I'm disappointed in the L to wisky again, but their senior rich defense was too much for our freshmen laden offense. They lose their 3 legit differencemakers in abberderis, borland, and white/gordon III(as one). Other than those 3 there's not a big difference in talent between the two programs IMO.
That said, things are looking up and up.
While I still am not certain whether we'll end up gaining a rose bowl berth under Kill, the days of losing to D2 schools like NDSU or going 3-9 are over, right now.
Our team depth is better than at any point since I've been watching gopher football, especially on defense.
The offense basically returns everyone next year and returns the QB/WRs/TE for the next 2 or 3. That type of chemistry will lead to a much more efficient attack.
We were able to redshirt 2 of 3 our most dangerous offesive weapons in Edwards and Streveler.
We also redshirted a bunch of defensive guys who in the past I'm sure would have been thrown to the wolves like Amaefula/Wells/Thompson/S. Ekpe/Keith/Johnson/Travis/Murray.
Differencemakers?
This program is going to be built upon a solid scheme first and foremost, and until we gain some "street cred" with recruits nationally, we're going to have to rely on raw athletes to develop into guys who make plays.
Cockran, Murray, and Campbell are only going to get better, and guys like Myrick, Mcghee, and Laster fit into that mold too.
On offense, Nelson will continue to cool his blood and improve his accuracy. I fully expect him to be the type of player Chandler Harnish was at NIU, and having Leidner behind him will only help things. Our freshmen receivers won't likely drop easy balls the next time they play wisconsin as sophomores or juniors. Nelson won't miss Williams for a wide open touchdown next time. Speaking of...
Maxx Williams will end up a finalist for the John Mackey award sooner rather than later. He's going to be the featured weapon going forward and will only be getting better at running routes and stronger overall.
Our Oline and running attack will continue to improve, and honestly looking at the recruits we've brought in under Kill at this position, you have to like our chances at being a top unit in the B1G for the next few years.
The 2015 recruiting class will be the one that ends up playing the definitive Kill era seasons IMO.
Nothing is guaranteed, but I have a hard time seeing Kill not finish out his contract and probably another few years. By 2017-2019 we will be 7-9 years into the Kill era and by then we should be coming off a string of bowls hopefully some better than the fringe 6-6 type.
Whether we are finally able to challenge for a league title under Kill is going to come down to in state stud recruits. Do players like Jeff Jones, Seantrell Henderson, or Micheal Floyd take a shot on the hometown team finally under stable and successful coaches? A signature recruit could sway the path of Kill and his program from a nice season like we had here to a huge breakthrough one like other programs have had.
Time will tell, but I have a hard time seeing the program as swinging any way but up for the next few years and Kill's track record doesn't show this type of winning season to be a mirage or built on fool's gold.
I'm excited to enjoy the ride and to see whether Kill now can become that transformative coach who leaves a legacy of winning and elevates the program to rediscovered heights.
That said, things are looking up and up.
While I still am not certain whether we'll end up gaining a rose bowl berth under Kill, the days of losing to D2 schools like NDSU or going 3-9 are over, right now.
Our team depth is better than at any point since I've been watching gopher football, especially on defense.
The offense basically returns everyone next year and returns the QB/WRs/TE for the next 2 or 3. That type of chemistry will lead to a much more efficient attack.
We were able to redshirt 2 of 3 our most dangerous offesive weapons in Edwards and Streveler.
We also redshirted a bunch of defensive guys who in the past I'm sure would have been thrown to the wolves like Amaefula/Wells/Thompson/S. Ekpe/Keith/Johnson/Travis/Murray.
Differencemakers?
This program is going to be built upon a solid scheme first and foremost, and until we gain some "street cred" with recruits nationally, we're going to have to rely on raw athletes to develop into guys who make plays.
Cockran, Murray, and Campbell are only going to get better, and guys like Myrick, Mcghee, and Laster fit into that mold too.
On offense, Nelson will continue to cool his blood and improve his accuracy. I fully expect him to be the type of player Chandler Harnish was at NIU, and having Leidner behind him will only help things. Our freshmen receivers won't likely drop easy balls the next time they play wisconsin as sophomores or juniors. Nelson won't miss Williams for a wide open touchdown next time. Speaking of...
Maxx Williams will end up a finalist for the John Mackey award sooner rather than later. He's going to be the featured weapon going forward and will only be getting better at running routes and stronger overall.
Our Oline and running attack will continue to improve, and honestly looking at the recruits we've brought in under Kill at this position, you have to like our chances at being a top unit in the B1G for the next few years.
The 2015 recruiting class will be the one that ends up playing the definitive Kill era seasons IMO.
Nothing is guaranteed, but I have a hard time seeing Kill not finish out his contract and probably another few years. By 2017-2019 we will be 7-9 years into the Kill era and by then we should be coming off a string of bowls hopefully some better than the fringe 6-6 type.
Whether we are finally able to challenge for a league title under Kill is going to come down to in state stud recruits. Do players like Jeff Jones, Seantrell Henderson, or Micheal Floyd take a shot on the hometown team finally under stable and successful coaches? A signature recruit could sway the path of Kill and his program from a nice season like we had here to a huge breakthrough one like other programs have had.
Time will tell, but I have a hard time seeing the program as swinging any way but up for the next few years and Kill's track record doesn't show this type of winning season to be a mirage or built on fool's gold.
I'm excited to enjoy the ride and to see whether Kill now can become that transformative coach who leaves a legacy of winning and elevates the program to rediscovered heights.
