Michigan State @ Minnesota – What we learned

Another Gopher victory. It feels good, even if it didn’t look pretty at times. All the penalties, miscues, and big plays aside, conference win number 3 is in the books, friends. And for that we should all be happy. Michigan State was not an opponent to take lightly, and the coaching staff made sure the team didn’t. To me, the game we saw last Saturday night was the kind that a Mason-era led team lost in the 4th quarter. It just had that feel, when MSU took the lead in the 3rd quarter.

But this is Coach Brew’s team, and things seem to be a bit different now. Those nightmarish 4th quarter meltdowns seem to be mercifully fading from my memory. And this game was the one where his recruits and JUCOs helped put their signature on the game. Brandon Green, Da’Jon McKnight, Troy Stoudemire, Keanon Cooper, Simoni Lawrence all chipped in big ways. Which is not to say that the holdovers and recruits from the Mason era were not integral – Weber, Tow-Arnett, Bennett, Campbell, Brown, et al all came up huge, but it felt good to catch more glimpses of the future than just MarQueis.

‘Good Web’ finally showed up again! It’s good to see you bud – stick around for awhile if you would. We were all certainly fearful that ‘Bad Web’ would get worse without Decker to bail him out on 3rd and longs, but about halfway through the game Saturday, I remembered that Weber’s performance without Decker was not unlike the one he had in 2007 on the road at Wisconsin (he threw for 3 TDs and hit 5 different receivers on multiple occasions). So really, we’ve seen him play well without Deck before, but his track-record this year had us all forgetting. Weber couldn’t have put up bigger numbers than he did (well, maybe he could have had Stoudemire hauled in that gimme) on a night we needed it most. And even Weber’s lone gaff, an interception over the middle was also a bit of bad luck, as an official inadvertently set a screen on Da’Jon McKnight. But even then Weber correctly threw to the spot where McKnight would have been. Thanks Adam, you’ve got us believing in you again. Oh, and did anybody notice Weber’s accuracy while wearing a glove on his throwing hand? Strangely impressive.

MarQueis got plenty of snaps this game too, particularly on 2nd downs, where the defense guessing pass or run generally becomes most difficult. I really liked this decision by Fisch. I also appreciated the fact that they almost exclusively run the ball every time he was in (generally a shotgun handoff to Whaley or a QB run), as it seemed to keep Michigan State on their toes. Sadly, Gray’s one really sweet scamper up the sideline was called back on a Kunzia hold. And even though Weber looked really good, I hope we keep utilizing Gray frequently, as it really forces other teams to prepare for two QBs.

The O-line played its best game all year in terms of pass blocking, and gave Weber some massive spans of time to find an open Gopher. Hats off to that unit, and to Tim Davis for having them well prepared.

And in spite of the points yielded by the defense, it was a treat to watch them close the game out, and really limit the Spartan rushing attack (with the exception of that end around to Keyshawn Martin). Blair White was held down all game, and that was huge.

So what did we learn this week? Lots of stuff as always. We learned that Weber can still throw the ball like a top-tier Big Ten QB. We learned that setting a conference record of 17 penalties for 157 yards does not mean you will lose. We learned that our corps of receivers can make plays, and can stuff the stat sheet. We learned that Garrett Brown hustles like no other down D-lineman I’ve seen in recent memory (watch him in the 4th quarter going to the sidelines). And finally, we learned that D’uane Bennet has absolutely exceptional balance (opening TD) and timing (Immaculate Reception Part Deux). Good stuff.

Illinois coming to the Bank this weekend, and I don’t think there is any chance that the coaching staff will allow the team to overlook them, particularly following their dominating win over Michigan. Go Gophers!