Early line has TCU favored by 20

Donate To GopherHole


If I were a betting man, I would take Gophers +20 right now.
 

I'll take that. In fact, looking to right now.

It'll be down to two TDs by the time game rolls around. Sharps are going to hammer that thing into the ground (then probably back up). Get it while it's hot.

With this defense, the Gophers style of play offensively (T.O.P.), the game being in Minnesota with all kinds of hype, it being the first game of the year, and the fact the Gophers seem to be hellbent on making a national statement......I see very, very, very few scenarios in which TCU wins by 3 TDs.

I'm not going to say it's a sure thing. I've learned the hard way that nothing ever is. But, this line if ridiculously inflated by national-level public perception at the moment.

Something that I was kicking around, and I can't talk myself out of it: If TCU makes the playoff last year and loses to Florida State, all of that "national-level public perception" of them "possibly being the best team in America," goes away and the line againt MN to open the season is cut in half. To me, that screams VALUE.
 

It depends on which TCU team shows up. We will be pumped for this game and it is under the lights. TCU had to come from behind on the road last year to beat Kansas. Signature win.

Go Gophers !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 


I don't see anywhere online that will take that action this early. If so, I'd take it in a heartbeat even on my limited budget
 



I like it....but then again I hammered us last year at +15.5 and we know how that worked out
 



upnorthkid said:
Yeah it's there but I couldn't get it to let me place a bet. Maybe it's a connection issue
Click to expand...

Do you have an account with 5dimes? I can place a bet.

FWIW, for tomorrow's MLB action I really like San Fran over Arizona, and the Cardinals over Milwaukee.
 

I went on the Killer Frogs forum to see what their fan base thought of the game, and they had a thread similar to this one discussing the line. Most of their posters think the line will come down as well, but many think they will win by 20+. Some also thought their team could have put up another 20 in the game last year.

If we don't turn the ball over five times in our own territory (or whatever absurd number it was last year) I think we can keep this game close. We should have more success on the ground given what TCU lost on defense and our OL improving, but if we don't have a passing game again it could be a long day.

I'm excited to see our secondary vs. their WRs. A lot of their posters claim we can't match their speed, but I think that is one position matchup where the athletic ability is near even. I think our secondary will be out to prove a point as well. Doctson and Listenbee are both returning so Murray and BBC better come to play.
 

Hopefully this gem heads north to watch his team:

Elderly man punched in the face at football scrimmage Friday

Link
 

Nort73 said:
I went on the Killer Frogs forum to see what their fan base thought of the game, and they had a thread similar to this one discussing the line. Most of their posters think the line will come down as well, but many think they will win by 20+. Some also thought their team could have put up another 20 in the game last year.

If we don't turn the ball over five times in our own territory (or whatever absurd number it was last year) I think we can keep this game close. We should have more success on the ground given what TCU lost on defense and our OL improving, but if we don't have a passing game again it could be a long day.

I'm excited to see our secondary vs. their WRs. A lot of their posters claim we can't match their speed, but I think that is one position matchup where the athletic ability is near even. I think our secondary will be out to prove a point as well. Doctson and Listenbee are both returning so Murray and BBC better come to play.
Click to expand...

The WR's vs. our secondary will be interesting but in the end it all comes down to containing Boykin. The scary thing about a team like TCU is that their offense if really explosive and we are not the kind of team that is built to get into shootouts. With 10 returning starters on offense they won't have some of the offensive uncertainty they did when we played them last season as they were still adjusting to a new system.

On the flip side I would expect us to have some growing pains on offense early in the year with all the new parts at some key positions. As usual the defense is going to have to play great for us to have a shot to pull the big upset.
 



MNVCGUY said:
The WR's vs. our secondary will be interesting but in the end it all comes down to containing Boykin.
Click to expand...

Agreed. We have struggled against mobile quarterbacks for as long as I can remember. If (big IF) we can contain Boykin we certainly have a shot at beating them. If we let him get outside the pocket he will hurt us. I do think our DEs will be better at containing the QB this year, and hopefully Richardson can create some havoc in the backfield.

If it's Friday after the game and the boxscore shows 200+ rushing yards for TCU and Boykin has 50+, I would be shocked if we didn't lose. I don't think we will see 300+ passing yards from TCU, but who knows. If we can slow the game down and have a decent rushing attack it will be a closer game than +20. Turnovers obviously play a big part in that as well.
 

Nort73 said:
Most of their posters think the line will come down as well, but many think they will win by 20+. Some also thought their team could have put up another 20 in the game last year.
Click to expand...

They could have put up another 20. We got our butts kicked in every way. Game wasn't as close as score indicated.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Spoofin said:
They could have put up another 20. We got our butts kicked in every way. Game wasn't as close as score indicated.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

I never said they couldn't have. But if our offense doesn't turn the ball over 5 times and give them a short field multiple times, you could probably have taken a couple of scores off their total as well. Our defense played well given what they were working with.
 

I actually thought the defense looked pretty good against TCU last year. As has been pointed out, the short fields gave them some early points, and the turnovers and short drives meant that our defense got worn down with how quickly they were getting back on the field. The offense was an absolute embarrassment and cannot play that way again. If this game is close to a 20 point blowout at home, I'm going to be pretty upset. I think its likely we lose, but I believe we give them a run for their money.
 

Mitch looked skittish in that game, which was his first big game as the starter after Nelson left. He won't be Peyton Manning, but I would expect a better, settled performance this year.
 

Really ugly looking back at that boxscore. We sure helped them out.

Minnesota drives vs TCU:
Punt
Punt
Interception
Punt
Interception
Punt
Fumble
Punt
End of Half
Fumble
Punt
Interception
Touchdown
Punt
Punt

TCU Scoring drives vs MN:
18 Yards Touchdown
45 Yards Field Goal
27 Yards Touchdown
39 Yards Touchdown
3 Yards Field Goal
51 Yards Field Goal
 

Spoofin said:
They could have put up another 20. We got our butts kicked in every way. Game wasn't as close as score indicated.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

I am always amazed how people use the previous season's game as a predictor as to how the the next season game is going to turn out. There are so many things that impact the outcome of a game, it is really foolish to believe that this is a useful factor factor in predicting the score of this season's game.
 

Killjoy said:
I am always amazed how people use the previous season's game as a predictor as to how the the next season game is going to turn out. There are so many things that impact the outcome of a game, it is really foolish to believe that this is a useful factor factor in predicting the score of this season's game.
Click to expand...

How did I do that? I simply said we were beat soundly last year and I think they could have scored more. I didn't even mention this year's game. Find someone else to accuse Killjoy - you are looking for things that aren't there.

Spoofin said:
They could have put up another 20. We got our butts kicked in every way. Game wasn't as close as score
Click to expand...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Spoofin said:
They could have put up another 20. We got our butts kicked in every way. Game wasn't as close as score indicated.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...


I just heard an interview with one of the asst coaches (can't remember who), and he cited improvement by the Gophers as that game wore one, even mentioning that they out scored TCU in the second half. I guess he'll feel like an idiot when someone clues him in that the only reason the game was as close as it was is TCU opted not to score the additional 20 points that was theirs whenever they wanted it.
 

Wow. Did folks even watch the game? A coach giving credit to the other team is not rare and certainly not definitive. Go back and watch the game. We got our butts kicked and TCU held back in the second half.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Z
Spoofin said:
Wow. Did folks even watch the game? A coach giving credit to the other team is not rare and certainly not definitive. Go back and watch the game. We got our butts kicked and TCU held back in the second half.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

It's certainly true TCU won handily. Why are you trying to make it even worse than it was? How could they have easily scored 20 more? And why not 30?
 

Old Goph said:
Z

It's certainly true TCU won handily. Why are you trying to make it even worse that it was? How could they have easily scored 20 more? And why not 30?
Click to expand...

I just agreed with the statement that they could have scored 20 more made on the TCU board. I didn't pick the 20 number. Just my opinion - not sure why folks seem to care so much about my opinion.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Spoofin said:
Just my opinion - not sure why folks seem to care so much about my opinion.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Sorry. You took the time to post your opinion and I responded. I don't care overly much about your opinions as I'm sure you don't care so much about mine. But that's kind of what makes these boards go round and round.
 

Perhaps Jerry Kill made some necessary adjustments at half-time. Patterson did not hesitate to "run up" the score when he was against other teams:

SMU: 56 - 0
Oklahoma State: 42 - 9
Texas Tech: 82 - 27
Iowa State: 55 - 3
Ole Miss: 42 - 3
 

Spoofin said:
I just agreed with the statement that they could have scored 20 more made on the TCU board. I didn't pick the 20 number. Just my opinion - not sure why folks seem to care so much about my opinion.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Sure maybe they could've. I can understand the argument. I think an equally logical argument could be made that the game could've been a lot closer. TCU had one scoring drive of longer than 50 yards. If our offense wasn't a complete mess and didn't turn the ball over 5 times (including multiple times in our own territory) it's likely a closer game.

I will say this, I think we benefitted from them still working out the kinks of a new offense early in the season last year and that won't be the case this year. Our defense will have to play the game of their lives. Field position will be huge. Our D is tough to score on when opponents have to drive the length of the field. And obviously our offense will have to play better an do their part.
 

Spoofin is spot on, we were annihilated against TCU. How can anyone who watched that game think otherwise? It's not a crime, sometimes you have a bad game, play against a great time, or play a team on the road you don't match up with well. All of those happened to us. We got beat bad, no need to puff you chest out and brag that we only lost by 23...
 

jaymil said:
Sure maybe they could've. I can understand the argument. I think an equally logical argument could be made that the game could've been a lot closer. TCU had one scoring drive of longer than 50 yards. If our offense wasn't a complete mess and didn't turn the ball over 5 times (including multiple times in our own territory) it's likely a closer game.

I will say this, I think we benefitted from them still working out the kinks of a new offense early in the season last year and that won't be the case this year. Our defense will have to play the game of their lives. Field position will be huge. Our D is tough to score on when opponents have to drive the length of the field. And obviously our offense will have to play better an do their part.
Click to expand...

Our offense turned the ball over 5 times because TCU destroyed us. There's no shame in that, TCU destroyed a lot of good football teams last year. They may have been the best team in the country. Saying that the game would have been close without the 5 TOs is like San Jose St. saying their game with us would have been close if they would have contained the run better...

TCU will again be a tough match-up for us because their biggest weakness (if you can call it that) is their pass defense. They got exposed against Baylor and also lost of lot of their back 7. Unfortunately, a passing game also happens to be our biggest weakness. Along with running QBs, which they also have.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom