BREAKING: ATHAN IN THE PORTAL

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DanvilleGopher said:
Fleck said less than a month ago he wouldn't go the Portal route for a QB fix. Now he did which tells me that he only did so knowing AK was not coming back.

Why is he not coming back? Nobody will ever know for sure unless they hear it straight from AK.
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If Fleck said something to the press, it must be true...
 


I thought Athan would stick around and compete with whoever we brought in from the portal. I can't imagine him finding an unquestioned starting spot in the portal unless he's willing to drop to very low FBS or an FCS school.

It's just shocking that the guy who won in Madison last year is at this point. That was the best game a first year Gopher QB had played in a long, long time.
 

EG#9 said:
I thought Athan would stick around and compete with whoever we brought in from the portal. I can't imagine him finding an unquestioned starting spot in the portal unless he's willing to drop to very low FBS or an FCS school.

It's just shocking that the guy who won in Madison last year is at this point. That was the best game a first year Gopher QB had played in a long, long time.
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Last year:
54.1% 3 touchdowns 4 interceptions

This year:
53.1% 14 touchdowns 9 interceptions

He played a great game against Wisconsin.
 


My guess is this was a conversation that went we are bringing in competition at the QB position. If want to take your chances in the portal we aren’t going to try and talk you out of it.
 

Some guy said:
Last year:
54.1% 3 touchdowns 4 interceptions

This year:
53.1% 14 touchdowns 9 interceptions

He played a great game against Wisconsin.
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This! he was questionable last year outside of WI, from his first game his lack of mobility was startling I thought we were getting an athlete. Was hoping he was going to compete and stay.
 

rivergopher said:
This! he was questionable last year outside of WI, from his first game his lack of mobility was startling I thought we were getting an athlete. Was hoping he was going to compete and stay.
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Agree. I don’t like he is leaving.
I do like bringing in someone to compete with him.

He has tools. But he frankly isn’t very good and has never shown more than having tools
 

Some guy said:
Agree. I don’t like he is leaving.
I do like bringing in someone to compete with him.

He has tools. But he frankly isn’t very good and has never shown more than having tools
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Lack of touch was astounding all season. I wish him well I was wondering if Northern Illinios will be a landing spot, especially if he wants to continue with his brother. I believe their starter graduated this year.
 
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DarthGopher said:
The mechanics causes the balls to sail IMHO. You can get away with it in high school. At the P5 college level it requires much more consistency and accuracy.
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Later in the year his short and mid-range throws featured a front tip down ball. Did not look receiver friendly.
 

Vandy said:
Losing my interest if that is the case. I'd see no value in that decision.
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The value might be in trying to play a competitive game so the young players have a chance to do something.
 






fmlizard said:
Minnesota's QB job is a lot more attractive to transfers without the head coach's hand-picked incumbent starter to compete with. That can be a competition you can win and still lose.

It's a clean slate.
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I mean, same coaches at this point, so...
 


GopherGod said:
Portal/NIL market is expensive for QB’s which isn’t good for Minnesota
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The anytime transfer has to go. That would be the first step toward bringing back sanity to college football. Reducing or ending NIL will require court action, which will take some time. As PJ said, every kid is a free agent with no salary caps. That is totally, almost insanely unfair, and creates chaos. Contrast with the NFL.
 

Great Plains Gopher said:
The anytime transfer has to go. That would be the first step toward bringing back sanity to college football. Reducing or ending NIL will require court action, which will take some time. As PJ said, every kid is a free agent with no salary caps. That is totally, almost insanely unfair, and creates chaos. Contrast with the NFL.
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Legislation can address NIL but needs to reach a level of political viability first. It probably will run a long while first. It sucks not having much NIL. And yet...

Notice that Minnesota fans complaining are the fat cats from someone else's viewpoint.

Outsiders looking in: Gosh, I'd love to play Michigan, UCLA, Ohio State, Iowa, USC, Washington for $80 mill a year.

Gophers fans (like me): Gosh, I'd love to beat Michigan, UCLA, Ohio State... and we need action so we get more NIL to stay within a score of those teams.
 

EG#9 said:
I thought Athan would stick around and compete with whoever we brought in from the portal. I can't imagine him finding an unquestioned starting spot in the portal unless he's willing to drop to very low FBS or an FCS school.

It's just shocking that the guy who won in Madison last year is at this point. That was the best game a first year Gopher QB had played in a long, long time.
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Maybe Athan realized that he regressed this year because, just maybe, we don't have a decent QB coach? Try to move somewhere where he can develop under good position coaching?
 

fmlizard said:
Minnesota's QB job is a lot more attractive to transfers without the head coach's hand-picked incumbent starter to compete with. That can be a competition you can win and still lose.

It's a clean slate.
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I think you need a credible QB coach for a younger QB to transfer here and sit for a year behind a one-year transfer starter.
 

GophersInIowa said:
I'm convinced Fleck will ask Kramer to come back now just for depth.

Hoping they bring in a 1-year QB transfer and then another guy that was maybe just a freshman somewhere else.
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Word is Kramer will enter the portal after the Bowl game.
 

fmlizard said:
Minnesota's QB job is a lot more attractive to transfers without the head coach's hand-picked incumbent starter to compete with. That can be a competition you can win and still lose.

It's a clean slate.
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This should absolutely help when recruiting transfers because now they can truly sell the starting job is available whereas before there would be the competition angle with the previous year starter.
 

We'll see where Athan ends up, but if he doesn't land at P5 program it's further evidence that Fleck and his staff have been ineffective at identifying HS quarterbacks. I'll resurface the thread from last offseason that summarized QB recruiting. Looking over the list, Max Duggan and Brennan Armstrong are the only QBs the staff has recruited (and had a chance to land) that made an impact at the P5 level as QBs. That makes Tanner Morgan the outlier and not the norm, in my opinion. There's obviously a lot of things to be concerned with across the program at the moment, but finding a QB this offseason that can come in and stabilize the offense is probably the most important moment of Fleck's tenure here.
 
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SHGopher said:
Legislation can address NIL but needs to reach a level of political viability first. It probably will run a long while first. It sucks not having much NIL. And yet...

Notice that Minnesota fans complaining are the fat cats from someone else's viewpoint.

Outsiders looking in: Gosh, I'd love to play Michigan, UCLA, Ohio State, Iowa, USC, Washington for $80 mill a year.

Gophers fans (like me): Gosh, I'd love to beat Michigan, UCLA, Ohio State... and we need action so we get more NIL to stay within a score of those teams.
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Well said. If you are a Western Michigan fan, the Gophers are the Evil Empire, the heartless and unstoppable machine that tears apart their program with their bounty of riches and exposure.
 

fmlizard said:
Minnesota's QB job is a lot more attractive to transfers without the head coach's hand-picked incumbent starter to compete with. That can be a competition you can win and still lose.

It's a clean slate.
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And we are still a Big Ten team. That means something.
 

Our quarterback room might look something like Wisconsin's last year. A lot of guys coming in competing for one spot. If you're a guy from a lower visibility program or conference and think you even have a small chance to play pro, this is a great opportunity to get in front of a lot of NFL scouts on a weekly basis. An open competition to get the job shouldn't scare you.
 

- Brosmer is obviously smart.

- He has accomplished a lot at a lower level, as he is the nation's leading passer in FCS.

- On the surface, it appears he would not need a lot of hand-holding.

- Going by his year-to-year stats, he showed steady improvement throughout his career.

We need a QB who can truly understand the offense, is quick and decisive with the ball, and (please, please, please, above all else), can make accurate throws.

I don't know if we'll get Brosmer, and if he does come here there's no way of knowing for certain how it will work out in the end. That said, this is exactly the type of player Fleck should be targeting, in my opinion.
 

SeaBee_Gopher said:
Our quarterback room might look something like Wisconsin's last year. A lot of guys coming in competing for one spot. If you're a guy from a lower visibility program or conference and think you even have a small chance to play pro, this is a great opportunity to get in front of a lot of NFL scouts on a weekly basis. An open competition to get the job shouldn't scare you.
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I don't want a QB who is afraid of competition.
 

It's possible this is partly about money along with playing time. Maybe it's far fetched for a below average BG10 QB to be looking for money elsewhere, but what if the potential new transfer is expected to capture most of the NIL funds available to the QB room that AK would have otherwise received? Just food for thought.
 

When are the open tryouts for the QB position? I found my cleats!!
 

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