How We Beat South Dakota Matters, Right?

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Tater

Tater

f.k.a. "Tubtastic"
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First off, I fully understand the "a win is a win" concept and mentality.

That being said, if this USD game means anything to the future success of Brewster and his program, isn't it about time that we see a comfortable 20+ point drubbing.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but has Brew trounced any team during his tenure here? I'm still in Brew's corner and want him around another year even if this season goes south, but I really think we need to see some signs of dominant play against supposedly weaker/less talented opponents (rather than closer-than-they-should-be wins).

Doesn't a good-ol' fashion beatdown demonstrate both that your team has significant talent and the coaching staff did an excellent job of using such talent (or, conversely, at some point, don't we question the coaching staff for why we are constantly squeaking out wins against less talented opponents)?

Now watch: the Gophers will beat USD 14-13, I'll freak out and fret over the future of the program and they'll turn around and beat USC by the same score the following week. :rolleyes:
 

Tubtastic said:
First off, I fully understand the "a win is a win" concept and mentality.

That being said, if this USD game means anything to the future success of Brewster and his program, isn't it about time that we see a comfortable 20+ point drubbing.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but has Brew trounced any team during his tenure here? I'm still in Brew's corner and want him around another year even if this season goes south, but I really think we need to see some signs of dominant play against supposedly weaker/less talented opponents (rather than closer-than-they-should-be wins).

Doesn't a good-ol' fashion beatdown demonstrate both that your team has significant talent and the coaching staff did an excellent job of using such talent (or, conversely, at some point, don't we question the coaching staff for why we are constantly squeaking out wins against less talented opponents)?

Now watch: the Gophers will beat USD 14-13, I'll freak out and fret over the future of the program and they'll turn around and beat USC by the same score the following week. :rolleyes:
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By default it matters. We need to get the depth some meaningful work. We need to work in a few successful passes, we need to control the lines. And we need a W. Not sure how we can get all that done without a sizeable victory. In the end it doesn't matter a hoot how bad we beat them by, but it matters a great deal how much we gain from it leading into next week.
 

I think it does matter this week. This should be in the neighborhood of 50-20. We can't scrape out a victory and feel good going forward IMO.
 

Tubtastic said:
First off, I fully understand the "a win is a win" concept and mentality.

That being said, if this USD game means anything to the future success of Brewster and his program, isn't it about time that we see a comfortable 20+ point drubbing.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but has Brew trounced any team during his tenure here? I'm still in Brew's corner and want him around another year even if this season goes south, but I really think we need to see some signs of dominant play against supposedly weaker/less talented opponents (rather than closer-than-they-should-be wins).

Doesn't a good-ol' fashion beatdown demonstrate both that your team has significant talent and the coaching staff did an excellent job of using such talent (or, conversely, at some point, don't we question the coaching staff for why we are constantly squeaking out wins against less talented opponents)?

Now watch: the Gophers will beat USD 14-13, I'll freak out and fret over the future of the program and they'll turn around and beat USC by the same score the following week. :rolleyes:
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The lack of comfy blowouts in the Tim Brewster Era has really been an underrated part of his low popularity with casual fans. The closest I can think of was FAU in 08'.
I'd love to have the game over with by the half, get some backups time, and enjoy my beer and ribs after the game.
 

Winning @ MTSU while dominating physically gives me belief we can take care of business here. Last season, I received little evidence that this team was going to blow anyone out, though I did expect a convincing win against SDSU. But watching them last Thursday, I saw a team that physically just handled business, though the passing game lacked the explosiveness to really put a ton of points up. If the passing game makes a few more plays, really, this game shouldn't be close.

As far as a Brewster team blowing out an opponent, not really. In 2008, FAU comes to mind, I think that was a 37-3 beating and probably the most thorough beatdown they've doled out. Bowling Green turned into a blowout, but that was nip and tuck until the 4th. They only beat Montana St. by 14 that season, but it was a pretty convincing win. Besides that, Purdue last year was the only really easy win they had. I'd like to definitely see an easy win tomorrow though, in the FAU mold.
 


How we beat them definitely matters. A close game against a mediocre FCS team means that we're either not focused or not very good. Most likely both.
 

Also, and this may be reading the tea leaves too closely, if we can't put away USD handily, how much confidence does that give USC? This game, combined with MTSU can be looked at as important in terms of giving upcoming opponents something to think about.
 

NateDawgUM said:
How we beat them definitely matters. A close game against a mediocre FCS team means that we're either not focused or not very good. Most likely both.
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Agree. This game is big even though it shouldn't be.
 

NateDawgUM said:
How we beat them definitely matters. A close game against a mediocre FCS team means that we're either not focused or not very good. Most likely both.
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I understand what you are all saying. However, I recall a team to our south playing nothing but close games last year (including Arkansas St. and UNI - both FCS schools) and then going on to win the Orange Bowl.

Based on this, winning is the most important thing. Sometimes it doesn't matter how you win - especially when you are a team that probably won't be needing "style points" from the AP/Coaches voters.

Starting the year 2-0 is the most important thing. Plus these games are always a lose-lose for the "favored" school. This is the Super Bowl for USD - especially their MN players like Shane Potter. I am sure Brewster would love to hang up a 50-20 win, but I am guessing that he just wants to run the very simple plays and win without showing too much to USC and without having anyone else get hurt.
 



Yes.

Winning the game is the most important thing on a number of levels. We clearly don't want to get Buffalo'd (Or Jacksonville State'd). But HOW we drop the anvil on them is almost as important as actually dropping it. We need to build depth, and we need to make sure key players aren't exposed to injuries with a certain big game coming up next weekend. And to be honest, it's been a while since I've been at a good laugher, and could really use one.
 

All I can say is that a 1 point win over USD would feel infinitely better than a 1 point loss to USD. If we win by one, I will celebrate winning, and worry about the implications later.
 

I expect a blowout victory for the first time in years. I've stood steadfastly behind Brewster to this point, and will give him 5 years, but year 4 against a vastly inferior opponent, the seeds for change could be planted in my mind. That said, I don't see it happening. We win by 20 or more.
 

It absolutely matters. First, we should be past the point where we have to sweat out I-AA games. Second, USD is not a 'good' 1-AA program at this point. NDSU was in 2007. Even SDSU made the play-offs last year. I'm not saying USD is a terrible 1-AA team, but a medicore Central Florida team that's nowhere near as good as MTSU handled them easily. If we don't handle them at least as easily it will be on the coaching staff for not having the team properly focused/motivated.

Put another way: MN>MTSU>UCF>>>>USD. Based on this we should win by a minimum of the 30 pts that UCF did just last week, and really should win by 40+. That said, I'm not sure the Gopher offense can score 40 against a stiff breeze.
 



I watch these kinds of games closely. Obviously you want to win decisively, but you also want to strengthen your depth by getting your 2nd and 3rd string guys some reps. I'd love to see the first string build up a comfortable lead and then slot in guys along the way before turning the fourth quarter over completely to the less experienced players.But for that scenario to work, you have to get a comfortable lead in the first place, so that's the first thing that has to happen.

One thing that always ticked me off about Mason is that he'd have the first-stringers in there until the mid-4th quarter beating up on someone 55-10. It shouldn't be about statistics and maybe it wasn't under Mason, but it sure seemed that way a lot of the time. I'd rather win 35-21 and get quality reps for guys down the bench than 56-3 with the starters going almost the whole way. But maybe that's just me.
 

MJGopher said:
I understand what you are all saying. However, I recall a team to our south playing nothing but close games last year (including Arkansas St. and UNI - both FCS schools) and then going on to win the Orange Bowl.
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Arkansas State isn't FCS.

UNI is an FCS powerhouse. They're FAR better than South Dakota. It's like comparing Texas to UConn.
 

Getting some playing time for the 2nd and 3rd time is a good idea. But it would also be nice to reward some of the players on the bottom of the roster, those who rarely play if at all. This might be our best opportunity to empty the benches. These players contribute a lot in practice, and to get even a tiny bit of playing time would be appreciated. It would help us attract walk-ons who love the Gophers but can't expect to get any significant playing time.
 

RodentRampage said:
Getting some playing time for the 2nd and 3rd time is a good idea. But it would also be nice to reward some of the players on the bottom of the roster, those who rarely play if at all. This might be our best opportunity to empty the benches. These players contribute a lot in practice, and to get even a tiny bit of playing time would be appreciated. It would help us attract walk-ons who love the Gophers but can't expect to get any significant playing time.
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Agreed. And what you're describing didn't seem to happen a lot under Mason in his non-conference blow-outs.

But I don't want to get ahead of the game and give the South Dakota fans something to shoot back at us. The first order of business is building up a significant lead.
 

NateDawgUM said:
Arkansas State isn't FCS.

UNI is an FCS powerhouse. They're FAR better than South Dakota. It's like comparing Texas to UConn.
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You are correct, sorry, I got ahead of myself. Arkansas St. is in the same conference as MTSU. UNI is a very good FCS football team, that lost to SDSU last year.

But that really has nothing to do with my point. The point was that at the end of the year, you have wins and losses. Yes, you want to blow people out so that you can gain your depth and gain confidence; however, as long as it shows a win - that is the most important thing.

Will I be disappointed if it is close? Maybe, but if we hold the ball for 45 minutes of the game, run 80 plays and end up winning by 10 points, and nobody gets hurt - I will be more than pleased to have the Rouser playing as we make our way to the exits and get ready to see USC come into our house next week at 2-0.
 

The ability to finish a drive with a touchdown needs to continue. They have to show the ability to do that against competition like South Dakota or they will struggle in the big ten.

They need to show that they can execute without committing costly penalties.

Weber needs to show consistency and the ability to find open recievers.

The defense needs to continue to improve.

A true competitor comes ready to play no matter who the oppenant is, they need to show they are ready to play. I think that more than anything is what will be on display.
 

order of importance

1. Win the game.
2. Stay healthy.
3. Limit the film for USC next week. In other words play vanilla.
 

50PoundHead said:
But I don't want to get ahead of the game and give the South Dakota fans something to shoot back at us. The first order of business is building up a significant lead.
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It's ironic that the USD fans are demanding respect, but insist on calling the Gophers the "Goofers".
 

Yes and no.

I think the Gophers could use a blow out win especially the defense to gain some confidence going into the USC game. With a young team play can be very streaky and when you look at the Gopher D youth is big. Having a great game holding USD to 10 points or less which is possible would really get the team off to a great start for a week of USC talk. If the Gophers give up 20 points in this game I think we would be in trouble for the USC game. The Gopher D needs a great game and see if they can use success to carry them through what could be a tough game the next week.

As far as the offense goes I think we need to see the continued running attack. I am not as worried about showing off the passing game until we play USC when I am sure we will need it. If we can run the ball and set up some play action and get some nice plays that is all that hopefully is needed. Then against USC we will have to open it up because I cant imagine just running through the Trojans all game some big pass plays will be needed to win.
 

A win's a win. I don't care how.

If the Gophers squeak one out, it could be at our advantage because USC could come in with a false sense of security, while the Gophers come out swinging. I keep thinking back to last year's Cal game.. We were out matched and out talented.. yet we were in it all the way to halfway through the 4th quarter.
 

I'm really not concerned about the idea of this being a close game. This USD team would have an incredibly difficult time keeping it close against NDSU or SDSU. For me, as long as it is relatively comfortable, i'm cool with whatever score (14+, etc.).

However, there could be some terrible signs. If Weber and the entire passing game looks lost (ala SDSU game last year), that is a HUGE problem. Id USD is able to lineup and run the ball down our throats, that is a problem. I am fine with them getting some yardage, but if they are able to control the line of scrimmage, we are in serious trouble (later in the year).

So yeah, the score isn't that important to me
 

Formo said:
A win's a win. I don't care how.

If the Gophers squeak one out, it could be at our advantage because USC could come in with a false sense of security, while the Gophers come out swinging. I keep thinking back to last year's Cal game.. We were out matched and out talented.. yet we were in it all the way to halfway through the 4th quarter.
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Man, I'm still ticked about that false start penalty on Cal. I firmly belive we win that game if that penalty isn't called.
 

With 11 new starters on defense, I am not counting any wins as automatic.
 

SMU GOPHS FAN said:
Man, I'm still ticked about that false start penalty on Cal. I firmly belive we win that game if that penalty isn't called.
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Man.. I forgot about that.. I just keep thinking that we stop Best ONE of his 5 TD runs.. And that game is probably totally different.
 

This thread is PERFECT!! It's hilarious because when I started a thread saying that the gophers should win by 30, everyone said I was a troll and pathetic. But, here is a thread where 90 percent of the posters say that it does matter if the gophers win big and that they should win big.
So funny how one person gets railed for saying the exact same thing in another post.
 

You are a troll and you are pathetic. Most people do seem to think it'd be better if the gophers win by a bigger margin than a smaller one. Seems reasonable. I don't see the connection.
 

Tubtastic said:
First off, I fully understand the "a win is a win" concept and mentality.

That being said, if this USD game means anything to the future success of Brewster and his program, isn't it about time that we see a comfortable 20+ point drubbing.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but has Brew trounced any team during his tenure here? I'm still in Brew's corner and want him around another year even if this season goes south, but I really think we need to see some signs of dominant play against supposedly weaker/less talented opponents (rather than closer-than-they-should-be wins).

Doesn't a good-ol' fashion beatdown demonstrate both that your team has significant talent and the coaching staff did an excellent job of using such talent (or, conversely, at some point, don't we question the coaching staff for why we are constantly squeaking out wins against less talented opponents)?

Now watch: the Gophers will beat USD 14-13, I'll freak out and fret over the future of the program and they'll turn around and beat USC by the same score the following week. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Who was the idiot who posted this thread? I'm officially off the Brewster bandwagon. New coach please.
 

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