Last year's Illinois game and its ramifications for 2009

[Go Gophers Rah]

Over the weekend, I watched the 2008 Gophers victory over Illinois.

In my opinion, that was the best Gophers performance with Brewster at the helm. As I watched it, I had the following observations:

• With the exception of WVS, all of the players who had a big impact on the win are returning.
• The 2 players who almost cost us the game (Ralph Spry - who had a fumble that shouldn't have occured) and Joel Monroe (who missed a PAT that kept Illinois within 1 score of winning) are both gone.
• While Jack Simmons had more receptions than Tow-Arnett, TA played a clutch game and I have no doubt that he can perform as well as Simmons.
• Simoni Lawrence was the defensive player of the game in my book. He was a beast.
• Kyle Theret had an outstanding game - the commentators noted that he was the on-field commander of the defense and were complimentary about his football IQ.
• Other than QB scrambles, we ran 27 times and passed 27 - it was a very balanced attack.
• While we did win the turnover battle and the kick/punt return yards were good - those did not win us the game. Solid and smart football (especially in the trenches) won us that game.
• While we will be ruturning 18 starters on offense and defense our opponents will all have less experience (Illinois-for instance- is returning 14).

Now, there are just a few areas of concern:

• Willie VanDeSteeg had 3 sacks and forced a fumble - he had a pretty good game; will we get similar production from our DE's?
• Justin Kucek had an outstanding game. He had good yardage on his punts and pinned them inside the 20 on several occations. Plus, he threw for a 1st down on a fake punt. I really think that (aside from the 2005 Wisconsin game), Kucek was underapreciated and that our punting game will be noticably worse this year.
• Our defense stopped Illinois on 3 rushing attempts from the 1-yard line. Two of those tackles were by Hightower and Steve Davis. However, I think it was the scheme and agressiveness rather than the particular players, so I'm not overly concerned by the loss of Hightower and Davis (who really didn't have an impact in the game).

I know this is a bit of rambling about a game played 10 months ago. My point is that we played a heck of a game and I don't see any reason whatsoever why we can't play games as well or better in 2009. I feel more optimistic about this season after re-watching that game.

Go Gophers!

 

[Ole]

IMO that was the greatest game of WVDS's gopher career, he was a one man wrecking crew that afternoon. His contributions to winning that game cannot be replaced, but maybe supplemented.

I agree with the other points, and will throw this nugget of an opinion in also:
That victory was proof of Brew's motivation techniques. Remember Homecoming 07, an awful game for us, in front of our homecoming crowd we were crushed. I have to believe 07 was a motivating force for the victory in 08 and vice versa for the Illini, they probably overlooked that game a bit. They won't this year, but...

You have to wonder what kind of a week of practice the team will have this year before the Iowa game, which was even a greater defeat, and could be an even greater bounce back. Just throwing it out there, if I were a player from last year's season finale, I'd be pretty fired up for that one.

I talked to Brewster at the Joe sensors radio show last year after that game, he basically said that he loved going on the road and "getting the middle finger from the fans as you roll in to town", get up and everyone that see's you walk down the street is giving you a dirty look, he really seemed to love to play up the hostility of a road game

 

[wait!what?]

55-0 and Dave Lee on the call only made it worse.
though it might be better than the 2001 Indiana 63-23 beat down of WI.

If this season looks similar to those final 4 games of 08.....Brewster is a goner.

 

[Ole]

55-0 and Dave Lee on the call only made it worse.
though it might be better than the 2001 Indiana 63-23 beat down of WI.

If this season looks similar to those final 4 games of 08.....Brewster is a goner.

I think you misunderstood what I was saying, I think Brew can use that as motivation to bounce back, I think we lose a few "easier games(IL, NW, MSU could be L's" but we give Iowa hell at Kinnick.

 

[Goldmember]

At the end of October anyone could have looked at the remaining games on Minnesota's schedule and wondered if they would end up 11-1. As it turns out, the opposite happened.

Illinois was a solid road win against an average Big Ten team. And considering the '07 season, this was a very encouraging win. Throw-in the Brewster family's personal history with Illinois and it makes it all that much more significant. But the '09 team is going to have to step-up even more than the '08 team did from '07.

In '09, that Illinois game would be one of the easier games.