from Pete Fiutak (he's one of us!) at College Football News:
If Northwestern could pull off a Big Ten West title last year, why can’t Minnesota do it?
Nebraska has to come to Minnesota, and so does Wisconsin. The Iowa and Northwestern games are tough, but there’s no Ohio State, Michigan, or Michigan State to deal with from the East, and the Penn State game is at home after getting a week off to prepare.
Is this going to be the team that was so good in the finishing kick last year, or will it be the one that got its doors blown off by Maryland, Nebraska, and Illinois – three teams that didn’t go bowling – on the way to an ugly 1-5 start to the Big Ten season?
It’ll be somewhere in between, and it should make Minnesota the Big Ten’s biggest wild-card team.
And, maybe this year’s Northwestern.
MORE TAKES FROM FIUTAK:
* The running back and wide receiver situations are as strong as the program has had in a long, long time.
* WR Tyler Johnson, Sr. The 6-2, 200-pound senior went from being a dangerous deep threat as a sophomore to a dangerous all-around target as a junior, catching 78 passes for 1,169 yards and 12 scores, averaging 15 yards per catch. He was able to come up big from time to time – Minnesota was 4-0 when he caught multiple touchdown passes – but his consistency with four catches or more in every game but one was exactly what the offense needed.
* DE/LB Carter Coughlin, Sr. Along with Blake Cashman, Coughlin did a whole lot to get into the backfield, coming up with a team-high 9.5 sacks with 15 tackles for loss and 48 stops. The 6-4, 245-pounder is a hybrid edge rusher who’s listed at linebacker, but is really more of a defensive end with the burst to live behind the line. A one-time great recruit for the program, he has more than lived up to the expectations.
* Micah Dew-Treadway has the quickness, the size, and the opportunity to be a force along with 305-pound sophomore Jamaal Teague and 270-pound senior Sam Renner.
* WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE MINNESOTA DEFENSE – All of a sudden, the defense went from disastrous in early November – giving up 55 points to Illinois after allowing 31 to Indiana after getting hit by Nebraska for 53 – to fantastic, allowing just 59 points over the final four games against Purdue, Northwestern, Wisconsin and in the bowl game over Georgia Tech.
* The secondary didn’t allow much down the field – finishing first in the Big Ten in yards per completion – and the run defense stiffened up.
* The linebacking corps will be a killer. Coughlin is a true tweener as an edge-rushing outside linebacker and defensive end. The trio of Thomas Barber inside and Kamal Martin and Thomas Rush outside should allow Coughlin to move around where needed
* As long as Antoine Winfield is at safety, the secondary will be fine. It’ll take a little work to find his running mate, and the young options have to emerge early on, but all is okay if he can stay in one piece after missing most of last year with a foot injury. The corner situation is stronger with a deep group to work around junior Coney Durr.
* The backs are there to be magnificent after the team finished eighth in the Big Ten averaging 173 yards per game, but it all depends on whether or not all the parts can play. Mo Ibrahim took over the workload and turned in a 1,160-yard, nine-touchdown season, and Bryce Williams added 502 yards as a freshman, too. If Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks can make some sort of an impact early on after returning leg and knee injuries, respectively, look out.
* The O line has to replace OT Donnell Greene and C Jared Weyler after doing an okay job in pass protection and coming together for the ground game. The puzzle will be a work in progress throughout fall camp, but MASSIVE 6-9, 400-pound Daneil Faalele is almost certain to start at one tackle job, and veterans Conner Olson and Blaise Andries will get the call somewhere in the interior. If nothing else, this will be a Big Ten-sized front five.
* When was the last time Minnesota had a receiving corps this good? Tyler Johnson is a legitimate top 100 pro prospect with good size and deep play ability, and the young group that got its feet wet last season is now about to blossom – if the quarterback play is stronger. The Gophers have depth – that goes for the tight ends, too -there’s a fantastic No. 2 guy in Rashod Bateman, and there are plenty of options. That means …
* The Gophers need steadier, better quarterback play. It’s not that Tanner Morgan and Zack Annexstad were bad, but they weren’t great. Morgan was able to be a little more explosive down the field, but Annexstad was the main man for the first half of last season. The running game will butter the bread, but if one of the QB options can be consistent, the O will be terrific.
https://collegefootballnews.com/2019/05/minnesota-football-preview-prediction-players-2019
If Northwestern could pull off a Big Ten West title last year, why can’t Minnesota do it?
Nebraska has to come to Minnesota, and so does Wisconsin. The Iowa and Northwestern games are tough, but there’s no Ohio State, Michigan, or Michigan State to deal with from the East, and the Penn State game is at home after getting a week off to prepare.
Is this going to be the team that was so good in the finishing kick last year, or will it be the one that got its doors blown off by Maryland, Nebraska, and Illinois – three teams that didn’t go bowling – on the way to an ugly 1-5 start to the Big Ten season?
It’ll be somewhere in between, and it should make Minnesota the Big Ten’s biggest wild-card team.
And, maybe this year’s Northwestern.
MORE TAKES FROM FIUTAK:
* The running back and wide receiver situations are as strong as the program has had in a long, long time.
* WR Tyler Johnson, Sr. The 6-2, 200-pound senior went from being a dangerous deep threat as a sophomore to a dangerous all-around target as a junior, catching 78 passes for 1,169 yards and 12 scores, averaging 15 yards per catch. He was able to come up big from time to time – Minnesota was 4-0 when he caught multiple touchdown passes – but his consistency with four catches or more in every game but one was exactly what the offense needed.
* DE/LB Carter Coughlin, Sr. Along with Blake Cashman, Coughlin did a whole lot to get into the backfield, coming up with a team-high 9.5 sacks with 15 tackles for loss and 48 stops. The 6-4, 245-pounder is a hybrid edge rusher who’s listed at linebacker, but is really more of a defensive end with the burst to live behind the line. A one-time great recruit for the program, he has more than lived up to the expectations.
* Micah Dew-Treadway has the quickness, the size, and the opportunity to be a force along with 305-pound sophomore Jamaal Teague and 270-pound senior Sam Renner.
* WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE MINNESOTA DEFENSE – All of a sudden, the defense went from disastrous in early November – giving up 55 points to Illinois after allowing 31 to Indiana after getting hit by Nebraska for 53 – to fantastic, allowing just 59 points over the final four games against Purdue, Northwestern, Wisconsin and in the bowl game over Georgia Tech.
* The secondary didn’t allow much down the field – finishing first in the Big Ten in yards per completion – and the run defense stiffened up.
* The linebacking corps will be a killer. Coughlin is a true tweener as an edge-rushing outside linebacker and defensive end. The trio of Thomas Barber inside and Kamal Martin and Thomas Rush outside should allow Coughlin to move around where needed
* As long as Antoine Winfield is at safety, the secondary will be fine. It’ll take a little work to find his running mate, and the young options have to emerge early on, but all is okay if he can stay in one piece after missing most of last year with a foot injury. The corner situation is stronger with a deep group to work around junior Coney Durr.
* The backs are there to be magnificent after the team finished eighth in the Big Ten averaging 173 yards per game, but it all depends on whether or not all the parts can play. Mo Ibrahim took over the workload and turned in a 1,160-yard, nine-touchdown season, and Bryce Williams added 502 yards as a freshman, too. If Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks can make some sort of an impact early on after returning leg and knee injuries, respectively, look out.
* The O line has to replace OT Donnell Greene and C Jared Weyler after doing an okay job in pass protection and coming together for the ground game. The puzzle will be a work in progress throughout fall camp, but MASSIVE 6-9, 400-pound Daneil Faalele is almost certain to start at one tackle job, and veterans Conner Olson and Blaise Andries will get the call somewhere in the interior. If nothing else, this will be a Big Ten-sized front five.
* When was the last time Minnesota had a receiving corps this good? Tyler Johnson is a legitimate top 100 pro prospect with good size and deep play ability, and the young group that got its feet wet last season is now about to blossom – if the quarterback play is stronger. The Gophers have depth – that goes for the tight ends, too -there’s a fantastic No. 2 guy in Rashod Bateman, and there are plenty of options. That means …
* The Gophers need steadier, better quarterback play. It’s not that Tanner Morgan and Zack Annexstad were bad, but they weren’t great. Morgan was able to be a little more explosive down the field, but Annexstad was the main man for the first half of last season. The running game will butter the bread, but if one of the QB options can be consistent, the O will be terrific.
https://collegefootballnews.com/2019/05/minnesota-football-preview-prediction-players-2019
