DeLeon Eskridge will not return to the U

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Definitely bad news. Sad for him, and we wish him well, but it leaves us thin. Not a good situation, unless some of the young guys come through.
 

He was turning into a good RB

I remember the TD run he had vs. Iowa, where he ran over/drug the defender over the pylon. If I read correctly, he was a weight room warrior who really "made" himself into a Big Ten RB despite being thrown to the wolves before he should have been. Sad to see him go, but wish him the best.
 

Football aside for a second, I hate to see a U player in turmoil. I wish him the best, and we can start another thread debating whether or not his departure is a detriment on the football field. Just my opinion.
 

I'd have to agree with Studwell55...

This young man gained 96 yards against iowa. They were supposed to be pretty tough at stopping the run.

I do like Bennett...I wish him all the best and may he have a great season.
 

Studwell55 said:
You guys are morons.

True, he had no business being on the field as a frosh. But he had matured into a very serviceable back. And now we lose him after all those snaps.

I repeat: this sucks.
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=1- Eskridge had very good patience, and was good at letting blocks develop. He had some very good moments.
 


DMB123 said:
Are we talking about the same Deleon Eskridge? This will not have any negative affects on our season whatsoever. It's time for Kirkwood, Wright, and Edwards to finally show what they can do, and all three are probably more talented than Eskridge.
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I agree with Dpodoll. We've become enamored with average/injury prone RBs after the Maroney/Barber/Russell years.

I wish him the best, but we've got some depth. Hopefully someone becomes a stud. I like Duane alot if he goes N-S and can stay on the field.
 

It's apples to oranges, but this reminds me of Colton Iverson leaving the BB team. They both had some nice moments, but I expected more out of them. Eskridge kept his nose clean and ran hard, but he was never a "special" player.
 

Any time you lose a running back who carried the ball for the most yards last year on a team with very few proven running backs, is a huge loss-Period.
I do wish the best for both and I hope that they can look back at their Minnesota experience and say that they were glad to have been Gophers!
For what its worth it was fun watching them play.
 




Hope all is well with his family but he is not a big loss. Bennett was as good or better and the young backs need playing time over him IMO because his potential was maxed out.

Eure is the bigger loss, very little depth at the position IMO.
 

Eskridge should be a second-string back on a Big-Ten team (at best), period.

Do I wish he was still here? yes. Will him leaving hurt us? Yes.

Is the season over now that he's gone? I don't think so.
 


we will win this week? said:
Any time you lose a running back who carried the ball for the most yards last year on a team with very few proven running backs, is a huge loss-Period. I do wish the best for both and I hope that they can look back at their Minnesota experience and say that they were glad to have been Gophers!
For what its worth it was fun watching them play.
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Exactly.

At this point, losing Eskridge is not a good thing. Sure Edwards and Kirkwood may be better backs someday but right now, they are both unproven. Bennett has had injury issues in the past and the main burden could fall on him. Kirkwood was injured last year and Edwards was on the sidelines most of the Spring. If Bennett goes down, we are down to an inexperienced backup which is not a good postion to be in.

Coach Kill likes to use a lot of players so that means we will see a greenhorn in place of Eskridge. Experience is important. Eskridge is not a top rated BT running back. But Eskridge has been the most serviceable RB of the whole bunch and this could be a big loss.
 



If Bennett goes down early...

don't be surprised by another 3-9 year.

Winnining consistently in the B1G requires depth, toughness and experience at RB. With the departure of DE, Minny has lost 50% of its seasoned mojo and given opposing defenses an easier route to teeing-off on Gray and his unproven backups.

If the Gophers had an elite powerhouse OL, the young talent might be OK against lower-tier defenses, but Minny doesn't and inexperienced RBs are not going to make much noise in a grinder conference like the B1G. Just look at Iowa's troubles in this area last year.

With a nod to the Gopher fb gods, Bennett stays healthy all year and puts up big numbers. If he doesn't, the lack of depth and experience at RB will probably bedevil Kill in the same way that Tubby had to deal with his point guard fiasco last season and subsequent team meltdown.

Overall, tough to spin the loss of DE as any kind of positive...at least for the 2011 season. In any case, this situation gives Kill another reason to ask for patience from Holers and others on the prospects for a possible longer-term return to title contention.
 

Bayfield

Not disagreeing with your statement that you don't want to lose an experience back like Eskridge. What hopefully may minimize this loss though is the fact is that it is a lot easier for a freshman running back to make an impact than probably any other freshman player at any other position. For example most freshman lineman are not physical mature enough to start but often freshman running backs are. That is why you often see younger running backs making an impact sooner than younger players at other positions. But your point that you don't want to be in a position to have to rely on this is certainly one that I wouldn't argue with.
 

or...

NewEngland_Gold said:
don't be surprised by another 3-9 year.

Winnining consistently in the B1G requires depth, toughness and experience at RB. With the departure of DE, Minny has lost 50% of its seasoned mojo and given opposing defenses an easier route to teeing-off on Gray and his unproven backups.

If the Gophers had an elite powerhouse OL, the young talent might be OK against lower-tier defenses, but Minny doesn't and inexperienced RBs are not going to make much noise in a grinder conference like the B1G. Just look at Iowa's troubles in this area last year.

With a nod to the Gopher fb gods, Bennett stays healthy all year and puts up big numbers. If he doesn't, the lack of depth and experience at RB will probably bedevil Kill in the same way that Tubby had to deal with his point guard fiasco last season and subsequent team meltdown.

Overall, tough to spin the loss of DE as any kind of positive...at least for the 2011 season. In any case, this situation gives Kill another reason to ask for patience from Holers and others on the prospects for a possible longer-term return to title contention.
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If that happens someone else could take up the slack and become a star. You really need to get over this end of the universe stuff your posting all over here.
 

re3886 said:
If that happens someone else could take up the slack and become a star.
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Agreed and the star might lead Minny to a championship.

You really need to get over this end of the universe stuff your posting all over here.
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Just for the record, the Gopher fb universe is unlikely to end no matter what opinions are posted here.
 

umm

NewEngland_Gold said:
Agreed and the star might lead Minny to a championship.



Just for the record, the Gopher fb universe is unlikely to end no matter what opinions are posted here.
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Who is Minny?
I don't recall mentioning a championship or the "Gopher fb Universe." I do recall mentioning the universe as a whole and your screaming the sky is falling though. Quite the overreaction problem you have there.
 

re3886 said:
Who is Minny?
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minnie_mouse_1.jpg
 

TCF=UnitedWeStand said:
Eskridge was decent, but wouldn't be a big ten starter on a decent team (just my opinion). I preferred Bennett (when healthy) every day of the week over Eskridge. Eskridge was average at everything - steady, relatively reliable hanging on to the football, but not a game changer in any way.
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I feel the exact same way. I wish him well, however.
 



This is way more than a shrug moment. For three years the coaching staff has been trying to find a better back than Eskridge... What if this year is no different? We have no idea if Bennett can stay healthy! We have no idea if Kirkwood can stay healthy or is a #1 guy! We have no idea if Edwards is a RB! We have no idea if Wright will even be on the team! Eskridge was the one guy you knew was going to be suited-up.

Maybe this is a good thing and one of the other guys becomes the man? History is not on our side though.
 

I'm a little disappointed to see him leave, but he was a pretty average player and had a very limited ceiling. I feel pretty comfortable with what is still on the roster. I'm more worried about the d-line than rb position.
 

tikited said:
This is way more than a shrug moment. For three years the coaching staff has been trying to find a better back than Eskridge... What if this year is no different? We have no idea if Bennett can stay healthy! We have no idea if Kirkwood can stay healthy or is a #1 guy! We have no idea if Edwards is a RB! We have no idea if Wright will even be on the team! Eskridge was the one guy you knew was going to be suited-up.

Maybe this is a good thing and one of the other guys becomes the man? History is not on our side though.
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What we do know is that Eskridge was average at best.
 


Thanks harrys ghost

harrys ghost said:
Well, he has been in school for a year now and he is on the roster with number 25 ....
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The amount of wrong assumptions and comment based on incorrect information or no information at this site is incredible. Thanks for pointing out another one in long string.
 

tikited said:
This is way more than a shrug moment. For three years the coaching staff has been trying to find a better back than Eskridge... What if this year is no different? We have no idea if Bennett can stay healthy! We have no idea if Kirkwood can stay healthy or is a #1 guy! We have no idea if Edwards is a RB! We have no idea if Wright will even be on the team! Eskridge was the one guy you knew was going to be suited-up.

Maybe this is a good thing and one of the other guys becomes the man? History is not on our side though.
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One knee injury in no way means a guy is injury prone,We have no idea if a Marques Gray or any player for that matter can stay healthy.Our running attack has basically sucked so losing what I consider a third down type back is no reason to get too concerned.It's a shame to see a senior walk away like this though.This may make it more important a freshmen stepping up to play a little.
 

Plus like I mentioned in a different thread I started, the loss of Eskridge opened the door for Moulton who might have a chance to do something at our very thin wr position right off the bat.
 

Disappointing to hear

He was a capable running back who seemed like he had come into into his own the last two games.
Finally looked like a Big 10 running back, oh well guess this means it is another man's opportunity to step up and play. Wish Eskeridge the best he was a good representative of the Gophers on and off the field. Tough to replace that kind of experience in a short time, hopefully talent can overcome this.
 

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