Gopher Football
Game To Forget
| 2005 Recruiting Commitments | |||||
| Otis Hudson | 6’5″ 295 lbs | Barrington, IL | |||
| Ryan Ruckdashel | 6’6″ 265 lbs | Apple Valley, MN | |||
| Jason Sekinger | 6’10” 310 lbs | Galloway, OH | |||
Michigan State. There’s not a lot you can say about this game for the offensive line other than they just played horrible. The Gophers got behind early and that forced the offense into a passing situation. When that happened, it kind of threw the offense into whack and they were forced to pass more than they were comfortable with. To the O-Line’s credit, they only gave up nine sacks all year, but unfortunately as a result of all of the passing, three of them were in this game. Things weren’t any better running the football, as Minnesota posted a near-season low 102 yards rushing (3.5 yards/attempt). The Gopher line also had several false start penalties. Michigan State’s defense definitely had the upper hand in this game, and almost seemed to be in the heads of the Gopher linemen.
Game To Remember
Alabama. With the Gopher quarterback situation in an extremely fragile state, the line needed to come through with a big performance. Needless to say, they did just that. Against what was billed as one of the nations best defenses, the offensive line played its best game of the season and turned in a dominant performance against the Alabama Crimson Tide. The line did not allow a sack and paved the way for 276 yards rushing. As the game wore on the Gopher rushing average started to sag, but that was mostly because the Alabama coaches caught onto the fact that Minnesota was not going to pass very much. With Cupito and Ernst handing the ball off time after time, the Gopher O-Line paved the way for two running backs to rush for over 100 yards; a feat no running back had accomplished against the Crimson Tide defense all season.
Relative Strength
Blocking execution. One thing Gopher fans have become accustomed to in the past few years is having an offensive line that just plain gets the job done. Most of that can be attributed to a coaching staff that does an excellent job in teaching the technique and having a group of players who are very smart. This past season we saw teams such as Michigan State and Penn State slow down the Gophers rushing attack by throwing 9 guys on the line, but very rarely does the Gopher offensive line not dominate a game where the opponent puts up a 7 man front. The Gopher linemen are smart, they know their assignments, and they have ability to put a defender on their back. There are very few (if any) offensive lines in the nation who execute their scheme better than Minnesota.
Relative Weakness
Concentration. All around, the Gopher are blest with a very solid offensive line. Physically I can’t really find any major flaws in this unit. Like I mentioned above, when the Gopher are matched up evenly against another team (7 man front), there is never a doubt who will win that matchup. So for a weakness, the only thing that really bothered me about the O-Line this year was the penalties. The U doesn’t publish the official penalty numbers by position, but to me it seemed like the number of false starts this year went up. With four of five starters back from 2003, one would’ve expected this number to go down. Perhaps another year with the quarterback will help the timing of the line out.
Looking Ahead
| 2005 Projected Starters: | |
| LT: | Joe Ainslie (JR) |
| LG: | Mark Setterstrom (SR) |
| C: | Greg Eslinger (SR) |
| RG: | Mike Nicholson (SR) |
| RT: | Tony Brinkhaus (SO) |
| Top Backups: | |
| C/G: | Tyson Swaggert (JR) |
| T: | Steve Shidell (SO) |
Once again in 2005 the Gopher offensive line will bring a lot to the field look forward to. The departure of left tackle Rian Melander will hurt, but the Gophers appear to be as well equipped as anyone could hope to replace him. Brandon Harston did a nice job in his one year as starter, but his being injured several times during the season allowed other guys to get some experience.
Greg Eslinger and Mark Setterstrom will each return for their fourth year as starters, and each have at least one All American honor (from various sources) to their name. Joe Ainslie returns at right tackle, although the likelihood of him moving over to left tackle appears to be there. The early favorites to win two new starting positions will likely come from a group consisting of Mike Nicholson, Tony Brinkhaus and Tyson Swaggert. Next years group could be as good or better than this year’s.
Summary: Offensive Line
I don’t know if there’s a lot I can say that hasn’t already been said. When the offensive line had their worst games, it was against teams that were putting 9 guys in the box. This was possible because as the season wore on the Gopher passing attack lost its effectiveness. If the Gophers could develop the passing game to an above average state, the heights the offense can reach are seemingly endless. But as it was, the line had the spend several games trying to block 8 defenders with 5 guys, and the odds aren’t exactly with you in that situation. When teams did not stack the box, Minnesota did not disappoint. Huge games against Alabama (287 yards rushing) and Iowa (339 yards rushing) highlight just how good this Gopher offensive line was.
Season Grade: A-
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