STrib: Sudden impact: Gophers true freshmen who could get a look this fall

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Five Gophers true freshmen to watch on offense and defense

When the NCAA revamped its redshirt rules last week – allowing athletes to appear in up to four games in a season without using a year of eligibility – college football coaches gained roster flexibility and players gained more chances to impress on the field. How the new rule plays out for the Gophers won’t become clear until fall but expect more freshmen to see the field if game situations dictate. Here are those who could have the most impact:

Offense

Rashod Bateman, wide receiver: The 6-2, 200-pounder was a strong candidate to see action even before the new redshirt rule. With only Tyler Johnson firmly entrenched as a go-to wideout, there will be opportunities to seize playing time. The Gophers beat out the likes of Georgia, Texas A&M, South Carolina and Tennessee to land Bateman, so they’ll get him on the field.

Zack Annexstad, quarterback: The early enrollee from Norseland, Minn., via IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., wasted no time in establishing himself as at least the backup QB in 2018. He quickly passed junior college transfer Vic Viramontes during spring drills, and Viramontes transferred back to Riverside (Calif.) City College to play linebacker. Annexstad will battle redshirt freshman Tanner Morgan for the starting job, and that decision will be made during training camp. Coach P.J. Fleck has said more than one QB could play this season, so don’t be surprised if Annexstad sees more action than a typical backup (if he’s not the starter).

Nolan Edmonds, running back: Rodney Smith is the Gophers’ bell cow in the backfield, and redshirt freshman Mohamed Ibrahim had a solid spring game. But with Shannon Brooks lost for the season because of injury, the 5-11, 200-pound Edmonds adds another option. He’ll get a chance to earn playing time, as will fellow freshman back Bryce Williams.

Curtis Dunlap Jr./Daniel Faalele, offensive line: The four-star early enrollees from IMG Academy are a tandem entry because they’re so intriguing. Dunlap is smaller one at 6-5 and 370 pounds to Faalele’s 6-9 and 400, so their size can create problems for opposing defensive lines. Offensive linemen take longer to develop than players at a skill position such as running back, so Dunlap and Faalele might not play right away. They could be used sparingly early in case injuries strike the offensive line, which happened last year.

Brevyn Spann-Ford, tight end: At 6-7 and 245, the St. Cloud Tech multisport athlete gives the Gophers their tallest target. Though Gophers tight ends caught only 18 passes last year, Spann-Ford offers an intriguing option.

Defense

Braelen Oliver, linebacker: The 6-foot, 215-pounder was a tackling machine for Douglas (Ga.) County High School, finishing with 164 stops as a senior. Oliver drawn comparisons to 2017 leader Jonathan Celestin, and he'll get a look.

Thomas Rush, linebacker: The early enrollee made a case to see playing time by leading the Gold team with nine tackles in the spring game. He could provide valuable depth.

Alex Reigelsperger, defensive end: As a senior at Wayne High School in Huber Heights, Ohio, Reigelsperger had 12.5 sacks, and when we had a glimpse of that pass-rushing ability in the Gophers spring game when he had one sack. You never can have enough pass rushers.

Elijah Teague, defensive tackle: Though the Gophers have players in front of him, Teague brings a 6-3, 295-pound frame and agility to the defensive line. Expect him to get a look.

CJ Smith, cornerback: The 6-1, 180-pounder has a physical, hard-hitting presence, something Fleck felt the secondary needed. He’ll add depth, and we saw last year how injuries can force youngsters into the lineup.

http://www.startribune.com/sudden-i...ho-could-play-get-a-look-this-fall/486273921/

Go Gophers!!
 

So do we let the guys get acquainted with the play book, get a little stronger and then play them the last 4 games including the bowl to salvage a season for them?
 

The guys listed in the story are all likely to play game one. I think the only way they wouldn’t is if they were hurt, or unexpectedly looked overwhelmed by the speed of the game in fall practice.
 

That is going to be very interesting to see how different coaching staffs adjust to the '4-game' rule.

If you play everyone in game 1, then they have 3 games left to use (if you want to preserve the red-shirt year).

So, here is the challenge for coaches: once you identify the potential '4-game' players - as opposed to guys who will be in the 2-deeps from day 1 - then you have to decide when and how to get them some game experience. I would think you would want to save at least a couple of those 4 games for later in the year, to fill in because of injuries, etc.

And that is going to set up a whole new set of arguments. Imagine that Coach A uses Freshman X in 4 games. then, a starter gets hurt right before the bowl game. do you burn a red-shirt year to play Freshman X in the bowl, or hold him out to preserve the red-shirt?

If it was me, I would keep a game in hand for the '4-game' players, so they would all be eligible to play in at least the final game of the regular season, and/or the bowl game if needed.

Of course, if they're so good that they deserve to be in the lineup, then they won't be a '4-game' player anyway. This is not going to impact the best members of the FR class. It will impact the next group. That will be key for the Coaches to determine in Fall camp: divide the FR into 3 groups: 1. regular player (no red-shirt). 2. '4-game' player. 3. needs full year of development/not ready to play in a game.
 

I can’t imagine any sensible coach would play a true freshman early on unless they’re better than the incumbents, or an injury occurs.
 


I think guys like Bateman, Teague, Reigelsperger, Dunlap, and Edmonds, who had numerous big-time offers will almost certainly play immediately. Faalele is a different story because he's so raw.

That's how Fleck is selling these highly rated guys in regards to coming here (playing time early and often). Of course, this is assuming they come in and show some semblance of competency. If they do, he's not going to pull that rug out and redshirt. At least he shouldn't if he wants to maintain credibility with a lot of these kids and the programs he's pulling them from.

Of course it would be great to redshirt everyone. But, it's just not realistic. Conversely to what one would think, it's also a little short sighted. It may help the team the following year, but how would that affect recruiting for the next 5 years, etc. Not only because of the promises mentioned above, but playing your best guys could help you win some extra games, which in turn could impact recruiting positively the following year. It can have somewhat of a multiplier effect and accelerate the rebuild.
 

I can’t imagine any sensible coach would play a true freshman early on unless they’re better than the incumbents, or an injury occurs.

Agreed. But, in this case, it's not going to take much to be better than some of the incumbents.

Another thing to consider is that Fleck didn't bring in a lot of these incumbents. He has no investment in these kids. In that case, I'm sure the coach is a lot more likely to get his guys in there for a few reasons. One main one being they may fit the preferred scheme better. But, it also makes Fleck look better, IMO, if he wins with his guys as opposed to the previous regimes guys, it goes a long way in solidifying the narrative that we needed a change due to inadequate recruiting.
 

I love this rule for the simple fact that we can trot out some fresh bodies against the wiskydicks to the east at the last game of the season. It seems the last few years we had been decimated with injuries and could have used a few burned redshirts.
 

The helps the coaches that would rather lose a game than burn a redshirt. Best option should play no matter what.
 



Agreed. But, in this case, it's not going to take much to be better than some of the incumbents.

Another thing to consider is that Fleck didn't bring in a lot of these incumbents. He has no investment in these kids. In that case, I'm sure the coach is a lot more likely to get his guys in there for a few reasons. One main one being they may fit the preferred scheme better. But, it also makes Fleck look better, IMO, if he wins with his guys as opposed to the previous regimes guys, it goes a long way in solidifying the narrative that we needed a change due to inadequate recruiting.

I’d beg to disagree. He sent out a half-crippled Durr instead of pulling Harris’s redshirt. Until proven otherwise he’ll redshirt as many as possible unless he’s down to holding public tryouts. At least with the new rule he can insert the true freshmen for spot starts for those injury riddled positions. We will definitely see some in the secondary, for example.
 

If a guy can play, he can play. We've got the 4 game rule now, so playing these guys is no risk anyway. it's not like some would play 4 in a row. I don't get the "salvage" and "burn" comments. If a guy can play, he can play.

It's totally ignorant to use the "burn redshirt" term anyway. Means nothing. You can redshirt a guy any year you want, and you get 5 to play 4, right? A guy's redshirt isn't "burned" until he starts playing his 4th season. Croft red shirted his sophomore year.
 

If someone can play 4 games ... I don't see why you wouldn't give them a taste of the spotlight if there is time (a blow out either way).... play'm all if you can.
 

If a guy can play, he can play. We've got the 4 game rule now, so playing these guys is no risk anyway. it's not like some would play 4 in a row. I don't get the "salvage" and "burn" comments. If a guy can play, he can play.

It's totally ignorant to use the "burn redshirt" term anyway. Means nothing. You can redshirt a guy any year you want, and you get 5 to play 4, right? A guy's redshirt isn't "burned" until he starts playing his 4th season. Croft red shirted his sophomore year.

I think your second paragraph is something some folks just will never understand.... no idea why.
 



I think your second paragraph is something some folks just will never understand.... no idea why.

Because they hardly ever see anyone but freshmen redshirt, even when we do it with someone like Croft, most people are not paying attention.. We played a true freshman at DE last year out of necessity, and shifted him to DT in spring practice. With any luck we can redshirt him this season and he can play DT for his last 3 seasons at a size appropriate for a B1G DT.
 

I think for me, I can see the new redshirt rules applied differently for different first year guys;

For a kid that enrolled early, if they show some serious promise at all in the Spring practices/game, I can see playing them some of the first 2-3 games to see if they are strong enough candidates to contribute on the 2-deeps. If not, they redshirt. Maybe you give yourself 1 or 2 games at the back end of the season due to need, etc.

For kids that show up in August new to the program, barring an elite talent that is obvious in the first few weeks of practice, I would more than likely lean towards using any possible allowable game appearances for later in the season, based on injuries, depth concerns, or they just plain develop a lot over the course of practicing during the season.
 

It will be an interesting dynamic. We can't forget that this new rule also benefits the competition too.

For the Gophers, it may mean winning an extra game or two. They lost at least three games last season by a TD or less. They sure could have used that rule last year especially on the offensive line.

There has to be a delicate balancing act. PJF will put the best team on the field without sacrificing the overall long term development of players. There is no doubt some true Freshmen will play. You are going to have "bridge" players like Zack Annexstad and possibly Curtis Dunlap, Alex Reigelsperger and others that will play. Some will play only the allotted four games without burning red shirts.

For others, if they are showing poise and dominance their red shirts may come off entirely. If they are B1G ready, you may not have a choice in order for the Gophers to win a few more games. This is absolutely important for the recruiting wars. Getting to a bowl game is a must.

The Gophers need to recruit talent in order to move out of the cellar. Those few extra victories are so precious commodities.

The best B1G West finish in the standings the Gophers ever had under Jerry Kill was 2nd place in B1G West in the 2014 season behind Wisconsin.

http://www.espn.com/college-football/standings/_/season/2014/group/5

With Jerry Kill's health issues, multiple injuries, Maxx Williams leaving early, fumbling the QB situation, etc... - they never could gather their momentum.

Their best finish in terms of victories was 9-4 under Claeys in 2016. But, the Gophers only managed to tie for 4th place in the B1G West standings in the sexual scandal-ridden season. The Badgers went 7-2 (11-3 overall), the Hawkeyes 6-3 (8-5), and the Cornhuskers 6-3 (9-4), and the Gophers 5-4 (9-4).

http://www.espn.com/college-football/standings/_/season/2016/group/5
 



Redshirting also has an impact on transfers. If an upperclassman still has a redshirt year available, then that increases the possibilities of transfers. You have to sit out a year when you transfer. If you still have a redshirt year, then sitting out that year as a redshirt isn't as big of a deal as burning one of the 4 years you can play.
 

If we still have a QB competition in week 2 of this season. We will lose to Fresno. I guarantee it.
Last year's drama lost us several games, and that is a trap game that I don't think Gopher fans are taking seriously.

Tedford isn't messing around down there and that defense is no joke.
 

If we still have a QB competition in week 2 of this season. We will lose to Fresno. I guarantee it.
Last year's drama lost us several games, and that is a trap game that I don't think Gopher fans are taking seriously.

Tedford isn't messing around down there and that defense is no joke.

the last game Gopher fans took lightly was the NMST game. Jerry had a seizure and MN lost.
 

the last game Gopher fans took lightly was the NMST game. Jerry had a seizure and MN lost.

Even towards the end of the Kill era Jerry accurately stated that the Gophers were not yet good enough to take anyone lightly.
 


That's not true at all.

I thought I recalled NMST being ranked as the worst BCS team and not having beaten a BCS team in 1 or 2 years... You should Google the pregame write up at FBT by MVofDT's crew. I'd say Kent St but ...we won!
 

I thought I recalled NMST being ranked as the worst BCS team and not having beaten a BCS team in 1 or 2 years... You should Google the pregame write up at FBT by MVofDT's crew. I'd say Kent St but ...we won!


That was the least winning feel win in a long time... man... it was brutal watching that game in the stands.
 

That was the least winning feel win in a long time... man... it was brutal watching that game in the stands.

It was no fun to watch, but Hickeytown is still full of it and is a flat out liar, so I doubt whatever she said.
 

It was no fun to watch, but Hickeytown is still full of it and is a flat out liar, so I doubt whatever she said.

Yeah I don't remember much talk about NMST... I doubt anyone talked them down very much, more so just ignored them generally.

Any honest gopher fans knows how we can be beat at anytime, sadly.
 



It is like watching people trying to slaughter a pig with a hammer.

Late in the game I recall a discussion between some diehards like myself who are at nearly every game were down a few rows from me.

Everyone was quiet at that game as it was terrible.

One of this guy's friends asks if he or the others wants to leave a bit early.

He stands up and emphatically said to his group something like:

NO! WE CAN'T GO, WE'VE GOT A CRISIS GOING ON HERE! YOU CAN'T LEAVE IN THE MIDDLE OF A CRISIS!

They stayed ;)

That was probabbly the best moment of the game...
 




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