[DAY AFTER THREAD] Minnesota defeats MTSU 34-3

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Hollinsanity

Hollinsanity

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At the game yesterday so I didn't have a chance to get the PGT going - my apologies. What'd you think Gophers fan?
 

Describing the effort in one word? Have to use two: Workman like.

Very efficient, well executed game plan... once we dug out of poor field position that we put ourselves in with mistakes.

Blew away the 10.5 line. Hard to be less that quite pleased... lets see on the injuries, and start worrying about rejuvenated Maryland tomorrow.

:clap:
 

Injury updates:

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I haven't seen anything on Zo Craighton.
 

My takeaways:

1) This defense is very, very good and on its way to becoming elite.

Up front Martin and Coughlin are now legitimate, every-down DE's and the Gophers were generating pressure with a 4-man rush most of the day. MTSU was moving the pocket almost every play because they knew they couldn't protect. Coughlin absolutely blew up the MTSU LT to the inside on the holding call he drew.

We knew the LB's were going to be great and they have exceeded those high expectations in my book. Celestin is dynamite against both the run and the pass, almost had an INT yesterday, all B1G contender perhaps? Barber very impressive for a true Sophomore. What happened to Cody Poock?

Secondary improving game by game and no longer worries me as much as it did in the preseason, esp given the QB's we will play in the B1G West this year. Huff, McGhee, Shenault all looked good yesterday, Winfield solid as always. Hopefully Craighton will be OK. I think we are 1-2 DB's stepping up from being a top 3-4 defense in the B1G.

2) Looks like the playbook won't open up until we need it to open up.

PJ and Kirk playing things very close to the vest and not exactly taking the reins off of Rhoda, especially on our side of the 50-yardline. I am worried that this may because Rhoda is what he is - an average QB, at best - but it also speaks to how much confidence they have in the defense right now.

3) The offensive line looks much improved in the last two weeks

The holes weren't massive, but they gave Kobe and Rodney enough space to work. 4.7 YPC yesterday with only a few long runs, meaning they were getting decent push on most plays. Pass protection looked good as well. I don't know who plays LG, but I will he has gotten blown up and pushed back a few times both this week and last week. Rodney bounced off him 3-yards into the backfield at one point yesterday and somehow managed to go for like 15 yards.

4) If we stay healthy we are good enough to win every game on our schedule besides Michigan

As of now I'd break down the schedule as follows:

Heavily favored: Illinois
Slight favorites: Maryland, @Purdue, Michigan State, Nebraska
Slight underdogs: @Iowa, @Northwestern
Big underdogs: @Michigan, Wisconsin

Should be a fun year!!
 



Hollinsanity said:
My takeaways:

1) This defense is very, very good and on its way to becoming elite.

Up front Martin and Coughlin are now legitimate, every-down DE's and the Gophers were generating pressure with a 4-man rush most of the day. MTSU was moving the pocket almost every play because they knew they couldn't protect. Coughlin absolutely blew up the MTSU LT to the inside on the holding call he drew.

We knew the LB's were going to be great and they have exceeded those high expectations in my book. Celestin is dynamite against both the run and the pass, almost had an INT yesterday, all B1G contender perhaps? Barber very impressive for a true Sophomore. What happened to Cody Poock?

Secondary improving game by game and no longer worries me as much as it did in the preseason, esp given the QB's we will play in the B1G West this year. Huff, McGhee, Shenault all looked good yesterday, Winfield solid as always. Hopefully Craighton will be OK. I think we are 1-2 DB's stepping up from being a top 3-4 defense in the B1G.

2) Looks like the playbook won't open up until we need it to open up.

PJ and Kirk playing things very close to the vest and not exactly taking the reins off of Rhoda, especially on our side of the 50-yardline. I am worried that this may because Rhoda is what he is - an average QB, at best - but it also speaks to how much confidence they have in the defense right now.

3) The offensive line looks much improved in the last two weeks

The holes weren't massive, but they gave Kobe and Rodney enough space to work. 4.7 YPC yesterday with only a few long runs, meaning they were getting decent push on most plays. Pass protection looked good as well. I don't know who plays LG, but I will he has gotten blown up and pushed back a few times both this week and last week. Rodney bounced off him 3-yards into the backfield at one point yesterday and somehow managed to go for like 15 yards.

4) If we stay healthy we are good enough to win every game on our schedule besides Michigan

As of now I'd break down the schedule as follows:

Heavily favored: Illinois
Slight favorites: Maryland, @Purdue, Michigan State, Nebraska
Slight underdogs: @Iowa, @Northwestern
Big underdogs: @Michigan, Wisconsin

Should be a fun year!!
Click to expand...

Glad I wasn't the only one wondering where Poock has been while the defense is on the field, as I have seen him on special teams. We could actually end up being dogs against Maryland, but the UCF game will really help determine it further.
 

Credit for this goes to Claeys, Sawvel and Kill as well as the new regimen, but when we got to 20 points I thought the game was essentially over at that point. It just didn't appear like MTSU could muster 20 points. And they didn't. After so many years of Mason Defenses and then the disaster of Brewster everywhere, it is really nice to have a defense that we can trust and is competent. That every swing pass isn't 15 yards. Every run play up the middle doesn't go for 8 yards. We have deficiencies. Our DLine play is subpar. We're small and will get mauled by the better OLines in the B1G. That said, I like this defense and I like the game we play.

The offense needs more playmakers and that won't be helped for another 2 years. So they'll have to plod along the best they can. Rhoda's passing isn't going to win us many games, so lack of mistakes must. Turnover ratio is extremely important the rest of the way.

What I liked most yesterday was after the scores the kickoff team went on the field. And started dancing. The level of excitement on the home sidelines is contagious. That can help teams win. There is a positive vibe.
 

Sparlimb said:
It just didn't appear like MTSU could muster 20 points. And they didn't. After so many years of Mason Defenses and then the disaster of Brewster everywhere, it is really nice to have a defense that we can trust and is competent.
Click to expand...

MTSU gave up at some point in the 2nd half. You could just see it. Nice to see a defense do that to a team.
 

Hollinsanity said:
My takeaways:

1) This defense is very, very good and on its way to becoming elite.

Up front Martin and Coughlin are now legitimate, every-down DE's and the Gophers were generating pressure with a 4-man rush most of the day. MTSU was moving the pocket almost every play because they knew they couldn't protect. Coughlin absolutely blew up the MTSU LT to the inside on the holding call he drew.

We knew the LB's were going to be great and they have exceeded those high expectations in my book. Celestin is dynamite against both the run and the pass, almost had an INT yesterday, all B1G contender perhaps? Barber very impressive for a true Sophomore. What happened to Cody Poock?

Secondary improving game by game and no longer worries me as much as it did in the preseason, esp given the QB's we will play in the B1G West this year. Huff, McGhee, Shenault all looked good yesterday, Winfield solid as always. Hopefully Craighton will be OK. I think we are 1-2 DB's stepping up from being a top 3-4 defense in the B1G.

2) Looks like the playbook won't open up until we need it to open up.

PJ and Kirk playing things very close to the vest and not exactly taking the reins off of Rhoda, especially on our side of the 50-yardline. I am worried that this may because Rhoda is what he is - an average QB, at best - but it also speaks to how much confidence they have in the defense right now.

3) The offensive line looks much improved in the last two weeks

The holes weren't massive, but they gave Kobe and Rodney enough space to work. 4.7 YPC yesterday with only a few long runs, meaning they were getting decent push on most plays. Pass protection looked good as well. I don't know who plays LG, but I will he has gotten blown up and pushed back a few times both this week and last week. Rodney bounced off him 3-yards into the backfield at one point yesterday and somehow managed to go for like 15 yards.

4) If we stay healthy we are good enough to win every game on our schedule besides Michigan

As of now I'd break down the schedule as follows:

Heavily favored: Illinois
Slight favorites: Maryland, @Purdue, Michigan State, Nebraska
Slight underdogs: @Iowa, @Northwestern
Big underdogs: @Michigan, Wisconsin

Should be a fun year!!
Click to expand...

Nice!
 



MinnGopher said:
Glad I wasn't the only one wondering where Poock has been while the defense is on the field, as I have seen him on special teams.
Click to expand...

I have seen, IMO, way too many questions about why Poock isn't playing more. He simply isn't because he isn't as good as our other options. Cody was always one of the more frustrating players for me to watch as he liked to hit, but wasn't fundamentally sound. He did some 'flashy' things, but made lots of mistakes out there. At the end of the day, Barber is just better. Period. No mystery at all.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

To Poock's credit he did make a splash when first recruited and played. He did live up to the hype at the start.

Agree that after injuries and just better, more disciplined talent available he's dropped back on the depth chart. Still appears to be a team guy though which is a good thing.

Still a little amazing that Minnesota now is a team viewed with an above-average...and now often good to very good...and well-coached defense.

Final ingredient is the passing game.
 

So far, the formula is working. My question is - what happens when/if it doesn't work?

Not trying to be Debbie Downer here, but just stating the obvious. I don't think the Gophers are going to roll through the season without encountering some level of adversity. And I'm curious to see how they deal with that adversity.

If the Gophers find themselves down by 10 points in the 4th quarter, how do they handle it? If they need to come from behind to win a game, do they open up the offense? How much do they open it up? How much are they capable of opening it up?

That, to me, is the real issue/question - are they playing this way for tactical reasons, or are they playing this way because the coaches believe that is all they're capable of? What is the ceiling for this team? How much is there in the playbook that we haven't seen yet?

Look - if they won every game 34-3, I would be thrilled. I just don't expect them to win every game 34-3. the "easy" part of the season is over. It only gets harder the rest of the way. That does NOT mean that I don't think this team will do well. I just am curious about how they will approach the challenges to come.
 

Recent history has Gophers often playing at the talent level of the opponent...no killer instinct...thinking they could let off the gas when in fact they couldn't with anybody.

Limited data available but there does seem to be an attitude of "keep playing hard until we win" with this group. This is an important shift if it pans out.

Still lots of questions but we're 3-0 out of non-conference. Can't improve on that.
 



To my half open eyes it seemed MTSU was not giving nearly as many +1 or +2 boxes to run into thus the more open running lanes. I'm not sure why they did that, maybe to help end the game faster...It also helps explain why Rhoda didn't have as much success going downfield. The coaches seemed to have him change the play every time they had the safeties playing back.

McCrary is a good back. Big, powerful, and always seems to fall forward for that extra 3 yards like Cobb did. We should be fine there.

Rhoda didn't have a spectacular day. Seemed a bit off on accuracy, and had a dangerous throw that was nearly picked on our end of the field. Outside of TJ we need some help at playmaker. Wozniak with the nice catch and run was a highlight. I wish they had challenged Rhoda more and worked on the passing game but Fleck is going to protect him as long as he can. I don't know, I have a bad feeling we are going to struggle vs better defenses. Prove me wrong guys.

The defense looks really good. They continue to fly all over the field. I'm not as concerned about size as some of you if we can be disruptive up front. Craighton going down is concerning. Looks like we will need Durr or Harris soon. We can win a lot of games on the back of the defense.

Santoso is killing it this year after an up and down 2016.

Injuries... concerning. Lingen can't get a break.
 

Loved this play.

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Spoofin said:
I have seen, IMO, way too many questions about why Poock isn't playing more. He simply isn't because he isn't as good as our other options. Cody was always one of the more frustrating players for me to watch as he liked to hit, but wasn't fundamentally sound. He did some 'flashy' things, but made lots of mistakes out there. At the end of the day, Barber is just better. Period. No mystery at all.


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

Exactly right. I was never that impressed with Poock. He took a lot of chances and was often out of position and missed tackles. Barber is more fundamentally sound and probably a better athlete as well.
 

Hollinsanity said:
3) The offensive line looks much improved in the last two weeks

The holes weren't massive, but they gave Kobe and Rodney enough space to work. 4.7 YPC yesterday with only a few long runs, meaning they were getting decent push on most plays. Pass protection looked good as well. I don't know who plays LG, but I will he has gotten blown up and pushed back a few times both this week and last week. Rodney bounced off him 3-yards into the backfield at one point yesterday and somehow managed to go for like 15 yards.
Click to expand...
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 

Hollinsanity said:
My takeaways:

1) This defense is very, very good and on its way to becoming elite.

Up front Martin and Coughlin are now legitimate, every-down DE's and the Gophers were generating pressure with a 4-man rush most of the day. MTSU was moving the pocket almost every play because they knew they couldn't protect. Coughlin absolutely blew up the MTSU LT to the inside on the holding call he drew.

We knew the LB's were going to be great and they have exceeded those high expectations in my book. Celestin is dynamite against both the run and the pass, almost had an INT yesterday, all B1G contender perhaps? Barber very impressive for a true Sophomore. What happened to Cody Poock?

Secondary improving game by game and no longer worries me as much as it did in the preseason, esp given the QB's we will play in the B1G West this year. Huff, McGhee, Shenault all looked good yesterday, Winfield solid as always. Hopefully Craighton will be OK. I think we are 1-2 DB's stepping up from being a top 3-4 defense in the B1G.

2) Looks like the playbook won't open up until we need it to open up.

PJ and Kirk playing things very close to the vest and not exactly taking the reins off of Rhoda, especially on our side of the 50-yardline. I am worried that this may because Rhoda is what he is - an average QB, at best - but it also speaks to how much confidence they have in the defense right now.

3) The offensive line looks much improved in the last two weeks

The holes weren't massive, but they gave Kobe and Rodney enough space to work. 4.7 YPC yesterday with only a few long runs, meaning they were getting decent push on most plays. Pass protection looked good as well. I don't know who plays LG, but I will he has gotten blown up and pushed back a few times both this week and last week. Rodney bounced off him 3-yards into the backfield at one point yesterday and somehow managed to go for like 15 yards.

4) If we stay healthy we are good enough to win every game on our schedule besides Michigan

As of now I'd break down the schedule as follows:

Heavily favored: Illinois
Slight favorites: Maryland, @Purdue, Michigan State, Nebraska
Slight underdogs: @Iowa, @Northwestern
Big underdogs: @Michigan, Wisconsin

Should be a fun year!!
Click to expand...

Concerned about the passing game and no attempt to open it up to let Rhoda/receiver get some game repetitions in the second half. As we know Rhoda doesn't have much for wheels, a solid run defense will merely focus on Smith/Brooks/McCrary. I hope I am wrong and we have a passing game, but merely kept it under wraps. Was thinking they could have brought Green in a little early in the game and give him some shots to throw the ball.

Defense is very and like they did under the JK/TC regime, keep us in the game.

OLine will be the key to the season. If they can give adequate protection to QB and open run lanes, we should be competitive. As many have mentioned....depth is a concern.
 

I can't worry about the lack of passing game because has Rhoda thrown 25 times yesterday I would have been critical of the coaching staff. He isn't going to put up big numbers. I think he has made a few big throws this year which is a positive.

He had a longer one to Douglas yesterday and they can attack on bubble screens and other safe throws if teams want to stack the box. If they don't stack the box then the Gophers should run the ball 45 times per game
 

Vandy said:
Describing the effort in one word? Have to use two: Workman like.

Very efficient, well executed game plan... once we dug out of poor field position that we put ourselves in with mistakes.

Blew away the 10.5 line. Hard to be less that quite pleased... lets see on the injuries, and start worrying about rejuvenated Maryland tomorrow.

:clap:
Click to expand...

Workmanlike is one word. :)
 

MinnGopher said:
Glad I wasn't the only one wondering where Poock has been while the defense is on the field, as I have seen him on special teams. We could actually end up being dogs against Maryland, but the UCF game will really help determine it further.
Click to expand...

I'd be surprised if we're home dogs against Maryland. Unless they beat UCF by something like 70-0, we should be favored by 4.5 or so.
 

Spoofin said:
I have seen, IMO, way too many questions about why Poock isn't playing more. He simply isn't because he isn't as good as our other options. Cody was always one of the more frustrating players for me to watch as he liked to hit, but wasn't fundamentally sound. He did some 'flashy' things, but made lots of mistakes out there. At the end of the day, Barber is just better. Period. No mystery at all.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
This. Poock is fun when he's flying all around the field and makes a big hit, but often hit the wrong gap, or flew by the ball carrier, because he isn't under control. Love the disciplined play our current starts bring.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
 

I discovered a new drinking game.

Take a shot every time they run the read option and Rhoda keeps the ball. This game is appropriate for AA meetings.
 


Unregistered User said:
I discovered a new drinking game.

Take a shot every time they run the read option and Rhoda keeps the ball. This game is appropriate for AA meetings.
Click to expand...

There is hope here, but it needs to be pound a beer if he keeps the ball. It won't happen much, but it the impact is then maximized.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

UpAndUnder43 said:
I can't worry about the lack of passing game because has Rhoda thrown 25 times yesterday I would have been critical of the coaching staff. He isn't going to put up big numbers. I think he has made a few big throws this year which is a positive.

He had a longer one to Douglas yesterday and they can attack on bubble screens and other safe throws if teams want to stack the box. If they don't stack the box then the Gophers should run the ball 45 times per game
Click to expand...

And yet we lambasted the previous staff for the same approach


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Oregon Gopher said:
And yet we lambasted the previous staff for the same approach


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Click to expand...

Who is we? The previous regime did what they had to do if they wanted to be competitive. I think they gave Leidner too much freedom to pass which lost games.
 


UpAndUnder43 said:
Who is we? The previous regime did what they had to do if they wanted to be competitive. I think they gave Leidner too much freedom to pass which lost games.
Click to expand...

How many quips quoting RUTM were there the last 5 years?


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short ornery norwegian said:
So far, the formula is working. My question is - what happens when/if it doesn't work?

Not trying to be Debbie Downer here, but just stating the obvious. I don't think the Gophers are going to roll through the season without encountering some level of adversity. And I'm curious to see how they deal with that adversity.

If the Gophers find themselves down by 10 points in the 4th quarter, how do they handle it? If they need to come from behind to win a game, do they open up the offense? How much do they open it up? How much are they capable of opening it up?

That, to me, is the real issue/question - are they playing this way for tactical reasons, or are they playing this way because the coaches believe that is all they're capable of? What is the ceiling for this team? How much is there in the playbook that we haven't seen yet?

Look - if they won every game 34-3, I would be thrilled. I just don't expect them to win every game 34-3. the "easy" part of the season is over. It only gets harder the rest of the way. That does NOT mean that I don't think this team will do well. I just am curious about how they will approach the challenges to come.
Click to expand...

The formula is what it has been for a while, play great D and hope you can do enough on offense to win the game. It will be that way until the staff can get things figured out on offense and get a true playmaker at the QB position. As long as Rhoda doesn't have to win the game for us he will be fine, and your concern about what happens if we are down 10 late is 100% legit.
 

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