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Five Highs and Lows of the Gopher Season
By: Noel Thompson | December 31, 2021–> Follow Noel on Twitter: @n0elthompson
Highs:
1. Gophers take back the axe.
With the chance of going to Indianapolis as the Big Ten West champion destroyed by Nebraska being Nebraska the night before, Minnesota could’ve laid an egg against their main rival but they sure didn’t. Wisconsin entered the game with the best defense in the country but it was the Gophers defense that didn’t allow a touchdown. They held the Badgers to 233 total yards and frustrated Graham Mertz all game. Gophers got the axe for the second time in four years.
2. The rise of the running back youngsters.
Ideally, Ky Thomas and Bucky Irving weren’t going to play that much this season. With Mo Ibrahim being the bell cow and the youngsters being 4th and 5th on the depth chart, they might’ve played during garbage time. Mo Ibrahim got injured in the first game, Trey Potts in the fifth game, Bryce Williams in the eighth game, and Cam Wiley transferred. Before you know it, Minnesota was down to the youngsters and boy did they come through. Thomas finished the year with 824 yards, six touchdowns and Irving followed with 699 yards and four touchdowns. At the end of the season, Minnesota had 5 rushers that ran for 100 yards in a game.
3. Gophers defense steps up.
The Gophers finish the season in the Top 10 rankings in rushing yards, passing yards, total yards and points allowed. The Gopher’s rush defense has allowed 100 yards per game this season, which is on pace to be the best since Minnesota set a program record of 52 yards per game in 1962. The players call their defense coordinator Joe Rossi, “guru” because of his preparation and his game plans to stop opposing offenses. His game plan against West Virginia is the latest example. West Virginia coach Neal Brown credited Rossi after the Guaranteed Bowl Game by saying “They haven't been a cover-two team much, except on second and long and third and long. They played a lot of cover-two, especially early in the game and really took away your easy-access throws.”
4. The Minnesota Movers
While other positions were plagued by injuries, the starting five offensive linemen stayed strong which led them to receiving accolades they all deserved at the end of the year. All five starters received All Big Ten awards with Daniel Faalele leading the way being voted first team by Big Ten coaches. Thanks to the Minnesota movers, Minnesota finished third in the Big Ten averaging almost 200 yards a game rushing. Minnesota hasn’t had an offensive linemen drafted in the NFL since 2006, that will change this year with possibly three Gophers getting their name called on draft day.
5. Newcomers making a difference.
After playing four years at Abilene Christian University, Jack Gibbens decided to transfer to Minnesota for his final year of eligibility to showcase his talents in the Big Ten. Gibbens would lead a defense that would be the best Minnesota has seen in years. Gibbens would lead the team in tackles with 92. Justin Walley won Mr. Mississippi in football last year in high school and he finished this year starting at cornerback. While teams stayed away from Coney Durr, they focused on Walley which led him to pick up some invaluable game experience. Dylan Wright finished the year with 18 catches and two touchdowns. Nyles Pinckney brought experience to the defensive line from Clemson and finished with 18 tackles and 2.5 sacks.
Lows:
1. Running Back Injuries.
Mo Ibrahim had no problem running against the Buckeyes in the first game of the season, he was already had 163 yards and two touchdowns in the middle of the third quarter before he went down with an injury that would cost him his season. Trey Potts would step up in his place and rush 552 yards before a disclosed injury derailed his season. Bryce Williams got injured for the season against Northwestern and with Cam Wiley deciding to transfer, Minnesota was suddenly down to two running backs. You can’t control injuries but it sure was tough to see these playmakers go down. Great guys on and off the field.
2. Bowling Green
The week before facing Bowling Green, Minnesota went into Colorado and dominated the Buffaloes 30-0. Which led Minnesota being 30 point favorites against the Falcons in Minneapolis. The Gophers couldn’t overcome their mistakes and couldn’t stop the Falcons when they needed to. Tanner Morgan had 2 interceptions and a fumble and the Gophers couldn’t convert a 4th and 1 which led to Bowling Green responding with a touchdown. No doubt the ugliest game this year for Minnesota. A game that would cast a lot of doubt on Tanner Morgan and Mike Sanford. The loss snapped Minnesota’s streak of 21 straight non-conference wins.
3. Kicking issues.
Special Teams really hasn’t been a strength in P.J. Flecks tenure so far in Minnesota. The hope was that it all would change when Matthew Trickett decided to transfer to Minnesota to kick field goals. Trickett was First Team All conference and special teams player of the year at his time at Kent State before leaving to Minnesota for his senior season. Unfortunately, Trickett struggled with consistency this year. In 2019 at Kent State, he hit 85% percent of his field goals and didn’t miss an extra point. This year for the Gophers, he hit 68% of his field goals and was 36 for 38 in extra points.
4. Offensive Play-calling.
You would be hard pressed to find someone who was surprised that P.J. Fleck fired Offensive Coordinator Mike Sanford at the end of the regular season. Whether it was the conservative play calling against Iowa in the red zone or how poor the passing game was during his time here, it was time for a change. In their two losses against Bowling Green and Illinois, Minnesota scored a total of 16 points. No excuse for that. Another thing that is inexcusable to me is not utilizing tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford. Ford has all the tools to be one of the best tight ends in the conference.
5.Losing at Iowa.
Yes, I know we lost to Illinois but the loss to Iowa stung more. If you go by box scores, the Gophers dominated Iowa. They had 40 minutes of time of possession, they ran for 220 yards and had 132 more total yards than Iowa. All of that wasn’t enough as the Gophers lost to Iowa for the seventh straight season. The play calling in the redzone just drove me crazy. The calls on 3rd down were terrible and the passing game just stunk. The defense did great except the three explosive plays they let happen were touchdowns. Iowa scored touchdowns and the Gophers kicked field goals, that was the story of the game. Flyod of Rosedale wanted to come home but Minnesota couldn’t finish.
