2013 Opponent Preview: Minnesota
The narrative so far:
- Aug. 31: Devin Gardner is still really good! High five.
- Sept. 7: If Michigan wins, I would be totally okay with listening to Pop Evil.
- Sept. 14: Oh hey, DeAnthony Hardison. What’s up.
- Sept. 21: Still predicting 14-6. U mad, bros?
- Sept. 28: Bye.
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Minnesota
Nobody puts Jerry Kill in a corner.
Last season
Minnesota went 6-7 overall and won just two games in the B1G. For a team that inspired GopherQuest: Worst Big Ten Team Ever the year previous, that was pretty good. Even the way they lost was much better. You saw glimpses of promise -- like maybe in three years they’ll be a Purdue when Purdue was decent or a Northwestern. They fell to Texas Tech 33-31 in the Texas Bowl, which was still a pretty impressive overachievement, if only for the fact that they made it to a bowl game in the first place.
Offense
Please be complete please be complete
Minnesota has clarity and reason for optimism at nearly every position on offense except for maybe quarterback. There is a lot of potential, though, and as rebuilding processes go, that’s a pretty good place to be. Kill and offensive coordinator Matt Limegrover have a golden opportunity to build some momentum for the program if they can take the offense to the proverbial next level. It might be worth keeping an eye on the Gophers; this season will probably determine whether they become the next Northwestern or if their shadows force them back into hidey holes for 6 more weeks of Winter. However that analogy is supposed to work.
Sophomore QB Philip Nelson will be the guy under the microscope. He’s coming off a true freshman campaign in which he beat out MarQueis Gray midseason for the starting job. While his stats through seven games aren’t that shiny (49%, 873 yards, 8 TDs, 8 INTs), he performed well enough to beat Purdue and Illinois and clinch bowl eligibility. That’s something, I guess, and there’s not a lot of shame in playing poorly against Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, and Wisconsin.
So we’ll see if he makes the sophomore leap. Nelson has a nice veteran supporting cast around him, so chances are he will. I mean, he gets all five offensive linemen back. From left to right: Ed Olson, Tommy Olson (Ed’s brother), Zac Epping, Caleb Bak, and Josh Campion. In more useful terms: 6-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-3, 6-5, all 300+ lbs. #B1G! Ed, the elder Olson, is the only senior in this group, which means their O-line continuity will span another season. Plus the fact that O-line seems to be Limegrover’s thing … Be afraid, B1G West Division. Be very afraid.
The running game should be much improved with RB Donnell Kirkwood returning. The 5-10, 230-lb bowling ball almost eclipsed 1,000 yards rushing last year with a 4.2 ypc average. Smart money says he breaks the barrier this season. RB Rodrick Williams, another bowling-ball sized object (5-11, 230 lbs), will be a solid backup. He didn’t get too many carries last season, but he made them count, averaging 4.6 ypc on 51 carries.
Of note to Michigan fans, Braylon’s little brother Berkley joins the Gophers roster as a freshman and will be pushing to be their version of Dennis Norfleet, excepted more utilized.
As far as receiver goes, well. This appears to be a touchy subject. Late last season the team’s No. 1 wideout A. J. Barker called it quits and blasted the coaching staff via the internet on his way out. That was not ideal, I guess. And Jerry Kill seems like such a nice guy.
Whether Minnesota’s passing game truly took a hit after that, no one knows because no one was really paying attention. But more to the point, playing Nebraska and Michigan State to close out the season can make any passing offense look bad. The Gophers didn’t have the best day through the air against Texas Tech, either -- not that they needed to with their running game that gained over 200 yards -- but it looked like there was a lot of reason for optimism. Well, there was one reason for optimism: Senior wideout Derrick Engel had himself a 4 catch, 108 yard day. He's now a bona fide deep threat.
Regardless, the wideouts should be just fine in 2013. Veteran contributor Isaac Freuchte (19 rec, 256 yards, 2 TDs) saw his production fall over the course of the season but is still an able body with a sweet name. The rest of the bunch has a lot of size, speed, and potential -- their development should be on the upswing with a more experienced, non-Freshman quarterback.
Defense
Let's block this guy next time.
They have one! Kind of? Sort of. They have Ra’Shede Hageman, and he’s probably the only name to know. Hageman is a 6-6, 310 lb nose tackle who came up with 6 sacks and 7.5 TFLs last season. Hageman probably should be playing either 3-tech or 5-tech, but when you’re Minnesota I guess you can’t afford to be so particular. Anyway, he’s very active and very good, not just by Gophers standards.
DT Cameron Botticelli returns on the interior next to Hageman. You won’t recognize his name (or anyone else’s) because he doesn’t do a whole lot other than exist. Having 21 tackles as a starting defensive tackle without any for a loss usually means that opposing running backs ran into him 21 times by accident.
The defensive ends will be dudes who have taken occasional snaps here and there, but unless one of them blows up at the beginning of the season, they’re not really worth keeping an eye on. I mean, really, the strategy here is clear: successfully block Hageman, earn $$$.
Minnesota can probably get by with a one-man show on the D-line if the linebackers are competent. That’s hard to predict at this point. The only returning linebacker is senior OLB Aaron Hill (74 tackles, 4 TFLs, 2 INTs). They’ve got a converted running back and a pair of JUCO transfers competing for the interior spots. Word on the internet is that the JUCOs are good.
The secondary should theoretically be able to hold their coverage long enough for Hageman to do something. There’s plenty of experience. CB Derrick Wells (74 tackles, 10 PBUs, 2 INTs) will move from safety to replace departed star CB Troy Stoudermire. CB Martez Shabazz (6 tackles, 3 PBUs, 1 INT) was a backup last year but made clearly made some nice plays with limited opportunities. Brock Vereen (64 tackles, 9 PBUs, 2 INTs), and Cedric Thompson (43 tackles, 2 INTs) will form a nice safety blanket. The secondary overall was pretty good at limiting big plays against crappy Big Ten quarterbacks, so it’s reasonable to expect them to maintain status quo.
You know, Minnesota could actually field a pretty decent defensive unit. Player development will be key as always, but already the Gophers are in much better shape than the other B1G bottom feeders.
durrrrrr
This team is kind of like: Remember the girl you never noticed in high school? Her name is Minnesota, and she drives a Kia.
Vs. Michigan: Over the last two years, Michigan has had a habit of destroying opponents in their B1G opener. Minnesota fell victim in 2011, and it's hard not to see that being the case again. Not that I’m predicting a 58-0 blow-out, but anything less than a multiple touchdown win margin would be kind of disappointing.
This is primarily because of that quarterback issue: the Gophers can grind it out all they want with the running game, but it’s going to be a tall order for their offense to try to keep up with what an experienced Devin Gardner is going to do against their defense. A mediocre non-mobile sophomore QB probably won’t cut it against Mattison’s defense in Ann Arbor.
Unless Philip Nelson plays out of his mind. We’ll have an idea of whether he has that ability when Minnesota plays Iowa the week before; not that Iowa is any good these days, but it’ll be their first competitive game all season (Way to go scheduling the Western Illinois Fighting Leathernecks.) We’ll also get a good look at their receivers when they play Iowa. There’s a lot of unproven talent in that group, and they may given Michigan’s secondary some trouble with their size.
Either way, the Wolverines should have a field day on offense. Minnesota doesn’t have the athleticism to match up well against Michigan’s skill players, and questionable defensive line play will not last 60 minutes against two of the best tackles in the conference. The interior line just needs to keep Hageman blocked, and we’ll have a good idea of whether they can do that after the Notre Dame game.
Outlook: 6-6 overall, 2-6 B1G.
- Wins: Entire non-conference schedule, Iowa, Indiana.
- Losses: Michigan, Northwestern, Nebraska, Penn State, Wisconsin, Michigan State.
I don't remember this being talked about by anyone back when it happened (or maybe I missed it) but 58-0 has to be the biggest win in terms of margin of victory over a Big Ten opponent since before Bo took over, right? I cannot think of a win that big in my lifetime, certainly.
October 14, 2000. Michigan 58 Indiana 0.
2000: Michigan 58, Indiana 0
1975: Michigan 69, Northwestern 0
I love these previews, but come on. Minnesota is nothing like her:
They're more like the guy you see in a cloying Prius ad - relatively economical, and just not that interesting other than some weirdness just below the surface:
I haven't gotten past the first picture yet, but that picture plus caption of Kill looking like an angry golden gopher surrounded by Lord-knows-who perfectly sums up how anybody not a Minnesota fan (and probably Minnesota fans as well) picture that program right now.
Not the most inaccurate account of Minnesota. I think what most Gopher fans see was the improvement from 2011 to 2012, even in playing Michigan. 2011 was 58-0 and every single Gopher fans KNOWS that it could have been close to double that if Hoke really wanted to keep his foot on the gas. Last year, we were disappointed with how a few plays could have made the game pretty competitive. Just seeing that improvement from one year to the next keeps us hopefully. We're banking on the continuation regarding the building of the O-Line. Our LB's are new, but our LB's weren't that productive last year so it's a wash. WR still a question for sure. Any objective Gopher fan is writing the trip to Ann Arbor as a loss for sure, but hoping that we're getting good enough to provide a scare.
is the first step to recovery...we know - we had the RR years.
LOL welcome to the board!
A better Minnesota (and everyone else) is good for the B1G in my opinion. I like the B1G better when it's more competitive and not the Big Two, Little everyone else (10 or 12 depending on whether you want to include Rutgers & Maryland).
is that in the West division there probably won't be a team that is bringing in enough talent to dominate. Wisconsin is switching coaches, Northwestern is showing potential to be consistently good, but is still Northwestern, Iowa has ups and downs, and Nebraska doesn't recruit all that well. So, it seems open enough that most teams could realistically win it, even Minnesota, if they play their cards right.
I, and I think many Michigan fans, often think of Minny as our "other" team. I sincerely hope to see them ocntinue on last year's improvement, which I felt was a corner turning year. It stopped being "Gray do SOMETHING!" and started being a football team with a reasonable offense and a facsimilie of a reasonable defense. Most of the parts were there, they're still just a little garbled coming through the old phone lines.
"Kill and offensive coordinator Matt Limegrover have a golden opportunity to build some momentum for the program if they can take the offense to the proverbial next level."
I agree. They should just. . . Gopher it.
(YEEEAAHHH)
"RB Rodrick Williams, another bowling-ball sized object (5-11, 230 lbs), will be a solid backup."
?
"questionable defensive line play will not last 60 minutes against two of the best tackles in the conference."
Except you said their threat is the NT, whereas all our experience is at tackle and will thus be wasted on non-factor DEs. Here's where a clever OC might move Lewan inside for a game and pretty much game over man, but Borges will opt for execution (meaning consistency) over cleverness any day.
I still expect a victory, as going up against Hageman is good experience for our young line that shouldn't compromise the outcome. That said, Borges might run a lot of inverted veer to lead the offense through Lewan and keep Hageman away from Gardner.
Can you name me one "clever OC" that has EVER moved his starting LT inside for one game in an attempt to neutralize a mediocre opponent's best player?
That sounds like a clever move...in a video game where OTs are magically higher-rated at OG, despite having no experience playing the position.
The difference between OG and OT is no smaller than the difference between WR and RB. It is not something that can be taught on the fly, and I don't think you take the best player on your team and change his position for a week in order to gameplan for...Minnesota.
And I think the inverted veer will be used extremely sparingly in 2013 and beyond. Most QB runs will come from rollouts and sprintouts that are desinged passes. Though I'm sure we'll see DG on a few designed runs and even a few options, Borges won't waste precious installation time on plays he doesn't like and isn't an expert at running.
But I don't think any OC in their right mind would move their starting All-American LT to OG to try to neutralize one player. What a smart OC would do is take advantage of Lewan donkey-riding DEs and neutrilize Minn. best player with doubles at the point of attack or simply by going after Minn.'s weaknesses.
Michigan is good enough at this point, especially compared to Minn., where they are much better off playing to their strengths and doing minimal changes to their scheme than they would be to change a bunch in reaction to an inferior team.
But OCs are an easy and unfair target by all fan bases, even when it makes very little sense, such as in this case.
You can calm down; I know "clever" tends to have positive connotations but have you ever heard the term "too clever by half"? Moving Lewan inside against Minnesota would be something like that. I said it'd be clever. That doesn't automatically make it a good idea. Sorry if that wasn't clear. I don't think it's as vast as WR vs. RB though.
My point is that we have some pretty weird mismatches here; our tackles have a huge advantage but the interior line vs. Minnesota's NT is iffy -- and our QB depth is thinner than gold film. It doesn't have to be inverted veer per se, but if Borges is worth his salt he's going to be aware of that and play to our line's strengths. Who knows? He might just double-team Hageman all day, going as far as having one of the TEs pick up a DE if necessary.
You were clearly advocating that "clever" move and managed to get a shot in at Borges at the same time.
Their defense seems to have a lot of potential based on the content of this post but at the end of the day, as a Michigan fan when you see Minnesota coming to town you don't lose any sleep
How did Bubba Watson get a press credential?
Zach Helfand (Daily) puts Jerry Kill in the corner.
Would you feel better if he changed his last name?
6-6? Yeahhhhh bowl game!
Pretty fair assessment. I think they'll beat one of the six expected losers (probably Wiscy or MSU) and pull out 7 wins plus a bowl game. The talent is there for this team to make some noise in that division. And maybe it's the early 00's in my talking, but I love a Minny that can't throw but has a bunch of bowling balls with helmets in the backfield. Just feels very Big Ten to me.
Never have I ever seen a coach who looks more like the team's mascot than Kill.
Coach K & the Duke Blue Devil. Seriously, did they base that thing off of him?
The Gophers will not beat Indiana this year. Book It
...building on the momentum of the new coaching regime. I actually expect a mini (pun?) breakthough this year and can easily see them getting the victories as posted above but also catching somebody by surprise and stealing a win or two from the group of games against Penn State, Wisconsin & Michigan State.
I'll predict 7-5 in regular season, 3-5 in B1G. Bowl game seems likely but a win in that will depend on the matchup.
DAMN I cannot wait for football! It's the best time of the year, especially when conference games commence. There is nothing better than awakening on a Saturday morning whilst the sun is shining. Turn on ESPN to watch Game Day, get some good grub and beer, and sit on my ass all day watching football. Fucking love it.
I also see Minnesota stealing a win from someone they shouldn't. Maybe MSU if they still have no offense, or Penn State depending on how bad the sanctions start hurting this year. Minnesota will probably be competitive in most of their games, anyway.
Well, besides when they come to Ann Arbor.
Last year I said Sparty would be much worse, Ohio may go undefeated, and (gulp) Illinois would a good team.
I like their QB, I think he's a strength. The D plays tough and fairly sound, they hit. Good OL. They'll beat one of those expected losses and finish better than 6-6.
The only thing that concerns me a bit is the Offensive philosophy change - I watched their spring game and thought they were moving to more traditional pro-style? Maybe I'm confusing them (I know Hazel is doing this at Purdue), but Maize n Brew didn't mention this in their reviews either.
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