5 big concerns I have about Minnesota heading into the 2021 season

BleedGopher · Aug 27, 2021

per Phil:

he outcome of the following 5 areas of concern will largely dictate it:

1. Mohamed Ibrahim is a superhuman. But he’s still a human.

As great as the returning Big Ten running back of the year was last year, almost 70 percent of a team’s rushing attempts on the back of one man isn’t exactly sustainable. Maybe Ibrahim will prove that notion wrong. But it’d be much better if Cam Wiley, Treyson Potts or some combination thereof take a huge step. If 2019 is the barometer, you may recall Minnesota had three bona fide backs. Even two would be better than last season.

2. The defense returns a ton of experience. Is that a good or a bad thing?

Preseason prognostications, including modern pundits’ fancy formulas and algorithms, often account heavily for returning experience. Current NFL cornerback Benjamin St-Juste is the only starter Minnesota’s “D” lost from last season. But many of the returning names, simply put, didn’t have a very good year. The secondary should be fine, but the front seven needs to take a big step. Will an influx of transfers along the line help? Who’s going to emerge as a consistent linebacker?

3. It’s hard to have a balanced attack with one featured receiver

Given his current career trajectory and some of the scintillating individual plays he made last season, Chris Autman-Bell is primed to join the growing list of wideouts to leave a mark on the program under Fleck. But the play behind him last season was inconsistent at best. Daniel Jackson has drawn rave reviews since the spring. Michael Brown-Stephens is a darn good athlete. But can they put it all together against Big Ten secondaries? Autman-Bell needs help. So does quarterback Tanner Morgan.

4. The danger of missing a bowl game is real

What? Doesn’t Minnesota avoid Michigan and Penn State? Yes. That’s the reward for starting the year against Ohio State. But Colorado, Nebraska, Maryland and Northwestern are all toss-up games. An 0-3 finish to the year then becomes realistic as the Gophers close against Iowa, Indiana and Wisconsin. That’s a gauntlet. Can Goldy get on another roll and amass enough wins by then for it not to matter?

5. Special teams

The numbers have been ugly, both in terms of starting field position and scoring ability, for multiple years. Minnesota needs a kicker who can make chip shots. And it needs players on the field — even if they’re scrimmage starters — who can run down returners and string together enough blocks for the offense to start on a good footing. The transfer market may have helped here, too. We’ll find out when the Gophers kick it off against the Buckeyes the Thursday before Labor Day Weekend.