Minnesota did not have a RB carry over 21 yards after September 23

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fmlizard

fmlizard

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Not a single Gopher RB managed a carry over 21 yards after Darius Taylor got injured on Sept 23 vs Northwestern.

Jordan Nubin somehow got a 21 yarder against Ohio State. No other rushes over 19 yards for anyone I can find.

That's basically the entire Big Ten season without even a medium-explosive play for a team that's supposed to be a "running team"
 

It looked like everything the offense tried to do was hard. It seemed like we were never the aggressor and had to work for everything.

I honestly don't know if it was a player thing or a coach thing... it is most likely something in the middle.

I remember thinking when we were playing North Carolina that they were attacking the defense and pushing the ball down the field. I know they have an All-American at QB and that is a big difference but I truly think taking a deep shot at least once a quarter stretches out the defense and doesn't let them just get into a groove and play.

Also, by taking a shot it seems that half of the time the play ends in a PI. I know it isn't truly 50% but seems like it isn't uncommon.
 

fmlizard said:
Not a single Gopher RB managed a carry over 21 yards after Darius Taylor got injured on Sept 23 vs Northwestern.

Jordan Nubin somehow got a 21 yarder against Ohio State. No other rushes over 19 yards for anyone I can find.

That's basically the entire Big Ten season without even a medium-explosive play for a team that's supposed to be a "running team"
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I would view this as confirmation that RB are not as plug and play as they seem to be sometimes. Jordan Nubin did a solid job but there is a reason he was a walk-on.

The biggest bummer in the RB room (outside of injuries) was of course the bust Sean Tyler ended up being.
 

How many explosive plays should we expect, from pure rushes?

Those aren’t the plays I tend to think of as being explosive.


That’s not at all to say we don’t need explosive plays. We do
 

MplsGopher said:
How many explosive plays should we expect, from pure rushes?

Those aren’t the plays I tend to think of as being explosive.


That’s not at all to say we don’t need explosive plays. We do
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Less than from passes, but more than zero.

Throw out one 43 yard carry by Taylor vs Northwestern and a 21 yard yearly long would have been worst in the NCAA by a wide margin. (Indiana was dead last with a 29 yard max, which tied for the worst mark over the past several seasons)

A lot of people including myself commented throughout the season about how everything felt so difficult on offense this year. A big reason why was a lack of big chunk plays - it was 10 yards at a time all year long.
 


There is a reason that Nubin was 5th on depth chart. He's good, but not shifty and isn't going to break a big run.
 

Speed kills.

Mo Ibrahim is one of the best RB's in Gopher history - but he also lacked top-end speed. he made up for it with vision and strength.

Ryan Burns on his various podcasts really harps on the explosive play statistic. If your RB's don't have top-end speed, and your passing game struggles to throw the ball downfield, it forces the offense to go on a 12-play drive to get points - while other teams crank off a 3 or 4-play drive with explosive plays.

speed is a valued commodity - and in today's game, if you want a WR or RB with top-end speed, you have to get a little bit lucky in recruiting - or have a sugar daddy willing to buy you some speedy players.
 

MaxyJR1 said:
There is a reason that Nubin was 5th on depth chart. He's good, but not shifty and isn't going to break a big run.
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He is our Leroy Hoard?

What I hope is that we find a complementary back. A sturdy speed back. Someone to help keep the defense off balance.
 

STPGopher said:
He is our Leroy Hoard?

What I hope is that we find a complementary back. A sturdy speed back. Someone to help keep the defense off balance.
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Taylor and Nubin with 3 freshmen likely unless a portal back comes in.
 



Honestly wondering how many runs of 21+ the defense gave up in that span. Seemed like a lot but I honestly was pretty checked out on some games
 


STPGopher said:
He is our Leroy Hoard?

What I hope is that we find a complementary back. A sturdy speed back. Someone to help keep the defense off balance.
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Leroy Hoard - responsible for the greatest quote of all time.

When asked by a reporter what his role was with the Vikings, Hoard responded:

"If you need 2 yards, I'll get you 3. If you need 5 yards, I'll get you 3."
 

UpAndUnder43 said:
Honestly wondering how many runs of 21+ the defense gave up in that span. Seemed like a lot but I honestly was pretty checked out on some games
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I think that had more to do with we had linebackers straight MISS the spot the RB was headed to and it was smooth sailing until the safety on those plays.

Even if our slow WR got a free run from the line to the safety we would have had a few.
 



As it became more and more clear that teams didn't have to fear the pass ... they were able to just shut down the run / pressure the QB with no consequences.

I think it was more a product of the lack of a passing game than it was running problems.
 

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