Joe Rossi and the Gopher defense

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Outstanding. It was great watching players in this defense develop over the last 4-5 years. Too many names to name. You know who they are.
 

FormerFatOL said:
I really like how Rossi is channeling Wisconsin and some NFL teams on 3rd and long with stand-up DL, twists and blitzes coming from different angles, and hiding the rusher vs. coverage guys. I actually look forward to watching the defense now.
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There was at least a few time that they ran the radar defense (no down linemen). Sometimes they would rush 3 (including a safety), sometimes 4 or 5. It was a sight to see.
 

Hopefully a couple of big time DT/DE off the portal Will join us this spring. After watch8ng our defense operate they would have to be impressed.
 





Talent obviously matters, but what has impressed me about Rossi is that his team looks to be "assignment sure" and there doesn't appear to be a lot of breakdowns. I can remember the last few games under Robb Smith when opponents were running all over the field and I kept thinking to myself "Does anyone on the defense understand the concept of 'contain'?"

Rossi takes over and all of a sudden guys look like they are staying in their lanes and we cap that season with dominant wins over Wisconsin in the regular season finale and Georgia Tech in the Quick Lane Bowl (and I can remember some in here thinking that Georgia Tech was going to make mince meat out of our defense with the option).
 

Quick guess (before any additional portal additions) what our 2022 starting defense looks like:

S - Howden
S - Nubin
CB - Walley
CB - Stapp
CB - Bishop
LB - MSM
LB - Oliver
DE - Rush
DT - Carter
DT - Richter
DE - Joyner

Outside of Joyner, there is a lot of college experience in that lineup. I like that. What I like even more is how excited I feel about the young players behind these guys (in no particular order):

Safety - Dixon and Darius Green
CBs - Glaze, Ortiz, Miles Fleming, Solomon Brown (T Smith maybe still around too?)
LBs - Willis, Burns, Finnessy, Lindenberg, Devon Williams
DT - Schuster, Keys, McCoy, Eastern
DE - Logan-Redding, Booker, Striggow

I'm sure I've forgotten a couple, but overall, the younger players in the second group are the ones with the higher upside (if you listen to recruiting analysts/ratings) and impressive P5 offers for the most part. These are the years we have been recruiting better, so it'll be great to see these players with another spring ball and fall camp.

But I think there is gonna be some great competition for playing time. I also know I feel confident in what Joe Rossi can do with this bunch and (despite a lot of change on the DL), I feel great about the Gopher D headed into 2022.
 



50PoundHead said:
Talent obviously matters, but what has impressed me about Rossi is that his team looks to be "assignment sure" and there doesn't appear to be a lot of breakdowns. I can remember the last few games under Robb Smith when opponents were running all over the field and I kept thinking to myself "Does anyone on the defense understand the concept of 'contain'?"

Rossi takes over and all of a sudden guys look like they are staying in their lanes and we cap that season with dominant wins over Wisconsin in the regular season finale and Georgia Tech in the Quick Lane Bowl (and I can remember some in here thinking that Georgia Tech was going to make mince meat out of our defense with the option).
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That Georgia Tech win was really nice to see, takes a lot discipline by every last defensive player to stop the option consistently.
 

50PoundHead said:
Talent obviously matters, but what has impressed me about Rossi is that his team looks to be "assignment sure" and there doesn't appear to be a lot of breakdowns. I can remember the last few games under Robb Smith when opponents were running all over the field and I kept thinking to myself "Does anyone on the defense understand the concept of 'contain'?"

Rossi takes over and all of a sudden guys look like they are staying in their lanes and we cap that season with dominant wins over Wisconsin in the regular season finale and Georgia Tech in the Quick Lane Bowl (and I can remember some in here thinking that Georgia Tech was going to make mince meat out of our defense with the option).
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This. Some people complain about the lack of pass rush at times but it seems (to me) to be more about the Gophs keeping disciplined lane assignments. The DL under Rossi works to keep the LBs clean; a huge change from Smith.
 

We were watching the game at work last night and my boss, who is a Badger fan, says “The one thing I like about the Minnesota defense is that they play fast.”

Our lack of speed has been brought up numerous times over the years. I began watching a little closer after that saw CBS flying up for tackles on short routes into the flats. DB blitzes and LB blitzes where the came in untouched to pound the WV QB.

Team speed did not seem to be a problem whatsoever last night.
 

A_Slab_of_Bacon said:
I was worried the defense would be the weakness going into the season.

NOPE!
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No doubt! Fleck's system is coming into place. Play a stout D, run the ball well, win time of possession battle and don't turn the ball over. It is not always the most fun to watch, but it works!

The athletes we have here now seem to be a notch better than any time I can remember watching Gopher football also. These guys can move.
 

Go Gophs said:
No doubt! Fleck's system is coming into place. Play a stout D, run the ball well, win time of possession battle and don't turn the ball over. It is not always the most fun to watch, but it works!

The athletes we have here now seem to be a notch better than any time I can remember watching Gopher football also. Of course there are outlier seasons, but overall, these guys can move.
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I complain at times about vanilla offense, but I'd much rather watch the Gophs style of football (traditional Big Ten style?) than the basketball on grass seen in the Big12 and Pac12 with spread offenses and midgets on defense.
 

FormerFatOL said:
I complain at times about vanilla offense, but I'd much rather watch the Gophs style of football (traditional Big Ten style?) than the basketball on grass seen in the Big12 and Pac12 with spread offenses and midgets on defense.
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I'm way old and was never much of a football player, but as much as the game has changed stylistically, football still boils down to knocking people over more than you get knocked over. Basketball on grass can put up some eye-popping statistical numbers, but sooner or later defenses catch up with that and the game swings back to its core principles (At least at the college level. Pros are a somewhat different animal.).
 


I've never seen the UMN with a more athletic front 7, especially defensive line. It was surreal. I also think Oliver is going to have a monster year next year. even though we are losing Gibbons. That kid is a heat seeking missile
 

To do what Rossi has done... the eye test looks good, but stats don't lie... one of the best defenses in the country consistently all year. So excited about the Defense going forward.
 

WriterGoph said:
Quick guess (before any additional portal additions) what our 2022 starting defense looks like:

S - Howden
S - Nubin
CB - Walley
CB - Stapp
CB - Bishop
LB - MSM
LB - Oliver
DE - Rush
DT - Carter
DT - Richter
DE - Joyner

Outside of Joyner, there is a lot of college experience in that lineup. I like that. What I like even more is how excited I feel about the young players behind these guys (in no particular order):

Safety - Dixon and Darius Green
CBs - Glaze, Ortiz, Miles Fleming, Solomon Brown (T Smith maybe still around too?)
LBs - Willis, Burns, Finnessy, Lindenberg, Devon Williams
DT - Schuster, Keys, McCoy, Eastern
DE - Logan-Redding, Booker, Striggow

I'm sure I've forgotten a couple, but overall, the younger players in the second group are the ones with the higher upside (if you listen to recruiting analysts/ratings) and impressive P5 offers for the most part. These are the years we have been recruiting better, so it'll be great to see these players with another spring ball and fall camp.

But I think there is gonna be some great competition for playing time. I also know I feel confident in what Joe Rossi can do with this bunch and (despite a lot of change on the DL), I feel great about the Gopher D headed into 2022.
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plus throw in Smith/Bixby/Schwartz as true freshman along the Dline and there will be a ton of talent along the Dline....

And i think that CB position group is going to be a dog fight to get snaps...the 3 you have penciled in sure seem to be the guys on paper....but looking forward to Glaze/Ortiz/Fleming pushing them as well. Add in 3 true freshman behind them as well.

man the Dline and CB positions are as deep as we have ever been at those positions and i dont think its close
 


Urbandale said:
Oliver had himself an absolute GAME last night. He was everywhere, and disrupted plays even when he wasn’t in on the tackle. He’ll be fun to watch at LB next year.
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yeah Oliver sure showed up late in the season and again last night...hes fun to watch
 



The bowl win was the 7th straight game of the Gophers holding opponents to under 300 yards. Two teams (Ohio State and Purdue) racked up over 400 yards on the Gophers and two teams (Miami OH and Nebraska) totaled over 300. All the rest were under 300. Also held 9 of the 13 teams to under 20 points with the exceptions being OSU, Miami OH, Nebraska, and Iowa.
 

So fun last night to see our D flying to the ball...our closing in on ball carriers...pass catchers...so unlike the past. Sound tackling as well.
 


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