5 Bullet Points / Takeaways for each of us...

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Hollinsanity said:
1) Eric Murray is a beast. Forced fumble, interception, 8 tackles. His biggest "weakness" IMO is that he gets a little too physical at times and pushes the limits of PI. The PI along the MN sideline where the TCU WR went down looked like a complete dive to me, but they called PI because Murray was making slight contact. The WR felt the contact, saw the throw was slightly overthrown, and dove like a soccer player. Besides the PI calls he crushed it tonight.

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Murray played at a level that will have him playing on Sundays next season. On the other hand,I was disappointed in Boddy-Calhoun, who was way to passive in coming up and pressuring receivers on the line of scrimmage.
 


1. Contrary to popular opinion, Mitch played good enough last night. If you expected him to complete 3-4 more passes, throw for another touchdown, and 50 more yards; you aren't gonna get it with this sorry bunch of receivers. He had a few mis throws, but he made some throws too. The offensive line and the receivers deserve most of the blame in my opinion.

2. Rodrick Williams isn't gonna cut it. A power game is nice and all, but at least get to the 2nd level before you start lowering your shoulder. Running into a defensive tackle isn't gonna work. Williams is fine for 3-5 carries a game, but not much more. Smith needs to be the feature back if we are so set against playing Jeff Jones.

3. I am not impressed at all with our wide receivers. We can't run routes. We can't get separation. We can't catch. TCU's receivers make ours look silly.

4. The defense is legit. Big 10 offenses aren't going to get anything through the air against us. The only concerns I have are with Poock and Lynn. I think they are the weakness on this defense.

5. The offensive line needs to get healthy and stay healthy. We started to get a little more of a push as the game wore on, but our pass protection wasn't good enough. Some of that though is on the play calling. We probably shouldn't be running play action from our own goal line.
 

Tlsbhansen said:
I'll go in a different direction

1. People who buy tailgate lot parking passes should not show up at 7:00 and expect real tailgaters to move everything to actually get into a spot. (that's for you Mr. BMW)
2. If we are going to see regular attendence at these levels as the program improves, they need more beer stands. The lines were too long
3. The University and cell providers need to figure out how to get even third world-level reception in the stadium
4. If they want us to actually sing the "Alma Mater" have someone who knows how to operate the prompts to put the words up BEFORE we are supposed to sing them
5. Can the U get a brain surgeon to figure out how to get the TVs to all play the live game and not have half of them on a 15 second delay? With long lines for concessions, it would be nice to be able actually watch the game.

And one football related one...the health and play of the O Line is the single most important contributing factor to how good this team can be this year.
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I see you took some time away for Yelp to attend a football game! Yes, you should move unless you bought the two spots (even if they drive a BMW (?) ).
 

Just a minor point, but our last two onside kicks against Ohio State last year and TCU last night have been absolutely atrocious. At least I think those are our last two onside kicks...
 


Impressions:

1. Despite miscues and losing 23-17, the Gophers went toe-to-toe with the #2 team in the country in the most fun festive night I've seen at The Bank! The team should hold their heads up high. I'll take this game any day over a lower tier nonconference foe. There will be lots of film reviews and great learning for the team out of this game. Colorado State worries me - a trap game.

2. The O-Line needs to stay healthy. LT is a concern. Josh Campion, we need him to be healthy. Stability at O-Line is critical. The Gophers probably should consider a sixth OL/OG in this recruiting class by taking both Trent Maynard & JC Vincent Calhoun (Calhoun to balance the class a little bit) in addition to Sean Foster, Sam Schlueter, Matt Kegel, and Conner Olson. We will need a farm of fifth year offensive linemen down the road.

3. Newcomers: Rodney Smith shined. Huff came out of nowhere. Nifty R Still will be a great addition once he starts clicking. Poock is work in progress. Need to utilize Wozniak's height at TE to our advantage. Did I miss anyone else? Notable absence at WR are Gant, Gentry, and Holland.

4. Overall, we have good defense with speed! DL needs to keep our secondary from being overworked. Our secondary is superb!

5. Offense: Leidner had zero interceptions, had some bad throws but so did Boykin. Overall played decent not spectacular in spite of OL being victimized by TCU defensive speed. We can't fumble the ball into the end zone for a touch back, or fair catch a ball at the five yard line and expect good things to happen. Game changers.
 

Funny thing about the fair catch at the 5.

Gophers had only 10 on the field. Then TCU calls a timeout. Then the Gophers again sent out only 10 players on that play. Not that it really mattered but it was crazy that we couldn't get the right number after a timeout.
 

1. You cannot give any short field opportunities or fumble the ball on the two.
2. We ran the ball 39 times. Some would say it was balanced. I don't like it. I would like to see 45 plus rushes.
3. Do we have the best punter in the Nation or what? Mortell can flip the field, consistently.
4. I think Rodney Smith should get at least 25 carries a game.
5. The Crowd was the best I have seen at Minnesota.
 

1. Loved that the coaches misled the media by saying they were ditching no-huddle, then opened the game with a somewhat effective no-huddle drive.

2. Poock looked terrible, especially when he had to cover in space. Seemed to be not ready for primetime.

3. Fair catch at the 5? Bad play.

4. Rodney Smith looked great, but please don't make him run into the pile...he's not Cobb.

5. First play was a 5 yd pass to Wozniak. #YearOfTheWoz
 



Okie said:
Just a minor point, but our last two onside kicks against Ohio State last year and TCU last night have been absolutely atrocious. At least I think those are our last two onside kicks...
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New rules have made onside kicks extremely hard to execute anymore. What the Gophers did against Iowa in 2011 can't be done anymore. You can fair catch it after one bounce.

Not saying they were great, but it was a different type of play than what they tried against OSU. I give them credit for at least trying to figure out something that can possibly work.
 

1. Turnovers cost us at least a fourteen point swing in the first half. The score at the half could have easily been 10-3 Gophers.
2. Defense is the real deal.
3. Mitch passed for almost 200 yards, a touchdown, and no interceptions! Compared to last year, he should get his own parade. (fumble cancelled the parade)
4. TE is an area of need to give a proper check off to Mitch.
5. Team health will decide the team's success. Off line and TEs need to get healthy to maximize potential and defense can't afford critical injuries.

I think the look like a 9-10 win team!
 

5 only? Ok. I'll go all positive
1) D played great. We had 2 coverage breakdowns that TCU failed to hit on but other than that they made TCU earn everything they got despite being on the field a ton.
2) D Newcomers: Huff played a great game. Was heady, athletic, sure tackler, everything. He doesn't 'look' like much but he sure played well. Ace Rogers and Akunle were solid in the secondary and Rogers in particular looked like he belonged. Poock played well for a first timer. Missed a few tackles but played well considering how tough it is for LBs to play against this type of team with so much space.
3) Playcalling. Yep I'll say it. I think Limey called a decent game. Lots of talk about that PA on the goal line and while it was risky I don't see it as a bad call, more bad execution. Line got bum rushed and mitch should've known coming to the line what his escape plan was. The FB was in the flat and that's where he should've gone with it even if it was a throw at his feet. Other than that I thought he mixed it up well. we still need more 'easy yardage' and some YAC to help the O out but I think Limey called a winnable game
4) ST. Boring sure but great punt and kick coverage all game, Mortell was solid too
5) RBs. I've seen Nugget and believe he's a solid back. He had some nice moments and will play well for us. Smith looks like a lighter, quicker version of Cobb. Who knows what happens but he looked like the real deal. However so did The Whaley after 1 game so we'll see
 

Lots of Good Comments I agree with...

Spoofin said:
You only gets 5...
1. EM31 is very very good
2. RS24 is going to be our #1 RB
3. Very surprised our stable of RFr WRs had zero catches and have all been passed by a true Fr
4. I no longer understand pass interference
5. Need our OL to get healthy
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I wholeheartedly agree with each point.

5 More Thoughts:

1. Barnboy said: "Mitch's passes are hard to watch, but I think he gives us the best chance to win. I don't buy that a 3-star true freshman QB can make the reads, manage the game, and not get flustered, no matter how creamy smooth his passes are in practice." And Rodney's Open responded: "Mitch can't do any of those things either...
I mean all the other notes that people are making are great. Our receivers aren't great, but I think they have some promise. O- Line was banged up and running game took a while to get going.
With all that said, it's all about #7. QB impacts too much of the game to be so incompetent. He seems like a nice guy and a hard worker, but he just can't be the QB of this team if it wants to take the next step. He impacts the running game, passing game, and the defense especially.

Unfortunately, I agree with Rodney. However, I'm not at practice or in conversation with the other quarterbacks to know if we have a better candidate or what the answer is. I'm somebody who puts a lot of emphasis on body language and show me. I wanted to believe Mitch had improved....but there are just way too many times I didn't like his decisions or his execution. I see too little evidence Mitch has the IT factor to get us a championship, beat Wisconsin, get a bowl win etc. Hopefully, somebody gets an opportunity at different points to wrestle the job from him and takes it away. I just don't think the ceiling is high enough with Mitch... I'd really prefer not to see the same struggles at the position for two more years. Brian Griese knows a lot about the quarterback position and basically said the same thing much of the game. I want Mitch to succeed because I want the Gophers to succeed but the quarterback play has to be better for us to continue to improve as a team. If Mitch is the guy I'm behind him. I do trust the coaches to figure it out...it's not like they don't see the same things.

2. Julian Huff was impressive. I think our linebackers are a strength not far behind our defensive backs. Our defense is the best for a long time.
3. Berkely Edwards and Jeff Jones still on the team?
4. Cashman and Hardin made plays.
5 We do have more playmakers...we just still need more....because so far we don't have a Maxx replacement, as a big time playmaker, at any position. But the promise is there that Rodney Smith could put himself in a David Cobb argument at some point to be a big time playmaker. And Rashad Still might become a wide receiver threat.
 



1. When Kill says before the game that we can't afford to turn the ball over, he means we can't afford to turn the ball over!

2. Have to get the OL healthy, specifically the LT position

3. After all of the freshmen WR hype, the old veterans Maye and Wolitarsky are still our best WR's at the moment. They are dependable, but I really hope a guy like Gant, Still, or Gentry emerge to become a legit downfield threat.

4. Not much to say about the defense. I doubt anyone else defends TCU that well the rest of the season.

5. As long as the OL and Mitch stays relatively healthy, I think we're the favorite in the West.
 

1. Atmosphere and Crowd was very good. We had some negative people (yes even in section 103) who were talking about how Mitch sucks and he's another Adam Weber..., but all in all a great festive crowd.
2. Defense played extremely hard and well. Ace Rodgers stood out on the few plays he was out there. Eric Murray and Antonio Johnson both had great games. Alex Keith again made a nice play (hope he can stay healthy this year).
3. I think Mitch will be better this year as well. The team can win almost every remaining game (OSU would take a near perfect game) with him as our QB
4. This team needs Rodrick Williams to play at a high level. He is much better than his game last night. It was encouraging to see Smith have a good game and it should be a good mix with those two.
5. In my head I was trying to imagine DeVondre Campbell making that catch and Boykin trying to tackle him on his way to the endzone. That would have been an exciting ~8 seconds!
 

1. I am more confident in a B1G West Championship for the Gophers now than I was at this time yesterday.
2. Our D can hang with any team on the schedule, except maybe OSU, and will be the difference maker this season.
3. Mitch is a baller and clear leader of this team. I will still take him over any other QB in the West.
4. Crowd was AWESOME last night.
5. Mortell for Heisman.
 

Nokomis said:
1. I am more confident in a B1G West Championship for the Gophers now than I was at this time yesterday.
2. Our D can hang with any team on the schedule, except maybe OSU, and will be the difference maker this season.
3. Mitch is a baller and clear leader of this team. I will still take him over any other QB in the West.
4. Crowd was AWESOME last night.
5. Mortell for Heisman.
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Everyone rags on Mitch non-stop, but this is pretty accurate. With the possible exception of Tommy Armstrong, I'm not sure who I would rather have...
 

WorkingMyTailOff said:
1. Atmosphere and Crowd was very good. We had some negative people (yes even in section 103) who were talking about how Mitch sucks and he's another Adam Weber..., but all in all a great festive crowd.
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They do realize Weber was a much much better QB, right? They would have won by 10 with Weber last night.
 

John Galt said:
Everyone rags on Mitch non-stop, but this is pretty accurate. With the possible exception of Tommy Armstrong, I'm not sure who I would rather have...
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I'd probably take Hunt as well. But the point is correct, it isn't like there are a bunch of great QBs out there.
 

My take is we have a really good d who can make plays when needed they really made TCU earn it and play a game there not built for. Mitch WS solid last night kj had some bad drops early that didn't help. Thought the refs let some things go with TCU secondary. Online should be better with layer back. Someone told me Campion didn't play last night either. That's a big loss as well. Nugget needed to step up last night and didn't. We can go tic for tat about red zone turnovers but that end zone fumble was the difference. Plus he never really got going anyways. Wouldn't be shocked if Rodney smith becomes the featured back
 

John Galt said:
3.... No motion or shifts the whole game, we just lined up and ran pretty basic plays. Given our struggles at O-line, I realize that long developing plays weren't going to work, but we could have been more creative pre-snap.
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I was surprised we didn't do more shifting, motion and formation changes to try to confuse their new players on D, but reading more stuff today have concluded that it may have been limited by the youth and inexperience that played significantly. If I recall correctly, in 2013 when we went to the Chinese fire drill, it was late in the year. I think this offense will look much different by mid-year and already looks markedly different from last year with the no-huddle.
 

1) Smith has the potential to be a stud, really liked his game
2) OL needs to get healthy, interesting to see how well they do at 100%
3) In my opinion, our passing game needs work, but still looks better than last year
4) Our secondary is fantastic
5) We can compete with the best in the nation
 


1. Sad to see them play inexperienced LB and still dominate b/c we couldn't handle their front four consistently
2. Glad we went to an outside run leverage to force scheme to change so our quick draw was effective later.
3. Glad to see the mixture of coverages. I couldn't even pick up what we were trying to run :).
4. Myrick became one of my kid's favorite gophers.
5. Loved Clay Matthews Jr. (aka Huff)
 


1. I was surprised at how much development we need on the offensive line. We need Campion in a big way. TCU had 2 starting D lineman that didn't play. Starting linebacker was out after first series.

2. If our O line develops and steps up we'll be very good. It all starts there.

3. We have way more playmakers on offense than we've had since Kill arrived. A lot of young talent will grow and make plays this year.

4. Leidner is at his best when he shows some emotion/fire. Don't like how the coaches are trying to take that out of his game. The offense needs that spark/fire.

5. If offense doesn't step up, CSU game might just go a full 60 minutes. It's a big game and CSU will be as jacked as we were for TCU. Will be a great challenge for this team and interesting to see how they handle it. Of course we know with Jerry Kill, there will be no more mentally tough team as the season goes on no matter what happens. Go Gophers! I'll be there Saturday!!!


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FishingMN said:
Funny thing about the fair catch at the 5.

Gophers had only 10 on the field. Then TCU calls a timeout. Then the Gophers again sent out only 10 players on that play. Not that it really mattered but it was crazy that we couldn't get the right number after a timeout.
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I saw the same thing. I had to count 3 times cause I was sure I was missing someone but nope, there were only 10. Then the timeout was called and I'm thinking "ugh, we had to burn a timeout for that? Oh wait, TCU called it. What a break." Then they come out of the timeout with only 10 again. Wth...that's poor.
 

I just think about how far we've come up in the world, man. Wow. I've been a (mostly) suffering fan of this team since the mid 70's, have seen some really dark, dark times and just some terribly awful, putrid, close yer eyes and pray for it to be over football, and for the vast majority of that time (with the exception of a few of Mason's seasons and Holtz' one year here), a game like last night's would have counted as a huge moral victory, just hanging in there against the #2 ranked team and only losing to them by 6 points. To me that would have been a 'victory' in and of itself, just keeping it respectable as opposed to getting wiped right off the field. That's just how bad things were, such that as a fan, you kind of settle into a losers mentality like that, because that's the only way to keep yourself fricken sane. You learn to expect the worst, because then you cannot possibly feel any disappointment, and far too often the Gophers lived down to those lowest of expectations. Now however, a game like last night's ranks as still being very cool but yet a solid disappointment nonetheless, disappointment that we lost to a team which we could have beaten. I mean we were right there with them, our defense was whomping on them, and Boykin got his bell rung a few times such I doubt he'll be forgetting his trip to Minnesota anytime soon.

Basically, I've moved past the point of needing to take solace in 'moral victories' anymore (because let's face it, a loss is a loss is a loss). I just want wins, because now I know we can get them. We can play with just about anyone anymore, and to hear us being talked about as being favorites to win the West, it's no longer a surprise, much less an unthinkable thought. It's safe to come out of the water again, and believe. That's how far we've come, light years really from where we used to be. Wow again. What a time to be a Gophers fan.
 

My roommate keeps referencing how far we've come since Jerry's first year. It takes time to build a program, but we are definitely on the right track.


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bronco.jpg

1. After watching Roderick, I am surprised he didn't drop the flag during the pregame entrance.
2. Mitch looked great on that last drive, he will be fine.
3. Where was H Epke
4. Too much beer consumed by the two guys next to me, next time I take your women.
5. Is there actual meat in the cheeseburgers or was that flavored cardboard?
 

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