Another abbreviated session with coach Kill due to recruiting duties. Mona said it was a big recruiting weekend with a lot of recruits visiting the U and the coaching staff. The one segment with coach Kill was extended, however.
1) Sid opened the show saying the Gophers got three commitments this past week at the linebacker position: Kill, of course, could not give any specifics about recruiting commitments. He did say, however, that commitments could change, which appears the norm now. It's what happens on signing day that's important. Apparently there are a lot more decommitments now than in the past. He finished saying that they have a great group of recruits in visiting this weekend and that recruiting is going well.
After they're done with their morning meetings with the visiting recruits, they'll get ready for the afternoon practice. The coaches have been on the road recruiting, however, that will end today for a period of time. The focus switches to finals and bowl game preparations.
2) Sid, once again, asked if Marquies Gray will be at QB at Houston: Kill quickly responded: "Philip Nelson is our quarterback!" He then added, this is the healthiest Gray has been since the start of the season and that it is great to have him back for the bowl game: "We'll utilize him in the bowl game . . . he'll be used in several situations!" Kill said he has too much talent to be standing alongside him on the sidelines. He didn't want to give anything away as to how he'll be used in the offense against the Red Raiders.
Coach Kill then named a few offensive linemen that'll be back for the bowl game:
Jon Christenson: "Got him back."
Zac Epping is back at the guard position now that Christenson is available.
Ed Olson is back running around like he did in the first couple games.
Coach Kill sounded excited about the return of the above players.
3) Sid asked about players missing the game due to injuries:
Marus jones has had knee surgery. A big loss because of his skills at returning kicks and punts.
Roland Johnson is out with his knee injury. Another big loss, especially because of depth-related concerns.
Brendan Beal is out with his knee injury. Kill sounded especially down when he mentioned Beal's name; because of his struggles with knee-related injuries and the work Beal had put in to overcome earlier injuries. He added the three have worked hard in rehab.
Kill also said Jamel Harbison is "running about." Didn't say anything affirmatively about Harbison playing in the bowl game. (Doubt he would play, especially if they're trying to get a medical redshirt.) However, he did say some of the players that were out with injuries during the season are back and they're getting valuable practice time.
4) Dave asked about the differences in timelines when recruiting Juco players: LOI (signing day) for Jucos is next Wednesday. There's also a signing day in May. Kill affirmed the rules for Jucos is different from those of the high school recruits.
5) Number of recruits for 2013: Kill, once again, talked about the fluidness in recruiting - players giving verbals and then switching or reneging on their commitments. As a result, schools, including Minnesota, oversign to cover for late switches. He expects to sign around 20 players.
6) Mona mentioned a nice invitation that Kill received from NIU: Kill responded saying the AD and President at Northern Illiinois University have invited Kill and his wife to their Orange Bowl game as their guests. He didn't know if his work schedule would allow their attendance; however, he sounded very pleased and grateful for the invitation and is very proud and happy for the Huskies and their coaching staff.
He added that the appearance of NIU in the Orange Bowl has helped MInnesota in their recruiting. Kill and his staff point to NIU and the part that they've played in their success (NIU was where Minnesota is presently at when they began coaching there) and they're working hard to do the same thing (build a winner) at Minnesota. He also said the Gophers appearance at Houston's bowl game is a big positive in recruiting.
7) Texas Tech scouting report: They throw the ball a lot and spread the field . . . wide splits up front . . . big screen team . . . they get matchups . . . throw the bowl more than Syracuse . . . fast huddle - try to run about 90 plays a game . . . defense (schemes) similar to TCU . . . different style of play from that of the Big 10. Kill said he's been conducting their practices inside the indoor practice facility with the heat turned up.
8) Sid asked about the high scoring games in the Big 12 Conference: Kill said there are a lot of games in the high forties and fifties, i.e, 56-51, 48-42, etc. He mentioned the high power offenses of WVU, Baylor, Texas, Okie State and Texas Tech. In short, there's a lot to prepare for in the upcoming bowl game.
Go Gophers!!
1) Sid opened the show saying the Gophers got three commitments this past week at the linebacker position: Kill, of course, could not give any specifics about recruiting commitments. He did say, however, that commitments could change, which appears the norm now. It's what happens on signing day that's important. Apparently there are a lot more decommitments now than in the past. He finished saying that they have a great group of recruits in visiting this weekend and that recruiting is going well.
After they're done with their morning meetings with the visiting recruits, they'll get ready for the afternoon practice. The coaches have been on the road recruiting, however, that will end today for a period of time. The focus switches to finals and bowl game preparations.
2) Sid, once again, asked if Marquies Gray will be at QB at Houston: Kill quickly responded: "Philip Nelson is our quarterback!" He then added, this is the healthiest Gray has been since the start of the season and that it is great to have him back for the bowl game: "We'll utilize him in the bowl game . . . he'll be used in several situations!" Kill said he has too much talent to be standing alongside him on the sidelines. He didn't want to give anything away as to how he'll be used in the offense against the Red Raiders.
Coach Kill then named a few offensive linemen that'll be back for the bowl game:
Jon Christenson: "Got him back."
Zac Epping is back at the guard position now that Christenson is available.
Ed Olson is back running around like he did in the first couple games.
Coach Kill sounded excited about the return of the above players.
3) Sid asked about players missing the game due to injuries:
Marus jones has had knee surgery. A big loss because of his skills at returning kicks and punts.
Roland Johnson is out with his knee injury. Another big loss, especially because of depth-related concerns.
Brendan Beal is out with his knee injury. Kill sounded especially down when he mentioned Beal's name; because of his struggles with knee-related injuries and the work Beal had put in to overcome earlier injuries. He added the three have worked hard in rehab.
Kill also said Jamel Harbison is "running about." Didn't say anything affirmatively about Harbison playing in the bowl game. (Doubt he would play, especially if they're trying to get a medical redshirt.) However, he did say some of the players that were out with injuries during the season are back and they're getting valuable practice time.
4) Dave asked about the differences in timelines when recruiting Juco players: LOI (signing day) for Jucos is next Wednesday. There's also a signing day in May. Kill affirmed the rules for Jucos is different from those of the high school recruits.
5) Number of recruits for 2013: Kill, once again, talked about the fluidness in recruiting - players giving verbals and then switching or reneging on their commitments. As a result, schools, including Minnesota, oversign to cover for late switches. He expects to sign around 20 players.
6) Mona mentioned a nice invitation that Kill received from NIU: Kill responded saying the AD and President at Northern Illiinois University have invited Kill and his wife to their Orange Bowl game as their guests. He didn't know if his work schedule would allow their attendance; however, he sounded very pleased and grateful for the invitation and is very proud and happy for the Huskies and their coaching staff.
He added that the appearance of NIU in the Orange Bowl has helped MInnesota in their recruiting. Kill and his staff point to NIU and the part that they've played in their success (NIU was where Minnesota is presently at when they began coaching there) and they're working hard to do the same thing (build a winner) at Minnesota. He also said the Gophers appearance at Houston's bowl game is a big positive in recruiting.
7) Texas Tech scouting report: They throw the ball a lot and spread the field . . . wide splits up front . . . big screen team . . . they get matchups . . . throw the bowl more than Syracuse . . . fast huddle - try to run about 90 plays a game . . . defense (schemes) similar to TCU . . . different style of play from that of the Big 10. Kill said he's been conducting their practices inside the indoor practice facility with the heat turned up.
8) Sid asked about the high scoring games in the Big 12 Conference: Kill said there are a lot of games in the high forties and fifties, i.e, 56-51, 48-42, etc. He mentioned the high power offenses of WVU, Baylor, Texas, Okie State and Texas Tech. In short, there's a lot to prepare for in the upcoming bowl game.
Go Gophers!!
