Marqueis Gray Questionable for Saturday
Makes them easier to stop! I'd rather face any team at full strength, but...
http://www.twincities.com/gophersfootball/ci_18998154?nclick_check=1
September 28th, 2011 at 8:28 PM ^
A terrible team without the guy who accounts for ~75% of their passing yards and ~50% of their rushing yards?
What is one step below DOOOOOOOOOOM?
September 28th, 2011 at 8:56 PM ^
It may actually happen. I just saw on CBS sportsline rapid reports that Gray threw today but did not otherwise practice. If he can't play, it looks like a freshman will take his place.
Honestly, our guys probably have had practices tougher than that game would be.
The Gophers just can't seem to buy a break this year . . . .
September 28th, 2011 at 9:40 PM ^
The freshman QB Max Shortell (I think) played pretty well last saturday or at least it seemed like it to me. I actually thought Minny was better with him as their QB.
September 28th, 2011 at 11:57 PM ^
I think he also played, and reasonably well, against USC.
September 28th, 2011 at 11:53 PM ^
And then John was a zombie.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:29 PM ^
What about Kill himself? Is he going to coach?
September 28th, 2011 at 8:30 PM ^
to kill yourself.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:32 PM ^
A rash usually won't kill you.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:47 PM ^
road rash. followed by impacting against a friggin maple tree
September 28th, 2011 at 10:38 PM ^
You might just end up in the hospital surrounded by a lot of syrupy get well cards. What a sticky situation.
September 28th, 2011 at 11:25 PM ^
Stevens-Johnson.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:32 PM ^
Not if he commits suicide.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:34 PM ^
No one is named suicide...so thats not funny...
September 28th, 2011 at 8:43 PM ^
Star Tribune article makes it sounds like Kill plans to coach on Saturday:
No, he's preparing to play Michigan in Ann Arbor this Saturday, and Kill said he will be 100 percent in charge, as always. "The rest of it, I've talked enough about it," he said, clearly impatient that his health has become the focus of the Gophers' season. His doctors "haven't got it all figured out yet, but hopefully they'll make progress on it, and we'll be fine."
September 28th, 2011 at 8:54 PM ^
Glad he's feeling okay, but given his recent medical history it'd make me feel better if he took some time off.
September 28th, 2011 at 10:49 PM ^
It's inspirational stuff. You only go around once. Seizures are not always easy to control regardless. I respect a guy who doesn't give in to the uncontrolable forces that drive our lives.
Regardless of how this works out for him...I salute his charity work after his cancer diagnosis and his determination in the face of adversity. From what I read...this guy is made of the stuff.
September 28th, 2011 at 9:36 PM ^
September 28th, 2011 at 8:37 PM ^
Man, this game might be over quickly. That guy bitching about Gardner not seeing the field enough might get his wish this week.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:52 PM ^
Minnesota's a reminder to be happy with what you've got because it can get so much worse. Glen Mason must wake up every day, read the Star-Tribune, and just shake his head.
September 28th, 2011 at 9:24 PM ^
I really hate this logic. It sounds exactly like OSU and MSU fans saying UM should just be happy with 8-9 and occasional 10 win seasons. Minnesota has every right to strive for perfection like anyother school. They do have the most B1G championships after UM and OSU. If they are willing to endure rebuilding in an effort to reach the next level, then so be it.
September 28th, 2011 at 10:14 PM ^
Minnesota is like Army: a program that was once a national power, but hasn't done anything at all for decades now. With little recruiting base, and with neighboring Wisconsin and Iowa being strong, they've got a tough row to hoe. They can strive for perfection, but it's not likely to happen. Under Mason they were competitive. That's all they can realistically ask for. Mason beat Michigan in Ann Arbor, OSU in Columbus, and PSU in Happy Valley. Very few coaches have pulled that off.
September 28th, 2011 at 10:24 PM ^
No team is like the service acadamies, because they are at an inherent disadvantage in today's competative college football in regards to recruiting and accepting student athletes. Minnesota is no different than any other FBS school. Boise St., TCU, UConn all have had recent success after they found the right coach. Hell, even look at Wisconsin. They were pretty subpar back in the days, had a few good seasons here and there, but when they got Barry Alverez, they were able to build themselves into a solid B1G program over the years. I see no reason why Minn couldn't do the same if it finds the right coach who is willing to dedicate himself to the task long term.
September 28th, 2011 at 10:39 PM ^
I agree that they can be a competitive team. I don't agree that they can be a top-10 team, if that's what you're suggesting. (For that matter, I certainly don't consider UConn an elite program, and I think TCU and Boise would have a tougher go of things if they were in the Big Ten.)
The very fact that Wisconsin is an established program makes it that much harder for them. Minnesota is basically "Wisconsin State." The two schools are linked by tuition reciprocity, so there's a long tradition of people from one state going to college at the other. If one of the schools is strong, it almost ensures the other one won't be, because there isn't much of a recruiting base there.
September 28th, 2011 at 11:33 PM ^
I certainly don't think they will ever be a consistant top 10 team, but I believe that winning a B1G championship is possible. Glenn Mason's best year of Minn was a 10 win season in 03 and he still only finished fourth in the Big Ten. Otherwise the best was 8 wins (and yes, there were some victories over very good opponents), and he was a career at Minn just over .500. I just completely understand if Minn doesn't want to resign themselves to finishing 4th in the B1G as the best they can do.
Oh, and I put UConn not as an example of elite, but as an example of a team that had a coach that built a program from scratch into a conference champion. Yes, only a Big East champion in a down year, but it's still pretty impressive. Perhaps a better example would have been Kansas St. when Bill Snyder came to down and turned like the worst program in the coutry at the time into a legitamiate power.
September 29th, 2011 at 12:09 AM ^
It's possible, but it was more possible with Mason, who had established the most consistent success Minnesota had had in 40 years. He had four straight winning seasons at Minnesota. They hadn't done that since the late 1940s.
September 28th, 2011 at 10:39 PM ^
Exactly. Mason had actually gotten Minnesota to a place where they could recruit 4 star running backs like Maroney (Barber III is a different case b/c he was a legacy) and good linemen (didn't they have a center on who won the Rimington?) From what I remember, they were competitive with Wisconsin and Iowa on a yearly basis, regularly making bowls, and pulling the occasional upset. One could argue that the rise of Wisconsin and Iowa in recent years and the utter collapse of Minnesota are at least tangentally related.
September 28th, 2011 at 9:26 PM ^
Hate to open old wounds but.... Nick Sheridan was an example of it getting worse.
Please don't neg. I am glad that chapter of michigan football is over.
September 28th, 2011 at 9:30 PM ^
He still beat Minnesota...
September 28th, 2011 at 8:41 PM ^
Hopefully the guys on the team aren't dropping their guard like the fans on this board are. I mean maybe we will roll them, but at this point I don't take anything for granted.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:45 PM ^
I'm guessing Hoke is pretty good at getting their attention and keeping the intensity high. The staff's insistence on players competing each week in practice for the starting position will also help.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:49 PM ^
I'm sure the players are not letting their guard down and I'm sure the opinion of the board doesn't affect that.
This is the opening game of the Big Ten season, it's at home, and these players want to go out and continue winning. I'm sure they'd play hard no matter what. Plus I'm sure the coaches will keep it fresh in their minds not to take Minny or anyone else lightly.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:52 PM ^
I think Hoke has changed the tide on the rivalry. Hell people in Ohio are starting to believe him. Never in a million years I would have thought that. Selling Michigan jerseys is a good start.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:54 PM ^
Some of the most creative comments come from double-posting. You can never go wrong with Hoke selling Michigan jerseys.
September 28th, 2011 at 9:59 PM ^
Mc
and
Gloin.
The one thing different is that the rest of the team is still Minnesota.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:53 PM ^
I'm sure every player is aware of the The Horror, that should be incentive enough to practice their butts off.
September 28th, 2011 at 10:09 PM ^
That Appy state team was a good team, they'd roll Minnesota
September 28th, 2011 at 11:42 PM ^
Not my point at all...
I'm just using it as an example to never take an opponent lightly.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:56 PM ^
back,i like to play teams when they are at full strength but shit happens. I was worried about gray because he is a big duel-threat QB,now you should be able to relax and not worry as much about this game.GO BLUE!!!
September 28th, 2011 at 9:02 PM ^
Before this, you were worried about the team that was just taken to the woodshed by North Dakota State?
September 28th, 2011 at 9:25 PM ^
phew, thank goodness he's probably out. there's no one on the team we could afford to lose in a duel. What makes one a duel-threat quarterback? Like they can throw a fade with their right hand and draw with their left? Do they take seven paces shoot then throw? throw then shoot? what's the process here? Duels are hard enough and now we're adding quarterbacking to them? Hardcore.
September 28th, 2011 at 11:03 PM ^
vowyls are interchangeble, c'mon.
You remind me of this gai [cwut?]: http://www.annarbor.com/users/profile/?UID=3731&plckUserId=3731 (First response is his to an article quoting Denard.)
September 29th, 2011 at 9:52 AM ^
I believe that would be the second vowel. Unless you're saying first in general. In which case, whatever.
September 28th, 2011 at 8:57 PM ^
Anyone know if this game will be on BTN or ESPN?
September 28th, 2011 at 9:01 PM ^
BTN, as is Northwestern, IIRC (except that's an eight PM start).
September 28th, 2011 at 9:05 PM ^
Start time for Northwestern is 7 PM ET.
September 28th, 2011 at 9:10 PM ^
Good to know. I thought they published it in CT. I might be there looking for tickets pre-kickoff, so that would have been embarrassing.
September 28th, 2011 at 9:23 PM ^
Just to be clear, it is on the schedule in CT--as in 6 PM CT (which is obviously 7 PM ET).
September 28th, 2011 at 9:32 PM ^
Yea, I must have seen it, processed it as seven, then thought I saw it in CT as seven. Believe it or not, coming from CT and going to school in ET, that happens semi-regularly.