touchdown run. As a passer, his touchdowns dropped from 24 to 15 last year, but He cut his interceptions down from 19 to 8. As a two year starter he has already thrown for more than 5,600 yards. In 2007 he ran for more than 6000 yards and five scores, but that was on a 1-11 Minnesota team that couldn't stop anyone defensively. In terms of career starts, Weber is one of the most experienced quarterbacks in the Big Ten. Five of his interceptions last season came during the five game losing streak, so he still has a bit to learn.

Helping Weber put up such good numbers is all-Big Ten receiver Eric Decker. Decker (84-1,074-7) had a fantastic first half of last season, but was limited down the stretch with an injury. He had just 10 catches in the regular season after the Purdue game, but healed enough for a fantastic bowl performance against Kansas. In that game he caught eight passes for 149 yards and a score. It is no wonder that Minnesota' offense struggled once he got hurt. The next high receiver, tight end Jack Simmons, had 36 catches for 331 yards and two scores. Essentially, Decker was Minnesota's passing game. He was recently drafted in the 27^th round of the Major League Baseball draft, and appeared to be fine during Minnesota's baseball season. Ben Kuznia (31-310-0) is the only other receiver with decent returning numbers. He missed the spring game with an injury, depriving Minnesota of its top two receivers.

Minnesota's offensive line will be the key to its season as they try to run a little bit of everything on offense. It should be interesting as the Gophers return everyone on the two deeps from a line that gave up 30 sacks. New offensive coordinator Jed Fisch is calling on these guys to cut down on the sacks, as The Daily Gopher mentioned in its spring preview.

Minnesota defense:

Play defense to the end, boys

Two years ago it was, "what defense?" Minnesota didn't hold a single opponent under 21 points in 2007 and all but two cracked 30. That includes 1-AA North Dakota State. 2008 was different as Indiana, Purdue, and Florida Atlantic were each held to a touchdown or less. That is quite an improvement when all three teams topped 40 points in victories over the Gophers in 2007. On the other hand, Minnesota gave up 97 points in its final two games against Iowa and Kansas.

Though Minnesota improved, its defense was not great in 2008. This only shows how poor our offense was. Cornerback Traye Simmons may be the best returning player in the secondary. He had four interceptions last year to lead the team and added 62 tackles. He'll be joined in the secondary by Kim Royston, a safety transfer from Wisconsin, Kyle Theret and Marcus Sherels. Theret had 78 tackles and three interceptions as a safety. Sherels added two more picks. With experience, this secondary should see even more opportunities for interceptions.

In terms of production, linebacker Lee Campbell led the team with 80 tackles. He added four sacks, showing his ability to get into the backfield. Minnesota runs a tradition 4-3 scheme most of the time. Nate Triplett and Simoni Lawrence should be quite productive at the other two positions. All three linebackers will be seniors in 2009. Lawrence had 66 tackles with four sacks and an interception, making him and Campbell quite a duo. They will be relied on heavily as new defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove takes over.

Minnesota's biggest loss on defense was defensive end Willie VanDeSteeg. He was one of the best defensive ends in the conference last year with 10.5 sacks and 19 tackles for loss. Cedric McKinley (3 sacks) will need to step up his production, while redshirt freshman Anthony Jacobs is likely to start on the other end. Eric Small and Garrett Brown will man the tackle spots. The pair combined for five sacks last season, but were somewhat suspect against the run. The Gophers gave up almost 150 yards per game on the ground, so line play will be critical.

Minnesota Special Teams:

If the Gophers lose a lot of close games it could be because they are breaking both a new kicker and a new punter. Gone are Justin Kucek and Joel Monroe, leaving a void at both specialty positions. Dan Orseske comes in as a true freshman expected to take over the placekicking duties. He will compete with junior Eric Ellestad and sophomore David Schwerman. Ellestad did kick in the spring game and performed well. Blake Haudan will likely take over for his senior season as the punter. Both coverage units, which were pretty good, will likely suffer until clear starters emerge.

Sherels will likely stay as the primary punt returner, and he is a good one that averaged almost 12 yards per return last season. He will also serve as the main kick returner.

Intangibles:

The largest intangible will be one that a Big Ten team has not had since 1960 when Indiana's Memorial Stadium opened. The opening of TCF Bank Stadium returns Minnesota football to campus away from the Metrodome, where the Gophers played since 1982. There is little doubt that the Gophers intend to reclaim a home field advantage they have not had in over a quarter century. The fans are more than excited that they will once again be like the rest of the conference with outdoor football. Fun Fact: Purdue played int eh highest attended game ever at Minnesota's old Memorial Stadium. The 1961 Purdue-Minnesota game had 66,284 fans in attendance.

TCF Bank Stadium is a gorgeous, if small by Big Ten standards, Stadium.

The change in both coordinators is also a bit of a puzzling move. No one is really sure what to expect from an offense that was worse last year even though its record was better. Defensively, Minnesota can't be worse than it was in 2007. It's experience alone is reason to expect improvement.

Game Outlook:

If we are healthy going into this game I expect to win because we will actually have an experienced quarterback this time. One had to be there last season to appreciate how ugly our offense was in the Minnesota game. Considering what Siller did the following week against Michigan it is like the coaching staff didn't even bother to prepare for the possibility he might play against Minnesota.

Minnesota's recruiting has been significantly better, but they still are about a year away from seriously contending in the Big Ten. They had some health issues in spring ball and were missing their top two receivers. The bottom line is that we need to take advantage and grab a win against a team that has nearly as many question marks as we do. You cannot predict how the shift in offensive philosophy will go, but it does help they have an experienced quarterback running things.

Prediction:

I still see this as a game we absolutely have to win. We probably won't be favored in each of the following five games, so if we can get this one to start 4-2 it will greatly enhance our bowl chances. We need to stick with the running game, which I think will be working well, and use our experienced secondary to shut down their passing game. This is the ultimate game to win with defense, and we proved last year we can stop them. Finally, this is the final Purdue game before I turn 30 on October 12th. I'd love the present of a win at the end of my 20's. Purdue 20, Minnesota 17

Stat	1st Half	2nd Half
Opponent Points	23	10
Defensive Points	0	7
Interceptions	0	1
Three and Out %	31%	42%