BleedGopher
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per Chip:
The No. 1 objective of P.J. Fleck’s second season was to determine whether Zack Annexstad or Tanner Morgan could solidify himself as the quarterback of the future.
That question lingers entering Saturday’s regular-season finale at Wisconsin, but both quarterbacks have showed enough flashes of potential that hitting reset next season with an incoming freshman quarterback shouldn’t be necessary.
The border battle provides a big opportunity for Morgan in terms of staking his claim as the starter entering the offseason. A strong performance could establish a pecking order with two freshmen set to join the mix next season.
Predictably, both Annexstad and Morgan experienced alternately good and bad moments as first-year starters. Turnovers and inconsistency were problems. Nothing unusual for freshman quarterbacks in a power conference.
Their best stretches revealed a glimpse of their upside as passers. A foundation to build upon as their competition continues this offseason.
Annexstad has the edge in size and arm strength. The true freshman’s upside seems higher, which is probably why the coaching staff tabbed him as the starter out of fall camp. Morgan, the redshirt freshman, gave the offense a spark, showed more mobility and accuracy, and possesses a better grasp of the system having been in it a year longer. Each has different strengths.
“It’s developing, evolving,” Fleck said. “There’s been highs, there’s been lows. One thing I see from them a lot of times, once they make a mistake, they rarely make that mistake again.”
The Gophers are averaging nearly 100 more yards passing per game this season than in 2017. They also lead the Big Ten and rank 17th nationally in yards per completion at 14.3, which underscores their seismic upgrade at receiver but also requires quarterbacks to deliver passes that give receivers opportunities to make plays.
The downside: Annexstad (7) and Morgan (6) combined for 13 interceptions, which ranks 109th nationally.
They also have a cumulative completion percentage of 54.5 percent, which puts them No. 107 out of 130 FBS teams.
“They’ve played almost better than I thought they could play,” Fleck said. “When you play true freshmen or a redshirt freshman, it can get catastrophic — mentally, physically, emotionally. You can also have highs. It’s being able to get those highs sustainable over a long period of time.”
http://www.startribune.com/gophers-...lural-for-the-near-future-at-least/501158251/
Go Gophers!!
The No. 1 objective of P.J. Fleck’s second season was to determine whether Zack Annexstad or Tanner Morgan could solidify himself as the quarterback of the future.
That question lingers entering Saturday’s regular-season finale at Wisconsin, but both quarterbacks have showed enough flashes of potential that hitting reset next season with an incoming freshman quarterback shouldn’t be necessary.
The border battle provides a big opportunity for Morgan in terms of staking his claim as the starter entering the offseason. A strong performance could establish a pecking order with two freshmen set to join the mix next season.
Predictably, both Annexstad and Morgan experienced alternately good and bad moments as first-year starters. Turnovers and inconsistency were problems. Nothing unusual for freshman quarterbacks in a power conference.
Their best stretches revealed a glimpse of their upside as passers. A foundation to build upon as their competition continues this offseason.
Annexstad has the edge in size and arm strength. The true freshman’s upside seems higher, which is probably why the coaching staff tabbed him as the starter out of fall camp. Morgan, the redshirt freshman, gave the offense a spark, showed more mobility and accuracy, and possesses a better grasp of the system having been in it a year longer. Each has different strengths.
“It’s developing, evolving,” Fleck said. “There’s been highs, there’s been lows. One thing I see from them a lot of times, once they make a mistake, they rarely make that mistake again.”
The Gophers are averaging nearly 100 more yards passing per game this season than in 2017. They also lead the Big Ten and rank 17th nationally in yards per completion at 14.3, which underscores their seismic upgrade at receiver but also requires quarterbacks to deliver passes that give receivers opportunities to make plays.
The downside: Annexstad (7) and Morgan (6) combined for 13 interceptions, which ranks 109th nationally.
They also have a cumulative completion percentage of 54.5 percent, which puts them No. 107 out of 130 FBS teams.
“They’ve played almost better than I thought they could play,” Fleck said. “When you play true freshmen or a redshirt freshman, it can get catastrophic — mentally, physically, emotionally. You can also have highs. It’s being able to get those highs sustainable over a long period of time.”
http://www.startribune.com/gophers-...lural-for-the-near-future-at-least/501158251/
Go Gophers!!
