BleedGopher
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per Randy:
The dateline was Lincoln, Neb. It just as easily could have been College Park, Md., or Columbus, Ohio. Or, of course, Minneapolis, too.
Wherever the Gophers defense has gone in the Big Ten, big plays — no, make that huge plays — by the opponent’s offense have been sure to follow.
Saturday’s game at Nebraska was the latest example. Facing a Cornhuskers team that hadn’t won a game this season and was averaging 23.3 points per contest, the Gophers were routed 53-28 as Nebraska bolted to a 28-0 second-quarter lead. The main culprit was a Minnesota defense that gave up 10 plays of 20 or more yards; included in that were Huskers touchdowns that covered 40, 59, 35 and 67 yards.
“We didn’t stop them tonight at all,’’ Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said after the game.
That has been a trend for the Gophers since Big Ten play began on Sept. 22 at Maryland, when the Terrapins scored five offensive touchdowns that averaged 49.2 yards in a 42-13 victory. Iowa’s six TDs in a 48-31 win at TCF Bank Stadium included two of 20 yards or longer. Ohio State had all three of its TDs go for 20 yards or longer in a 30-14 win. And then Nebraska had its big day in dropping the Gophers to 3-4 overall, 0-4 in the Big Ten.
It all has added up to this: During Big Ten play, Minnesota’s defense has given up 21 touchdowns, and the average length of each TD play has been 31.5 yards. Yep, nearly one-third of a football field.
In their losses to Iowa and Ohio State, the Gophers focused on stopping the run — they held the Hawkeyes and Buckeyes to 106 and 92 yards, respectively —while quarterbacks Nate Stanley (314 yards, four touchdown passes) and Dwayne Haskins (412 yards, three TDs) had big games. Against Nebraska, the Gophers couldn’t stop either the run or the pass, as the Huskers rushed for 383 yards and threw for 276.
http://www.startribune.com/porous-d...-gophers-football-in-big-ten-games/498168481/
Go Gophers!!
The dateline was Lincoln, Neb. It just as easily could have been College Park, Md., or Columbus, Ohio. Or, of course, Minneapolis, too.
Wherever the Gophers defense has gone in the Big Ten, big plays — no, make that huge plays — by the opponent’s offense have been sure to follow.
Saturday’s game at Nebraska was the latest example. Facing a Cornhuskers team that hadn’t won a game this season and was averaging 23.3 points per contest, the Gophers were routed 53-28 as Nebraska bolted to a 28-0 second-quarter lead. The main culprit was a Minnesota defense that gave up 10 plays of 20 or more yards; included in that were Huskers touchdowns that covered 40, 59, 35 and 67 yards.
“We didn’t stop them tonight at all,’’ Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said after the game.
That has been a trend for the Gophers since Big Ten play began on Sept. 22 at Maryland, when the Terrapins scored five offensive touchdowns that averaged 49.2 yards in a 42-13 victory. Iowa’s six TDs in a 48-31 win at TCF Bank Stadium included two of 20 yards or longer. Ohio State had all three of its TDs go for 20 yards or longer in a 30-14 win. And then Nebraska had its big day in dropping the Gophers to 3-4 overall, 0-4 in the Big Ten.
It all has added up to this: During Big Ten play, Minnesota’s defense has given up 21 touchdowns, and the average length of each TD play has been 31.5 yards. Yep, nearly one-third of a football field.
In their losses to Iowa and Ohio State, the Gophers focused on stopping the run — they held the Hawkeyes and Buckeyes to 106 and 92 yards, respectively —while quarterbacks Nate Stanley (314 yards, four touchdown passes) and Dwayne Haskins (412 yards, three TDs) had big games. Against Nebraska, the Gophers couldn’t stop either the run or the pass, as the Huskers rushed for 383 yards and threw for 276.
http://www.startribune.com/porous-d...-gophers-football-in-big-ten-games/498168481/
Go Gophers!!