Insight Bowl insight - Gophers vs. Cyclones Preview

Its nearly here Gopher Nation. The bowl game we've all waited breathlessly for is almost upon us, complete with its convenient showing on the NFL Network and 5pm CST start time. Ok, so maybe this game is just for the handful of us true believers and die-hard Gopher fans. Be that as it may, we've got one more football game to play, and damned if I'm not still excited. A win on Thursday afternoon puts us over 0.500 for the year, and any way you shake it, that feels a lot better than 6-7.

A lot of Gopher fans understandably feel let down the way the end of the season went, sneaking past South Dakota State and losing to Iowa in a very winnable game. I personally feel more like I was just let down by the offense, rather than the team as a whole, as the defense performed admirably down the stretch. If nothing else, the Insight Bowl gives me a chance to rinse out the bad taste Fisch, Weber and company left in my mouth in Novemeber. I'm excited for that chance, along with the notion that MarQueis will be lining up a WR more regularly this game. I like it. Let's get this kid out in space and see what he can do (hopefully hold on to the ball). At this point, any involvement of him in the offense is a good thing.

The Cyclones appear to have ended their season in similar fashion to the Gophers (close win followed by a tough loss), slipping past a bad Colorado team at home, 17-10, and then getting beat by Mizzou on the road in the 4th quarter to end the regular season. The Gophs and Cyclones have identical overall records (6-6), conference records (3-5), and non-conference records (3-1). Iowa State's big win this year came in-conference, taking down Nebraska on the road in a defensive battle (9-7). Their worst loss was a early season 32-point beat down handed to them by the in-state rival Hawkeyes (3-35). Minnesota and ISU averaged just under 22 points a game on offense, and gave up less than 25 (24.6 and 22.6, respectively). And both squads also appear to have relatively incompetant junior QBs (at least statistically speaking for ISU's Austen Arnaud).

So what differentiates these teams? It would appear that the Cyclones have an edge in the running game, with Minneapolis native Alexander Robinson lining up at halfback and carrying the load for the Cyclones. Robinson is a 1,000 yard Big 12 rusher, despite missing a game. ISU averages 177 ypg on the ground, while the Gophs average less than 100 (98 ypg). But Robinson is a smaller back (5'9" 187 lbs), and seems to be the kind of back that the Gophers tend to have success bottling up (see Ralph Bolden and Edwin Baker). Their struggles have come against the bigger more physical backs (Clay, Martin, Robinson). So perhaps that edge is not as pronounced as the stats may have us believe. Certainly the oddsmakers felt that way, opening the line with the Gophs laying 2.5 points.

Defensively, ISU statstically appears to be the slightly better team, but they largely got off the hook of playing the real offensive stalwarts of the B-12, namely Texas Tech and Texas (they did get lit up by KU for 41 points though). The Gophers had no such luck on their 2009 schedule. So this statistical edge may also be meaningless.

So how does this game shake out then? For me it comes down to the preparation of the Gopher defense to contain Robinson and forcing QB Arnaud into a few costly mistakes. The disguised coverages and blitzes run by Cosgrove against Iowa were highly effective. Can they be again is the question. If 'yes', then the Gophers have a good chance to win, if the offense can actually show up for even a half.

The other big question is Good Web or Bad Web? Who is hanging out in Tempe right now? Adam needs to led the offense and get points on the board in the worst way this Thursday. We've had no offensive TDs in our last 2 games. Attrocious and inexcusable (particularly against a D-2 opponent). Web has to get at least 2 TDs on the board for us somehow, not necessarily by throwing TDs in the endzone, but by keeping drives alive on 3rd and longs, and getting us into position for scores. That and not turning the ball over in our own territory. My confidence in Adam Weber this year has been destroyed by his awful play and decision making in several games late in the season. He's got to get back on track and carry some confidence into 2010 if he is to retain the starting QB role I presume he wants to keep for his senior season. The spotty play of the O-line and our running backs, gives me little confidence that they will carry the day if Weber doesn't, so its got to be Web that leads this team to a win.

Predictions? I feel pretty similar to the oddsmakers on this one. I think a solid effort by the Gopher defense, and some decent game management from Adam Weber will get it done, but not by much. Wild cards for the Gophs? Troy's returns and the role of MarQueis Gray.

Gophers 23, Cyclones 20
Gopher Player of the Game - Lee Campbell, 12 tackles, 1 FF, 2 TFL
Cyclone Player of the Game - Alexander Robinson, 20 carries, 75 yards, 2 TDs

One last sidenote - a win on Thursday couldn't hurt our pipedream chances of landing #1 overall national recruit Seantrel Henderson (Cretin-Durham), who we're at least still in the running with...

Brewster gets extension?

This morning, the Strib's Gopher Football beat reporter, Kent Youngblood, reported that Gopher AD Joel Maturi deemed that Coach Brew has earned a contract extension, and that the negotiations have already begun.

Stability was the key word Maturi used to justify his belief that Brewster should be extended. If you've read any of Gopher Bandanna Guy's posts on this blog in the past, you know that I agree with Maturi wholeheartedly. Which is not to say that stability is the only reason Brew should be extended, but it is a significant one in my mind.

So let's analyze this move a bit (assuming Brew does get extended). What are the pros and cons? Let's start with the pros - First, recruiting promises can continue to be made (playing time, positional guarantees, etc.). Second, the new out-state recruiting pipelines that are being established can continue to develop (Texas, Florida, Louisiana). Third, the young and upcoming players aren't forced to learn a different system (provided Brew keeps his coordinators in town). Fourth, the University doesn't send the message that "2 bowl games in 3 years gets you canned" to every other potential coaching hire in the country. And finally, re-upping with Brewster gives us a much better chance to retain him long-term should he make big gains in his 4th and 5th contracted seasons.

Now the cons. 1) We run the risk of continuing to have a football program without any kind of identity. 2) We run the risk of continuing the revolving door situation with coordinators. 3) We risk mediocrity or worse - what if Brewster cannot bring the program above the 6-6 (3-5) level throughout his tenure. 4) Reusse and Souhan will continue their campaign of negativity 'cause they don't like the guy.

So where does the Star Tribune online reading public fall on this topic? Well, the informal poll on the Stribs website when I checked had nearly 80% stating that Minnesota needed a coaching change, and 20% believed stability was more important (I should point out that this poll allowed multiple voting opportunities from the same computer, including 3 votes for the minority position by yours truly).

Now I realize that most of this 80% is made up of the mouth-breathers that still think we can land Tony Dungy or should hire back Lou Holtz away ESPN, but let's get real here people - NCAA Div 1 head football coaches don't get fired after their first 3 years. Especially when they make 2 bowl games, and expectations were not all that great. The only place the truly high expectations were coming from were the Gophers themselves. And that's where high expectation should be coming from at all times. Brew-haters - ask yourself if your opinion of Coach Brew would change at all if we had beat South Dakota State by 30. Or if we had beaten Illinois and were going to the Alamo Bowl instead. My guess is you'd still be hating on the guy.

My final take? Brew should be extended 2 years, unless the Gopher's showing vs. Iowa State on Thursday is absolutely dreadful. If that turns out to be the case, then back down to a 1-year extension, with another year possible if certain incentives are reached in 2010. Yeah, there's the possibility that Brewster won't agree to a 1-year deal, and if that's the case, let him sweat.

I'd love to hear other's opinions, on this polarizing topic within Gopher Nation.

Gophers draw Iowa State at the Insight.com Bowl

Back to Tempe again - for the Southwestern equivalent of the 'Music City Bowl' versus the Iowa State Cyclones and Cy the Cardinal. That's what 6-6 gets you. And Michigan State gets to go to beautiful San Antonio for the Alamo Bowl, despite having the same record as us, and losing to us head-to-head. Yeah, their conference record was 4-4 to our 3-5, but then they didn't have to play Ohio State either. Guess Spartan fans travel better.

Oh well, I'm not sure I wanted a rematch with Texas Tech in a bowl again anyways. The draw of Iowa State seems much more palatable a team to play in our bowl game. Now to be honest, I don't know much about Cyclone football aside from they play in the Big 12 North, and Seneca Wallace played for them circa 2002. So, I'll be doing a little research over the next few weeks. Stay tuned for usual pre-game preview.

Gophers fall to 'Canes, Brewster's house STILL for sale, and GEHG plans for hoops season

63-58 Hurricanes. Another tough, close loss by the Gophs tonight. That's 3 in a row now. They let it slip away in the last two minutes, that were tough to watch, kickstarted by an Al Nolen turnover as the Gophers were only down 2. Speaking of Nolen, he played another gutsy game, (6 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals, 9 points). I'm continually impressed by Nolen, as he gets significant minutes on the floor, despite the fact that he is absolutely not a threat to score from anywhere on the floor (layups the exception). Just think where his assist numbers would go if he was a dangerous shooter and defenders would have to respect him from the perimeter. I gotta believe he works on his shot. I just don't get how it hasn't improved one lick since his freshman year.

Site contributor 2Mutch tipped me off on this little gem - Tim Brewster's Shorewood, Minnesota house is for sale (see pic above). After doing approximately 5 minutes of research, it turns out its been for sale since last September, and Kent Youngblood speculates that Brew wants to be closer to the 'U' to cut down on his commute. Seems reasonable to me. But wait - if you had the misfortune of watching the local Minneapolis Kare 11 sportscast last Monday, you would have believe they broke this story, and the house just went on the market, putting all the 'Fire Brewster' mouth-breathers in 'Bring in Tony Dungy' mode. Kare 11 never mentioned the home was for sale for the last 3 months. Nice work morons - that's some quality journalism there. Brew is not going anywhere. Firing him now sends every potential coaching hire in the nation the message that 2 Bowl games in your first 3 years of rebuilding a program gets you fired. That will really bring a the A-list candidates our way, right?

One last thing friends - just wanted to mention that Give 'Em Hell Goldy will go into full blown Gopher hoops mode in a few short days. Gopher Bandanna Guy is still decompressing from the football season, and thoroughly enjoying the opening weeks of the NBA season (Go Bucks!). I am also slowly piecing together a Big Ten hoops conference preview, complete with opinions from alums and fans of the other Big Ten schools. Look for this before the conference season starts. Don't fret though, you'll still get your final dose of Gopher football come bowl season, as we'll preview our bowl opponent, and get you a final 'What we learned' for the year, before heading into the recruit signing season.

Go Gophs, and don't sweat it - Tubby will get these guys turned around.

One last thought - hey, we've almost hit 1,000 hits on the site. Pretty cool. Think I'll have a beer. Last can of Surly Furious in the 'fridge on its way down the hatch....!

Happy Thanksgiving! Golden Gopher Basketball for all!

Hope all our blog contributors and readers are having a Happy Thanksgiving with their families and loved ones.

And even though my beloved Honolulu Blue and Silver couldn't compete with the Packers on the field of play, they'll always look better losing in their uniforms, than the Green Bay ever will winning in their vomit inducing forest green and urine. Luckily, the evening belonged to Gopher hoops though.

Hopefully you all got a chance to watch the Gophs take down the #10 Butler Bulldogs last night in the Anaheim '76 Classic. The game wasn't pretty at times, as the refs called enough fouls to put the teams on the line for a combined 81 attempts!?!? But in the end, some timely shooting by Devoe Joeseph, Blake Hoffarber, and some clutch free throws by Ralph the Third did Butler in. Be sure to tune into the Gophs next game tonight if you can - vs. Portland (who upset UCLA last night. 8:30 CST on ESPN U.

And don't forget about the Gophs on ice, taking on the Michigan Wolverines at historic Yost Arena in Ann Arbor tonight too.

GO GOPHERS!!!

Goldy Rules!

This is HILARIOUS: Goldy Running Wild!

Further proof that Goldy Gopher rules. This is hilarious. Goldy absolutely OWNS that kid. Suck it 4th grader! I also got a kick out of Sam Rosen somehow correctly identifying Goldy (as a Gopher) and subsequently saying he was dressed as a BEAR!?!? WTF ROSEN!

Go Goldy!

Fisch needs to be fired... Brewster needs to stay (for now)

In an effort to pull my good friend 'Just Jake' back from the ledge a bit, I've crafted this semi-counterpoint post to his POV.

We all saw the absolutely awful offensive performance the Gophers had on display Saturday. As putrid as the SDSU game was, this was even worse in some ways, because we knew we couldn't rely on the defense to completely win this game for us. The offense HAD to do something to get us to overcome the apparently overwhelming task of scoring more than 12 points. They didn't. They left our defense out to dry once again, with turnovers, 3 and outs, and poor execution.. How can our offense have become such a liability that I'd rather see us run the ball 3 times and punt, and give our defense a chance to score, than cringe at another turnover?

JJ holds Brewster responsible, as he was the one who hired Jedd Fisch, won't bench Weber, and can't get our WRs consistently involved in the offense. This is fair, but the reality is these are the growing pains we've had to face with hiring a man to run our football program who has had no head coaching experience. Coach Brewster has obviously made his biggest mistakes in his task of hiring effective coordinators. Its been a revolving door for his entire tenure.

But lets be honest about things, these mistakes have primarily been on the offensive side of the ball. His hiring of Ted Roof as defensive coordinator last season was outstanding. Roof improved our defense by leaps and bounds. Roof left for a better opportunity at Auburn after 2008, and that can hardly be blamed on Brewster. His hiring of Cosgrove, and the promotion of Ronnie Lee to co-defensive coordinator seems to have been a solid hire as well. But the offense is another story. The 'wunderkind' Jedd Fisch was brought in to replace Mike Dunbar, and has ties with Brewster from his Denver Broncos days. He also has no experience as a collegiate offensive coordinator. And if you review his credentials, they are pretty slim. Lots of work other under good coaches (NFL), but that's it. That's pretty much what Brewster's resume was coming in too, making it all the more of a blunder. When Brewster hired Mike Dunbar in 2007 to run the offense, I felt good that he was handing the reins of the offense to a sage veteran. This was the right call for a new head coach with no experience. He then 'pulled a Fisch' and hired Everett Withers, which obviously didn't work out. It would appear he has rectified his mistake of hiring an inexperienced coordinator on defense. But he somehow found a way to repeat his mistake on Withers with Fisch. If you believe that this is an unforgivable repeated mistake, then Brewster should be fired, here and now - so that he can't further repeat mistakes. I am not in this camp (and I'll get to why momentarily).

However, Fisch should be terminated no later than the close of whatever bowl game we end up in (and possibly sooner if the right candidate comes along, as we have a month and some change to implement a few components of a new offense). Fisch needs to be let go for 6 simple reasons:

1.) His inability to give the offense any kind of identity.

2.) His complete and utter lack of quality control (stupid penalties, poor execution, etc.).

3.) Adam Weber's regression and messing with his throwing motion.

4.) Ineffective and predictable use of MarQueis Gray (Gray threw what - maybe 10 passes all year?)

5.) Failure to effectively game plan for specific opponents, and find exploitable weaknesses.

6.) Failure to use our biggest weaknesses, and turn them to occasional success (poor pass blocking = runs screen passes)

Now, I realize that it can be tough to run an offense when the O-line doesn't allow for much at all to work, (and for that perhaps Tim Davis should be let go too), and I list these things, knowing full well that Brewster has major culpability in all this. However, he should NOT be fired until at least being allowed to finish the 2010 season for the following reasons:

1.) Recruiting - Brew has only 2 full classes of his players in house now, and only a few contributed this season. By all accounts his upcoming class is solid again. He needs to land this next class in full, and start getting his players on the field in 2010.

2.) His D-coordinator hires. Roof, Cosgrove, and the promotion of Lee were all solid moves. And despite all the seniors on the defense, I think our D can be even better next year with some continuity in coordinators. Tinsley, Cooper, Carter, Edwards, Kirksey, Wilhite, etc. will be excellent players with some more coaching up.

3.) It's too soon - he needs at least one more season to get things turned. Let's be honest - this season isn't a disaster. No it didn't follow the blueprint that we might have envisioned, but we still made a bowl game. Next year is the reason to react if Brewster doesn't get that signature win, or improve the play on the offensive side of the ball. Worst case scenario, he's got 3 talented recruit classes in for the next coaching staff to work with.

Now IF Brewster brings back Fisch, or IF he again hires a completely ineffectual new offensive coordinator for 2010, then all bets are off. There is absolutely no reason that the offense can't be resurrected for next year with a new offensive coordinator, given the players we have at the skill positions. However, I will follow up on this claim, with some hard research to see what other 1st year O-coordinators have had success, and what their situations were. If the offense can't be improved next season, then I'll be calling for Brewster's head as loudly as anyone else at that point.

Just my $0.02. So really, JJ and I are in agreement that 2010 is the year where it all comes to a head. We're just coming at it from different angles - he's placing more blame on Brew now, and I'm displacing it to Fisch for the moment.

Brewster Needs to Be Killed in the press...

...for his coaching job down the stretch this year... (What did you think I meant with this post title?)

The Gophers D proved itself to be more than adequate versus the middling offenses that make up the pathetic Big 10 this year. We've seen that the D can keep us in games versus superior teams (PSU, OSU, etc)

Yet during that stretch we have seen zero growth on the offensive side of the ball. Jedd Fisch deserves the blame as does Adam F'N Weber. Yet the ultimate responsibility falls on Tim Brewster. HE'S the one who hired Fisch, HE'S the one who throws Adam F'N Weber out there time after time, HE'S the one who brings a stud of an athlete in as the jewel of his recruiting class (Gray) and then refuses to use him, HE'S the one who brings in a slew of talented WR's yet can't find a way to incorporate them into the offense.

Brew had plenty of time these last few weeks to try SOMETHING and failed to do so -- he's the one who has to come down on Fisch to work on something, anything to improve this HORRIBLE offense.

It is truly astounding that the offense is this bad, in a conference this full of crappy teams, yet we were in virtually every game this year -- including today versus a team that is supposedly 13th in the BCS standings; yet I saw almost no difference between them and us today. EXCEPT THEY OCCASIONALLY COULD MOVE THE GOD-D*MN BALL AND SCORE ONCE IN A WHILE!

WE SCORED 7 POINTS IN 3 BIG TEN ROAD GAMES THIS YEAR (AT PSU, OSU, AND IOWA). HORRIBLE, F.

Do Fisch or Brewster have a clue? Do we have any hope of the program improving? Or is Brew simply a huckster as many have opined? I say give him next year to see if his recruits show anything and the offense can be any better.

At least sophomore LB Gary Tinsley looked the part of a stud today, and our D figured out how to blitz and consistently pressure the QB. That and 2 bucks will get you a cup of joe. Dammit I hate this game sometimes.

UPSET ALERT!!

Okay, I'm not calling for the upset today, but DAMN would it be nice to see the Gophers rise up and slew the F'n Hawkeyes. I don't know about you fellow Gopher fans, but I am damn sick and tired of being out-physicalled (yep, I just went all Matt Millen on ya and verbed a word) and out-coached year after year after year after year by the Hawkeyes and their arrogant son-of-a-beach coach.

That being said, is it too much to ask our offense to grow a pair today and incorporate some 'innovative' i.e. BLOCKING and RUNNING THE BALL? Also a lot more of Gray winging the ball around and our receivers and tight ends catching the damn ball!

No moral victory will do. A victory is what we need to see. I hope Brewster realizes the sh*tstorm that has risen up around him and his program this year as everyone from random bloggers (we matter damn it!) to 'respected journalists' like Fat Pat or Souhan have lobbed justified pot-shots in his direction.

It's time to see some good coaching, and some solid play.

Will it happen? As the beacon of positivity that supports our merry band of Gopher backers (along with Gopher Bandana Guy) I'm calling for the upset. The only way we win is to score the ball on some long plays, and create turnovers. We know our D/ST can do both -- our linebackers and safeties can play the ball quite well, and our return game is our best, most consistent component of the entire squad. That means some combination of Weber keeping his eyes open and getting the ball downfield AND Gray running wild with some deep throws is necessary. PLEASE COACH FISCH for the love all that is holy; RUN THE DAMN BALL!! Call some rollouts with Gray, some quickhitters off tackle, and stay with it!

Well, just writing this got me fired up and despite my earlier declaration, I'm going with my heart and calling for Brew's Crew to get this one done!!!

Gophers 31 - Hawkeyes 25

SUCK IT IOWA!

LET'S GO GOPHERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Big Ten Football Fan Poll

Check out this very interesting polling of Big Ten fans, conducted by SI.com.

Some highlights:

-98.2 % of Buckeye fans consider Michigan to be their biggest rival. But only 96.0% of Michigan fans consider OSU to be their biggest rival. This conclusively proves that Buckeyes are smarter than Wolverines. But really, how this isn't a clean 100% on both sides is beyond me.

-9.3% of Badger fans consider Michigan to be their biggest rival. But 0.0% of Michigan fans consider Wisconsin to be their biggest rival. This disconnect is amusing to me. In fact 0.2 % of Michigan fans thought Northwestern was a bigger rival than Wisconsin. In the same vein, 1.3% of Minnesota fans think OSU is their biggest rival. We've had historically less success against the Buckeyes than any other Big Ten team. Who are these idiots?

-Northwestern is widely considered to have the most polite fans overall. That's easy though, when nobody shows up for the games. No one there = no one to heckle you.

-Ohio State and Wisconsin consistently shows up in every other teams top 4 for the rudest fans for visitors. Ohio State looks to have Wisconsin beat by a significant margin though...

-Only 2.9% consider Minnesota to have the favorite stadium to visit in the conference. Those are Metro-dump #s. Look for that to climb substantially in the coming years. 'The Bank' is phenomenal.

Salvaging the Season, Saving Floyd - Gophers @ Hawkeyes Preview

Well, here we go - one last chance in the regular season to salvage some good feelings out of this season. The Gophs are 6-5 right now, and by nearly all major publication preseason expectations, six wins is slightly better than was predicted. Of course we Gopher fans had at least marginally higher expectations, despite the tougher schedule. So here we are, playing for a chance to go 7-5, a record that at the beginning of the season we would have been happy with, but somehow last week's win over South Dakota State has put a layer of tarnish over things. Time to shake off that attitude.

Yeah, a lot of things haven't gone as planned in 2009. Adam Weber's progression as a Big Ten QB has gone in reverse. We were robbed of seeing Eric Decker potentially grab some big time hardware (All-American and Biletnikoff anyone?). We lost to a Juice-less Illinois at home. Ok, all that sucks. But we still got to 6 wins somehow, defying the critics, and likely earning another crack at that Insight.com Bowl. No, it wasn't pretty, but its not a disaster either (we'll leave program disasters to Michigan and Rich Rod). Let's remember that as we get ready to watch our beloved Maroon and Gold take on the hated Hawkeyes this Saturday morning.

So - do we have a chance to win at Kinnick Stadium? Perhaps foolishly, I resoundingly say 'Yes'. And here's three reasons why:

1.) The Hawkeyes have not played well at home all year. Tight wins against Northern Iowa, Arkansas State, Michigan, and Indiana, and a loss to Northwestern, are nothing to be real proud about.

2.) James Vandenberg, who played well against OSU last week, is still a red-shirt freshman. And freshman QBs make mistakes. Cosgrove and Lee will have the D ready to go again this week, and will be looking to capitalize on an inexperienced QB.

3.) Getting drubbed 55-0 at home last year. Brewster doesn't need to work hard to motivate the team (unless you believe the latest Patrick Reusse efforts to deconstruct the program). The seniors on this team have a lot of pride and will do their damnedest to deliver Floyd to our custom-made trophy case.

But of course there are at least 3 major reasons we should lose too:

1.) Iowa has superior offensive and defensive lines. They could very easily dominate us up front on both sides of the ball. If we don't match their physicality, we could be in for a long game.

2.) Adam Weber. When he plays badly, our defense can only hold out for so long. At this point, I'm not sure I should expect anything from him but a bad game.

3.) Iowa has something to play for yet. A win gives the Hawkeyes an outside chance to make an at-large BCS bowl bid. That's big. And big $$ for the program.

Of course, I'm Mr. Positivity this season, and so I'll lean in the direction of a Gopher win on the road. Brewster has yet to win a 'trinket' game in his 3 seasons, and he needs something desperately to hang his hat on going into the next year, to keep the fans and his players believing.

What do we need to do to get this seventh win? On offense, it obviously comes down to doing the things we haven't done consistently all year. Run and pass block effectively. Minimize the penalties. And mix in MarQueis on plays that result in more than a lot of arm-waving, sideline glances, and wasted timeouts. A pretty generic formula for offensive success, admittedly. But there it is. Obviously, the offensive starters and the coaching staff have known this for weeks. It just comes down to execution. We saw it during the MSU game, so we know the offense has the capability to produce.

Defensively, getting pressure on Vandenberg is key, and if Cosgrove is selective about when to run blitzes, this can generate turnovers for the Gophers, as it did against SDSU. The rest is just boilerplate. The defense has played well enough all year, and we know what to expect from them at this point. If the offense can get enough first downs to gain the TOP needed to keep the defense fresh, and keep from turning the ball over in our own territory, then we'll be in this game. The Iowa RBs (Wegher and Robinson) have been solid if unspectacular this year, but it is unclear if Wegher will play (rib injury). The front seven should be able to contain either back though, if they match the Iowa O-line's physicality. Hawkeye receivers McNutt, Johson-Koulianos, Moeaki, and Stross have all made big catches in big games this year, so Vandenberg has plenty of targets to look at downfield. This is the larger concern. The secondary will need to make plays, and I presume Vandenberg will attempt to pick on true frosh CB Michael Carter. Carter has the talent to rise to the challenge on the road, so I'll be watching him closely this week.

Predictions? I really don't want to pick the Gophers to pull off the road dog (+9.5) upset, but I'm gonna. Why? Like I said, I'm "Mr Positivity". I'll leave it at that.

Prediction: Minnesota 17, Iowa 14

Gopher Player of the Game: Simoni Lawrence - 9 tackles, 1 INT, 1 FF

Hawkeye Player of the Game: Adrian Clayborn - 5 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 FF

Goooooo Gophers! - Get Floyd back home where he belongs!

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!

Eye Ball Test

After watching today's game with South Dakota State, I am left with very little, other than we are a bad team. This is based not on stats, feelings, insight, or any other input; rather, it is a direct result of the eyeball test. We simply look like, and probably are, a bad team.

It is quite probable this is a combination of some mixture of bad coaching, poor talent, desire, and overall, a lack of any idea as to what it takes to build a winning program. Can this change? Sure.

To that end, I dedicate the attached photo of a rather idiotic Notre Dame cheerleader (I know, is there any other kind?.... Nope). It is dedicated to our overall effort today offensively, in coaching, and to our overall season-long effort. Adam Weber, here's to you, and your historically bad decisions. This poorly written post and poorly designed picture goes out to you.

Well done sir, well done.

Bring on the Jackrabbits! - SDSU @ Gophers Preview

Despite the fact that South Dakota State is a Division I-AA football team, I can't deny that I'm excited about this game. Part of it is the fact that its the last home game of the year, but part of it is also because this game is an opportunity to show the fan base where this program really is headed. Has the Gopher's roster been infused with enough talent over the last two years to prevent another NDSU debacle, and blow the doors off a lesser opponent? Or are we continuing to stagnate as a middling program? A dominating win this Saturday will at least restore some of my confidence that the program is slowly getting to where we all want it. A close win, or (gulp) a loss - and my confidence is severely shaken.

The Jackrabbits, by all accounts are a very good football team. They sit in second place in the Missouri River Valley Conference, with a 7-2 record (6-1 conference). Their most notable win this year, is a 24-14 victory over the Northern Iowa Panthers. Yeah, the Northern Iowa that the Hawkeyes barely snuck past early in the season. Drawing any conclusions from this connection to a Big Ten foe is probably not good for gambling purposes. But as motivation for the Gophers to not sleep on this team it would seem to be a good motivator. From the sounds of things at Brewster's press conference and a Gopherhole.com interview of the SDSU beat writer, this is likely what players are being fed this week. And rightly so, the program seems fragile right now, and an ugly win or a bad loss to a I-AA opponent could damage the team's confidence long term. Not to mention kill the already lukewarm fan interest. Tubby Time starts tomorrow against Tennessee Tech, and many have already washed their hands of Gopher football, for the higher profile basketball team (don't worry we're all excited here at 'Give 'Em Hell Goldy' too, but let's get past SDSU and Iowa first...).

So what do the Gophers need to do to come out and dominate from start to finish? I'd like to believe the biggest component to winning this game big is running the ball over and over and over again. Let our massive line get a lather going, build some confidence, and maybe push people around for once. 45-50 times would be what I prefer. Maybe that means the Gophs only score 14 points in the first half, but if that means success and ball control in the latter half of the game, then so be it. The Jacks (I hate this nickname by the way, and refuse to use it from here on out) have a top notch DE in Danny Batten, who is a potential I-AA Defensive Player of the Year. He'll no doubt be the guy that the O-line will be watching all day, as he apparently lines up all over the place. The game plan of passing early and often has largely failed this team (the anomaly of the MSU game aside), and patience running the ball is a novel approach at this point. Bennett, Whaley, and Eskeridge deserve a real chance to show what they can do, and that relegating runs to 2nd and shorts. With Whaley's speed off tackle against, this could conceivably be his coming out party. Mixing in MarQueis heavily should also keep the SDSU defense guessing (2nd downs, lots of 2nd downs Jed!). When Gray is on the field, he will be the hands-down best athlete on the field. Let's use that to our advantage. Que sera sera with Weber. My only expectation for him is that he not turn the ball over in ways that make it look like he's on the take.

And on defense? From the sounds of it, the Jackrabbits will be starting a freshman drop-back QB with a big arm named Thomas O'Brien. And they have a lot of confidence in this kid, as he's won his first 3 starts. Sioux Falls Argus Leader beat writer, Terry Vandrovec, suggested that were he the Gopher's d-coordinator that he'd "blitz about 80% of the time" to put continuous pressure on the frosh QB. I'd prefer a slightly more conservative approach, that being see if we can get any pressure from the front 4 for a quarter or so, before leaving all our corners on islands. The Jackrabbit rushing attack is led by JR running back Kyle Minnett, who has nearly 1,000 yards and averages 4.9 a carry. No slouch there, I-AA competition or no. So the front seven will need to work hard to bring down Minnett at the point of contact. The Gopher defense has some pride, as they've been the backbone of this team, maintaining our respectability when the offense couldn't buy a first down. Time for them to man up after a sub-par performance against Illinois.

So how will this shake out? Early this week I felt very nervous about this game, and the potential downward spiral effect if could create on the program. But like last week, my confidence has grown as the week went on, and I smell big win. Yes, SDSU will bring fans, and there are a bunch of Minnesota kids on their roster, so there will be lots of family and friends there in support of the Jackrabbits. But our talent and speed should allow us to dominate, provided the game plan is sound. Hopefully the loss to Illinois was the learning experience it should be, and the team will come out fired up for Senior's Day.

Prediction: Minnesota 42, South Dakota State 17

Gopher Player of the Game: Kevin Whaley - 18 carries for 140 yards and 2 TDs

Jackrabbit Player of the Game: Kyle Minnett - 20 carries for 95 yards and 1 TD

Illinois @ Minnesota - What we learned

While sitting on my sunny perch in Section 219 last Saturday, I realized that in all the game scenarios that ran thru in my mind, I did not process the one where the Illini go into the half up 21 with Juice Williams watching from the sidelines. Yikes. What the hell happened?

For starters, 'Bad Web' wandered back onto campus again, and like he has in games early in this season, it took him a half to really even get warmed up. In fact it was not until 13:40 left in the 3rd quarter before Weber was able to complete consecutive pass attempts. Worse than this though was the 6 points he gift wrapped for the Illini, on a pass that everyone in the stadium gasped at before it even left Weber's hand. His pick-6 to Terry Hawthorne might have been his worst INT of the season, and that's saying something.

But 'Bad Web' is only part of the story. The O-line didn't do him any favors either, as Weber was sacked an unacceptable 7 times. Coming off what I believed was their best pass blocking performance of the year last week, the line as a group regressed again. And their run blocking? Well its hard to say, since Jed Fisch decided that running the ball was not a priority in the first half. I don't usually like to specifically criticize playcalling because its very safe to assume that offensive coordinators at the college level know a hell of a lot more than me. However, I'll make an exception this week - as I feel that the 1st half playcalling was a big reason we couldn't go punch-for-punch with Illinois. Instead of running the ball we decided play-action passes to receivers 30+ yards down field were the way to go. These led to a lot of drive killing incompletions, and often forced us into too many 3rd and longs. By the opening drive of the second half, Fisch seemed to figure out the balance of run-pass, until he had the whole stadium groaning on a play-action pass called on a 2nd and goal from the half yard line. The play resulted in an 8-yard loss (QB sack), and the drive disappointingly ended with a field goal. From that down and distance, a TD seemed imminent, provided we keep handing the ball off to Hoese or Bennett inside the 5. Even working in QB sneak would have been fine. But enough second guessing. By and large, the offense stunk for a variety of reasons, and had Nick Tow-Arnett not come up with some clutch 3rd and long catches (including an absolute beauty down the seam), the mounting 4th quarter near-comeback would not have been a reality.

Assessing the defense is not pleasant either. They gave up 21 first half points, but they made adjustments and held them to just 7 in the 2nd half. Unfortunately, the last Illini TD scored came with 5 minutes left in the 4th, on a long, clock-eating drive. Jason Ford did well running against our front 7, and in the end managed to run the clock out on us. Our secondary was beaten by a freshman back-up QB (Charest), and got exposed repeatedly on 3rd downs when the front 4 couldn't get pressure. It almost seemed like they had gameplanned for Juice so heavily, that when he came out due to injury, they didn't know how to handle a traditional drop-back passer. After the Penn State and OSU games were over, I felt like our defense performed admirably, given their time on the field. But after the this game, I felt like they underperformed in a big way, and arguably gave their worst performance of the season. No major blown coverage in the secondary though, so I suppose that is one positive.

To both the offense and defense's credit, they did keep the penalties down (3 for 22 yards), so it was good to see the Brewster had tightened up on this over the week. Hats off to Keanon Cooper this week too, as he came up with the blocked punt that gave us a chance late in the game. That kid has had a nose for the ball all season, and good things happen when he's on the field (remember the pass breakup late in the game vs. MSU?) - really looking forward to his tenure as an everyday LB.

So what did we learn this week? Well, I discovered that sunny November football games at 'the Bank' will produce a pronounced thermocline down the middle of the stadium, with the fans on the southern half of the bowl kept nice and frigid under the shadow cast by the press box and suites, while the rest of us basked in solar warmth. We learned that we can play relatively penalty football. We learned that play-action passes don't work too well when you don't establish a running game, and they work even less well on the half-yard line when the run blitz is coming. And finally, I learned that fine friends, beautiful weather, and a Surly Furious make losing a football game in November tolerable. Win or lose, it was an absolutely picturesque day to go to 'the Bank'.

Jackrabbits from South Dakota State coming in this weekend, and I'll be there in person again to close out the home schedule. Stay tuned for the SDSU game preview tomorrow.