B1G Coaches Talk Anonymously About Conference Teams

IceBoxGopher

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From Athlon Sports. Here's the bit on Minnesota:

"Last year, they really seemed to settle into a Big Ten West identity at times. They could look like Wisconsin or Iowa and get all the way up to 70-30 run-pass. They've got the big guys up front, and their primary back can make some big plays if he's fully recovered. That's probably their biggest personnel question. They were really banged up there last year."

"Bringing Kirk [Ciarrocca] back makes a ton of sense. We know he'll get back to his bread and butter, a lot of inside and outside zone, a lot of RPO, getting creative and still controlling the clock."

"No one really understood why he was treated the way he was at Penn State. He had these guys absolutely firing. The problem is that they don't have those caliber receivers right now. Where are those top-end guys? The [Rashod] Batemans? You haven't seen that with them for a minute. [Tanner] Morgan's always been a solid quarterback. You don't want him winning or losing games on his own, but he's good when he's got weapons. They lose a lot of that OL, so that's certainly something to keep an eye on."

"The defensive line will probably take a step back since they're losing NFL talent there, but they didn't get a lot of attention for a really solid overall unit, we thought. They make you keep it in front of them, really solid and smart."

"If Ciarrocca and Morgan can click again, and the lines hold, they could have another special year."
 


I think fans will need to be patient the first few games. The lines could look rough as it takes time to jell, especially on offense.
 

I think fans will need to be patient the first few games. The lines could look rough as it takes time to jell, especially on offense.
2019 showed that those early ugly wins were still...wins. It was hard to go through as a fan because our reference was what had happened in past seasons, it made the conference games seem mostly unwinable. Going through that in 2019 gives more perspective. Gophs losing any of those first three will derail that perspective though.
 

2019 showed that those early ugly wins were still...wins. It was hard to go through as a fan because our reference was what had happened in past seasons, it made the conference games seem mostly unwinable. Going through that in 2019 gives more perspective. Gophs losing any of those first three will derail that perspective though.

Yeah, the offense was rough early in 2019. I'll add 2020 too. The first few games in 2020, I had fears the Gophs were backtracking very badly. That young defense was absolutely terrible...for the first few games. Even with a shorthanded squad, that D look a lot better by the end of 2020 and was outstanding last year. I just hope the team can pull it together before BG10 play.
 





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