SDSU @ Minnesota - What we learned

Deja-NDSU. Ugh.

I'm talking about the 2006 win over the Bison, not the 2007 debacle. The fact that I have to clarify is embarassing enough. We've not done well against teams from the Dakotas in recent history. And last Saturday was no different.

This was one of those wins that was almost impossible to enjoy. All you could do was sit in the stands and wonder if the offense could be any more incompetant, or if the defense would finally falter.

At his press conference last week, Coach Brewster was asked if he still felt games against teams like SDSU had any benefit (transcript). Brew responded: "I feel the same way. I don't know how much it benefits the University of Minnesota to play South Dakota State. I'm not sure of that benefit." I agreed with him when he said that about NDSU two years ago, and I agree now. Why even play these games? They serve no purpose beyond potential embarassment, and they may even be counter-productive to recruiting in the region. If you're going to schedule on of these FBS teams for a game, it has to be somebody outside of the upper midwest. The South and North Dakota States of the world have rosters that appear to have stolen potential walk-ons from across Minnesota. Quality prep football players who could contribute on our roster, would the scholarships (fairly or not) need to go to more highly tauted out-of-state talent. But enough complaining about having to play the Jackrabbits to begin with.

First, let me be positive. Our senior laden defense was stellar all game, actually scoring as many points as they allowed (6). They generated turnovers, and hung tough to get us a win. Cosgrove and Lee had their unit prepared and ready to play. Hats off to them for showing up and gutting out a win on Senior Day. But the offense did these guys no favors. None.

As I stated earlier, this win was painful to sit through. This was almost exclusively the fault of the offense. Whaley disappointed me. The offensive line was dreadful (again), and Adam Weber was as ineffective and awful as I have ever seen him, with the added excitement of another pick-6. How a 3-year college quarterback who is your all-time leader in passing yardage can now routinely complete less than half of his attempted passes is beyond me. Weber managed to string together consecutive completions only once during the entire game (and the second completion was a two yard loss to boot). At this point, there is absolutely no reason for him to start any more. No need to waste Gray's freshman season any longer, right? Some how I doubt the offensive coaching staff will agree.

While reading some of the comments to a rather uninspired sarcastic Strib editorial penned by resident Gopher basher (when Reusse is too busy), Jim Souhan, I found one that got me thinking. The author noted that he didn't belive MarQueis Gray was blue-chip recruit, because a blue-chip recruit would be starting for this team, and speculated that Brewster is either a liar or an idiot for not starting him. Now I DO believe MarQueis is a blue-chipper, and I DON'T think Brewster is an idiot. But the point of this comment is well taken - we're simply not that good of a team where Gray shouldn't be playing all the time. Once the Illinois game was over, the transition to Gray starting with the first team should have been initiated. Gray needs reps if he's to be the QB of the future we expect him to be. Obviously, the situation is complicated by having an experienced upperclassman QB on the roster, but Brewster's leash for Weber has been long enough. I would have preferred for Gray to get his first start against SDSU at home, and admittedly, throwing him to the wolves in Kinnick Stadium seems much less appealing, but if the O-line is going to continuously collapse, then at least have MarQueis in there to try and make something out of nothing with his feet. What's the worst that can happen? 55-0?

So what did we learn on during this embarassing Saturday? Well, I learned that the tailgating scene in the lots around directly adjacent to the stadium is great. I learned that the SDSU football team appears to have ripped their jerseys and color scheme off from San Jose State. I learned that our offense can play worse against a lesser opponent. And finally, I learned that our defense has a lot of pride, and I can say confidently that they'll play tough against Iowa, no matter the awful circumstances the offense will almost inevitably put them in.

Time to try and end the regular season on a high note and get Floyd back. Go Gophers!