BleedGopher
Well-known member
- Joined
- Nov 11, 2008
- Messages
- 60,765
- Reaction score
- 16,158
- Points
- 113
per Hawk Central:
Much was made in P.J. Fleck’s press conference earlier this season, his first as head coach of the Minnesota Golden Gophers. His team is undergoing a true youth movement with over 50% of the players on their roster being freshmen. The age of this roster isn’t clearer than the quarterback room, as they have only two: redshirt freshman Tanner Morgan and walk-on freshman Zack Annexstad.
During fall camp, Annexstad found himself in pole position and Fleck named him as the starter without a “short leash.” He enrolled in the spring of 2018 after playing with fellow freshman Big Ten QB, Art Sitkowski, at Florida’s IMG Academy. He had a modest stat line with a 54.7% completion percentage and 14 touchdowns and six interceptions in his two years there. He’s the second true freshman walk-on to start week 1 for an FBS school; Baker Mayfield was the first.
That is where the comparison’s end, though. Mayfield was an electrifying dual threat with exceptional precision in a pass-happy offense during his first year at Texas Tech. Annexstad is a pro-style QB with limited accuracy and escapability, completing 52.3% of his passes and rushing (getting sacked) for -49 yards.
He played well enough through the non-conference slate - tallying four of his five touchdowns and no interceptions in three games against Group of 5 opponents (all wins). Against Maryland, he found himself regularly struggling with their team speed and threw two interceptions. His yards/attempt peaked against Miami (OH) at 7.1.
What sticks out with those stats is he simply does not have much time to throw the ball, either by choice or lack of execution. The one exception, is Minnesota’s willingness to let it rip along the sidelines as he completed three or four against Maryland, garbage time notwithstanding.
https://www.blackheartgoldpants.com...wkeye-football-amani-hooker-matt-hankins-bhgp
Go Gophers!!
Much was made in P.J. Fleck’s press conference earlier this season, his first as head coach of the Minnesota Golden Gophers. His team is undergoing a true youth movement with over 50% of the players on their roster being freshmen. The age of this roster isn’t clearer than the quarterback room, as they have only two: redshirt freshman Tanner Morgan and walk-on freshman Zack Annexstad.
During fall camp, Annexstad found himself in pole position and Fleck named him as the starter without a “short leash.” He enrolled in the spring of 2018 after playing with fellow freshman Big Ten QB, Art Sitkowski, at Florida’s IMG Academy. He had a modest stat line with a 54.7% completion percentage and 14 touchdowns and six interceptions in his two years there. He’s the second true freshman walk-on to start week 1 for an FBS school; Baker Mayfield was the first.
That is where the comparison’s end, though. Mayfield was an electrifying dual threat with exceptional precision in a pass-happy offense during his first year at Texas Tech. Annexstad is a pro-style QB with limited accuracy and escapability, completing 52.3% of his passes and rushing (getting sacked) for -49 yards.
He played well enough through the non-conference slate - tallying four of his five touchdowns and no interceptions in three games against Group of 5 opponents (all wins). Against Maryland, he found himself regularly struggling with their team speed and threw two interceptions. His yards/attempt peaked against Miami (OH) at 7.1.
What sticks out with those stats is he simply does not have much time to throw the ball, either by choice or lack of execution. The one exception, is Minnesota’s willingness to let it rip along the sidelines as he completed three or four against Maryland, garbage time notwithstanding.
https://www.blackheartgoldpants.com...wkeye-football-amani-hooker-matt-hankins-bhgp
Go Gophers!!