hungan1
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Where do the Gophers go from here?
They need to adapt to the changes around the B1G or they will be relegated to the bottom of the conference with all of its unpleasantness.
Smash mouth run heavy offensive philosophy (modeled after Wisconsin's) is not working. I am not saying this is entirely to blame. It works great if you have the talent.
There are a myriad of other reasons and issues. Being beaten up in non-conference play with thirteen or more injuries does not help with team chemistry.
Critically speaking, totally fumbling the QB position in the rebuilding process as is well documented here did not help matters. We did't develop a reliable passing game as a result.
Run heavy offense worked last year because we had Cobb & Maxx, and Illinois, Purdue, NW, Michigan, & Iowa had a slew of their own problems.
We thought the team had depth as opined by the coaches early in the season. Mitch (I like him, I feel sorry for him) even went as far going to the Manning Academy, and Adam Weber was brought in to help with his throwing mechanics & play calling. The team dedicated this off season working on the passing play. Mitch and the Offense worked very hard.
Things were looking good on paper before the TCU game.
Wrong. Reality bites. The rest of the B1G got better, and Leidner's shortcomings as a QB was exposed without Cobb, Maxx, and healthy blockers. Why wasn't he running as much? Couple this with a shaky throwing and a wounded offensive line & TEs, and we have the NW disaster.
It is a perfect storm. We've become too predictable, too uni-dimensional. Crowd the box and stuff the run, and dare Mitch to pass.
Today, it looked like NW had a copy of our play book. They game planned us really well. They were able to substitute defensive packages with ease keeping them fresh. They were penetrating the backfield far too often.
Their no huddle offense eventually tire down our defense with a freshman QB at the helm. No excuses about this is a young team.
Give credit to the NW defense. They are legit. Our defense did not lose this game. 14 points were off turnovers.
Where must the team go from here?
These are just my humble opinion, and many may not agree.
They regroup. I think they better start Rebuild Phase 2 as soon as possible. We have to start building towards next year today, and let the wins and loses take care of itself.
We've already burned Croft's redshirt. Let's start working him in as a permanent starter. Work in the wide receivers to give give them confidence that we will have a passing game especially the tall guys.
Burn more OL red shirts if you have to. There are five seniors in the OL. We need to work in the replacements, and for experienced depth next year.
Start recruiting more strong agile athletic offensive linemen in the mold of Greg Eslinger and Mark Setterstrom who can shift. Our OL is a lot slower than we want.
Many teams seem to be adopting the Spread Offense and No Huddle. Don't abandon the run game. Pass first to establish the run or vice versa whichever is working. They must adapt their offensive philosophy to be more flexible depending on the opponent's strengths and weaknesses. Use no huddle when you have to. Spread when you have to. Just don't be predictable by stubbornly sticking to the run. Truly open up the playbook and be less predictable. Adapt the offensive play based on who you play.
In terms of wins and loses, the trajectory won't be linear. We will have up and down years. When great players graduate, we may have a few more loses than the previous year. That is okay as long as we improve over the cycle of players.
Here are the wins and loses of Glen Mason and Barry Alvarez over their coaching tenures:
Glen Mason:
'97 3-9
'98 5-6
'99 8-4
'00 6-6
'01 4-7
'02 1-8
'03 10-3
'04 7-5
'05 7-5
'06 7-5
'07 6-7
Barry Alvarez:
'90 1-10
'91 5-6
'92 5-6
'93 10-1
'94 7-4
'95 4-5
'96 8-5
'97 8-5
'98 11-1
'99 10-2
'00 9-4
'01 5-7
'02 8-6
'03 7-6
'04 9-3
'05 13-10
So far, with Jerry Kill:
'11 3-9
'12 5-6
'13 8-5
'14 8-4
'15 3-2 ????????
It is quite obvious there will be ups and down.
The important thing is that they need to be willing to make changes out of their comfort zone. Not be stubborn.
They need to take into consideration the talent they have, and put the team in the best position to win more games.
Easier said than done. It is great to be a GH arm chair QB. Problem solved.
They need to adapt to the changes around the B1G or they will be relegated to the bottom of the conference with all of its unpleasantness.
Smash mouth run heavy offensive philosophy (modeled after Wisconsin's) is not working. I am not saying this is entirely to blame. It works great if you have the talent.
There are a myriad of other reasons and issues. Being beaten up in non-conference play with thirteen or more injuries does not help with team chemistry.
Critically speaking, totally fumbling the QB position in the rebuilding process as is well documented here did not help matters. We did't develop a reliable passing game as a result.
Run heavy offense worked last year because we had Cobb & Maxx, and Illinois, Purdue, NW, Michigan, & Iowa had a slew of their own problems.
We thought the team had depth as opined by the coaches early in the season. Mitch (I like him, I feel sorry for him) even went as far going to the Manning Academy, and Adam Weber was brought in to help with his throwing mechanics & play calling. The team dedicated this off season working on the passing play. Mitch and the Offense worked very hard.
Things were looking good on paper before the TCU game.
Wrong. Reality bites. The rest of the B1G got better, and Leidner's shortcomings as a QB was exposed without Cobb, Maxx, and healthy blockers. Why wasn't he running as much? Couple this with a shaky throwing and a wounded offensive line & TEs, and we have the NW disaster.
It is a perfect storm. We've become too predictable, too uni-dimensional. Crowd the box and stuff the run, and dare Mitch to pass.
Today, it looked like NW had a copy of our play book. They game planned us really well. They were able to substitute defensive packages with ease keeping them fresh. They were penetrating the backfield far too often.
Their no huddle offense eventually tire down our defense with a freshman QB at the helm. No excuses about this is a young team.
Give credit to the NW defense. They are legit. Our defense did not lose this game. 14 points were off turnovers.
Where must the team go from here?
These are just my humble opinion, and many may not agree.
They regroup. I think they better start Rebuild Phase 2 as soon as possible. We have to start building towards next year today, and let the wins and loses take care of itself.
We've already burned Croft's redshirt. Let's start working him in as a permanent starter. Work in the wide receivers to give give them confidence that we will have a passing game especially the tall guys.
Burn more OL red shirts if you have to. There are five seniors in the OL. We need to work in the replacements, and for experienced depth next year.
Start recruiting more strong agile athletic offensive linemen in the mold of Greg Eslinger and Mark Setterstrom who can shift. Our OL is a lot slower than we want.
Many teams seem to be adopting the Spread Offense and No Huddle. Don't abandon the run game. Pass first to establish the run or vice versa whichever is working. They must adapt their offensive philosophy to be more flexible depending on the opponent's strengths and weaknesses. Use no huddle when you have to. Spread when you have to. Just don't be predictable by stubbornly sticking to the run. Truly open up the playbook and be less predictable. Adapt the offensive play based on who you play.
In terms of wins and loses, the trajectory won't be linear. We will have up and down years. When great players graduate, we may have a few more loses than the previous year. That is okay as long as we improve over the cycle of players.
Here are the wins and loses of Glen Mason and Barry Alvarez over their coaching tenures:
Glen Mason:
'97 3-9
'98 5-6
'99 8-4
'00 6-6
'01 4-7
'02 1-8
'03 10-3
'04 7-5
'05 7-5
'06 7-5
'07 6-7
Barry Alvarez:
'90 1-10
'91 5-6
'92 5-6
'93 10-1
'94 7-4
'95 4-5
'96 8-5
'97 8-5
'98 11-1
'99 10-2
'00 9-4
'01 5-7
'02 8-6
'03 7-6
'04 9-3
'05 13-10
So far, with Jerry Kill:
'11 3-9
'12 5-6
'13 8-5
'14 8-4
'15 3-2 ????????
It is quite obvious there will be ups and down.
The important thing is that they need to be willing to make changes out of their comfort zone. Not be stubborn.
They need to take into consideration the talent they have, and put the team in the best position to win more games.
Easier said than done. It is great to be a GH arm chair QB. Problem solved.