Gophers look to jumpstart Brevyn Spann-Ford after a meeting with P.J. Fleck

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BleedGopher

BleedGopher

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Per Greder:

Fleck said this season Spann-Ford has received more focus from opposing defenses.

“You see people pay way more attention to him,” Fleck said. “You don’t see people’s eyes in the backfield, letting him slip behind them. He’s earned the right to gain a lot more attention. Now what we have to do is continue to get him free.”

www.twincities.com

Gophers look to jumpstart Brevyn Spann-Ford after a meeting with P.J. Fleck

The senior tight end from St. Cloud has had a slow start to the 2023 season.
www.twincities.com www.twincities.com

Go Gophers!!
 


BleedGopher said:
Per Greder:

Fleck said this season Spann-Ford has received more focus from opposing defenses.

“You see people pay way more attention to him,” Fleck said. “You don’t see people’s eyes in the backfield, letting him slip behind them. He’s earned the right to gain a lot more attention. Now what we have to do is continue to get him free.”

www.twincities.com

Gophers look to jumpstart Brevyn Spann-Ford after a meeting with P.J. Fleck

The senior tight end from St. Cloud has had a slow start to the 2023 season.
www.twincities.com www.twincities.com

Go Gophers!!
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He needs to catch the balls that are thrown to him. Way too many drops and too many tips that lead to INTs in his career.
 


Yep, I've heard Fords have starter issues requiring a jump from time to time. Probably the alternator though...
 


I haven't watched every rep of his. He might be playing really well away from the ball.

But we've seen quite a few ugly moments, a very high % of the time.
 

Should have gone pro if he was actually projected to get drafted.
 





BSF has been a pretty big disappointment so far this season. The drops he has had are not all his fault but he isn't making the great catches you would expect someone who is supposed to be one of the best TE in college football and someone with NFL aspirations to make.

The overtime pass against Northwestern is a perfect example. The throw wasn't great by any means, but a NFL caliber TE makes that catch.
 

MNVCGUY said:
BSF has been a pretty big disappointment so far this season. The drops he has had are not all his fault but he isn't making the great catches you would expect someone who is supposed to be one of the best TE in college football and someone with NFL aspirations to make.

The overtime pass against Northwestern is a perfect example. The throw wasn't great by any means, but a NFL caliber TE makes that catch.
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He hasn't blocked particularly well either.
 

MNVCGUY said:
BSF has been a pretty big disappointment so far this season. The drops he has had are not all his fault but he isn't making the great catches you would expect someone who is supposed to be one of the best TE in college football and someone with NFL aspirations to make.

The overtime pass against Northwestern is a perfect example. The throw wasn't great by any means, but a NFL caliber TE makes that catch.
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Someone should tell T.J. Hockenson about that (go to the 15:27 point of the video)...

 

Full Speed Ahead said:
Someone should tell T.J. Hockenson about that (go to the 15:27 point of the video)...

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Hockenson's was much tougher as he had a defender draped all over him but yeah it was a catch he usually makes. Difference between the two is that Hockenson has made many difficult and impressive catches whereas BSF has had multiple balls bounce off his hands this season.

I hope BSF is able to get it together and finish strong over the remainder of the season but he is off to a really rough start in his final year. This team needs him to play like the weapon we believe he is capable of being.
 



Burns mentioned that PFF has him graded in the upper 50s for blocking this season, when last season he was in the low 80s. I'd say all around BSF has to step up and play to his potential. I mean, we've seen him be a stud less than a year ago. Unless injuries are playing a role that we don't know about...
 

it's not all on BSF. Athan has thrown a number of balls intended for BSF that are high, behind him, or both. there is just no timing between them, and Athan's lack of touch on short and intermediate routes compounds the problem.

having said that, BSF is just not playing at the same level this year. either he's got some injury we don't know about, or something is taking place off the field, because he looks as if his head is not in the right place.

I believe there are other TE's on the roster. might be time to feature one of them in the passing game.
 

I think we need to come to grips with the fact that BSF just isn't as good as we hoped he'd be. He flashed last year because he was the 3rd option and was left open a lot. Teams are aware of him & our desire to get him the ball and now he can't find space. Watching him play Saturday illustrated to me that he's just not a top-tier athlete. His change of direction is poor and he's very stiff in the hips. It's affected his blocking as well. He comes downhill on the Wham play and can't shift his track to make a block in a tight area. We bought into the hype.
 

It's hard to get in a rhythm as a pass catcher when almost half the time he isn't even out on a route. If teams are focusing in on him more, then get him in routes to take some defenders away from the WR's. When he stays in to block it's not doing Athan any favors.
As I've stated in my OL grading, coming into the year, I didn't consider him to be a great run blocker as he doesn't play with enough physicality - which is what I thought two years ago. Last year, I didn't chart the games so I couldn't say if he'd improved or not. After watching him through four games this year, I would say he has improved from two years ago - but only in the area of blocking when a defender is directly across from him or near him. When he is pulling across the formation, he really struggles in making contact and maintaining his leverage.
 

MNVCGUY said:
Hockenson's was much tougher as he had a defender draped all over him but yeah it was a catch he usually makes. Difference between the two is that Hockenson has made many difficult and impressive catches whereas BSF has had multiple balls bounce off his hands this season.

I hope BSF is able to get it together and finish strong over the remainder of the season but he is off to a really rough start in his final year. This team needs him to play like the weapon we believe he is capable of being.
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FWIW I think Hockenson is way overpaid and overrated too.
 

I think BSF has an injury. He seems like he’s not as fluid or fast as last year. Almost seems rigid.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
it's not all on BSF. Athan has thrown a number of balls intended for BSF that are high, behind him, or both. there is just no timing between them, and Athan's lack of touch on short and intermediate routes compounds the problem.

having said that, BSF is just not playing at the same level this year. either he's got some injury we don't know about, or something is taking place off the field, because he looks as if his head is not in the right place.

I believe there are other TE's on the roster. might be time to feature one of them in the passing game.
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BSF has disappointed so far, no doubt. But yep, AK is not a consistent passer right now. Many, many WRs would struggle with the same balls delivered high and fast, or behind.

Going further on that tangent and as long as I’m venting Crooms was beat up leaping on a pass into triple coverage in OT when the entire middle was green grass. Athan could have ran for 15 yards or more. Then another tough catch for Crooms who was popped pretty hard when Jackson was wide open. Then the high and outside heater to BSF. Not that I’m dwelling on the many, missed opportunities by offense and defense that led to that unfortunate OT series.
 



LOL I just realized the headline was jumpstart Ford. I don’t trust that they were clever enough to do that on purpose
 

I didn’t see this coming. He is having a dreadful season. If I was defending him, I’d let him run free and wait for the interceptions that bounce off his hands.
 

Geers is supposed to be a really good pass catcher. Run him out there.
 

Honestly, even last year I was not seeing what seemingly everyone else saw. Would LOVE for him to change my mind in a big way.

I remember against either or Iowa or Purdue he was coming out of the huddle on a huge drive and he did this big jump in the air to jack himself up - I thought "This will be his moment" - but my crystal ball failed me.
 

jonnyganas said:
Burns mentioned that PFF has him graded in the upper 50s for blocking this season, when last season he was in the low 80s. I'd say all around BSF has to step up and play to his potential. I mean, we've seen him be a stud less than a year ago. Unless injuries are playing a role that we don't know about...
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Like I said 2 weeks ago, he shouldn't even be playing. PJ has gotten soft/comfortable. Lost the hunger. Not as focused on winning.
 

Some Day...Maybe said:
Like I said 2 weeks ago, he shouldn't even be playing. PJ has gotten soft/comfortable. Lost the hunger. Not as focused on winning.
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I find it hard to believe the head football coach now cares less about winning football games. Or that winning suddenly matters less to him. I think he cares more than anyone and winning matters more to him than anyone else. I also think he is a flawed gameday coach who has failed to change or adapt any of his football philosophies since he's taken over the program and it causes problems.
 



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