It all comes down to Wright.

[scubacentral]

Why it will come down to Dylan Wright. Again.

Here’s the deal, gentlemen:

-Rossi has the D locked in. The secondary will be good enough to permit the “manufacture” of pressure, if that’s needed, and to further permit substantial run support, if that’s needed (with Sori-Marin and Oliver, I doubt that will be needed). There’s flexibility built into the structure and strengths of the defense, and a proven D-coordinator that can exploit it. The D will keep the Gophers in every game. Same as last year, albeit with a different “formula.”

-Offensively, the run game will be enough to permit the Gophers to wear down and eventually beat most opponents. There’s 3 proven RB’s, and if none of them can be what they were pre-injury, they’ll just roll with Evans, who – let’s be honest – has the highest ceiling of any of them. I know, I know: the OL departures. That’s overblown. Plenty of 2020 experience on the line: Ruschmeyer, Boe, Guedet, for example. These guys aren’t unknowns by any stretch of the imagination. (JMS goes without saying). Obviously, there’s also Filiaga, Carroll, Shaw. There’s a low-risk offensive line in that group, and a proven top-notch positional group coach in Callahan to get it done.

-To return to 2019 “form” we need two “stud” WR’s. For two reasons. Let’s start with Tanner. He’s reason #1. Tanner is the best Gophers QB in my lifetime, and I’m 50. He’s accurate and has great touch. He throws a decidedly catchable ball. Those are his most prominent affirmative strengths (he has others). I could list his weaknesses, but those are irrelevant here. The point is that his most prominent strengths are downstream from identifying a receiver to deliver the ball to. If he has two stud WR’s, that gives him the ability to identify his target based on offensive set and defensive alignment and scheme – both of which are pre-snap knowns. That means he gets to use his strengths, and does not have to reveal his weaknesses often. The other reason for needing two stud WR’s is that it’s a scheme buster. There simply isn’t a good defensive scheme to deal two studs. Double them both up and the Gophers will run on you. Leave one singled-up and that’ll be the one that catches 120+ yards of passes. In other words, 2019 all over again.

-Autman-Bell is one stud. So we just need one more. Wright is the obvious choice. He has – far and away – the best toolset. He needs to be more aggressive in terms of competing for the ball, needs to be way more physical. But he’s got footspeed and can catch. If he can be consistent, so Tanner KNOWS what he’s got in Wright pre-snap, we’ll have a very enjoyable season

Receivers, I feel are fine whether or not Wright has a big year. This season more likely hinges on the retooled O line. Tanner is not mobile. If he has no time we could have the Vikings receivers and it would not matter. Dominate Oline establishes run, sets up pass and gives enough time for timed routes for which Tanner is incredibly accurate. I also think Brown Stephen's will be the breakout.

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

I agree with the OP. This year comes down to three things:

(1) QB play;
(2) Emergence of #2 WR (Wright);
(3) Pass Rush

That stuff can likely be said about a lot of times, but it's definitely true for us.

 

[Clark W. Griswold]

Look a workout buddy of mine used to play WR in college and a bit in the NFL. To quote him: "most college QB's can go ONE, TWO." In other words they can really go through a progression of two receivers - that's it. That's pretty much Tanner.

There are a lot of different ways to win in college football. As you stated it is rare to have qb who can do it all. If you look at the top 15 teams last year, I bet most did not have 2 stud receivers or a stud qb (outside of a couple of blue-blood programs).

2019 was the best gopher season in a long time, so it is easy to think that is how it has to be for the gophers. College football is different. It is the lack of great qbs that creates somewhat of a parity and allows teams to win many different ways. Talent at the qb position is a premium, but the team with the most overall talent will likely win. Iowa won the division last year and their passing/receiving stats were very underwhelming.

The gophers will probably not have a qb who can go through a progression like a pro. Does this mean that they need to have 2 "stud" first-team all conference receivers every year to be successful?

 

[btowngopher]

I agree with the OP. This year comes down to three things:

(1) QB play;
(2) Emergence of #2 WR (Wright);
(3) Pass Rush

That stuff can likely be said about a lot of times, but it's definitely true for us.

1- I think the floor of Morgan allows for a good season, probably need closer to the ceiling to have a phenomenal year.
2- I think the emergence of a few players on offense will be key. By that I mean we need a handful of guys to step up from last year. That could be Mo showing he's still got it, or CrAB taking that step to be an alpha at wr, or Spann Ford emerging as a consistent threat. I think we'll need at least 3 guys to really step up on offense at the skill positions.
3- Pass rush is nice, but I think the secondary will be good enough to help with that. I think the all around play of the dline, both vs the run and pass will be key. Same thing with the oline.

 

[Word]

1- I think the floor of Morgan allows for a good season, probably need closer to the ceiling to have a phenomenal year.
2- I think the emergence of a few players on offense will be key. By that I mean we need a handful of guys to step up from last year. That could be Mo showing he's still got it, or CrAB taking that step to be an alpha at wr, or Spann Ford emerging as a consistent threat. I think we'll need at least 3 guys to really step up on offense at the skill positions.
3- Pass rush is nice, but I think the secondary will be good enough to help with that. I think the all around play of the dline, both vs the run and pass will be key. Same thing with the oline.

We also need to not have injuries to key players.