Jones cleared for Spring Practice

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Great news. Good job in the classroom Mr. Jones!!
 


ORLANDO, FLA. -- The Gophers held their first Florida practice today in preparation for the Citrus Bowl, and Star Tribune photographer Liz Flores and I made it just in time to see it. The team allowed photo and video access for the first 20 minutes, so we'll wrap some of that into tonight's coverage.
Some quick jottings off practice:
* Gophers coach Jerry Kill confirmed that running back Jeff Jones finished the fall semester with a high enough GPA (Jones needed a 2.5 or above) to gain eligibility for spring practice. Sid Hartman had this news in his Sunday column. The Gophers were just waiting for the grades to become official, and now that's a done deal.
* Drew Wolitarsky, who missed the last four games with a sprained ankle, looked very good running drills. Kill said Wolitarsky is good to go for the bowl game.
* Kill said offensive tackle Ben Lauer, who has been out with mono, would have a limited role, at the most, in the bowl game. That limits the Gophers depth. They have Josh Campion and Jonah Pirsig starting at tackle, and those two will have their hands full against Missouri's defensive ends.
* It was overcast at Freedom High School but a very comfortable 72 degrees. Temperatures are expected to be in the low 80's the next three days.
 



hungan1 said:
Can you copy & paste the article? I don't read the Strib or give them clicks.
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If they wrote something that interests you, visit the site and give them credit for what they put out. Do you look into the windows of stores you don't like and ask them to give you a free shirt if you see one you like among the ones you don't?
 

Ski U Master said:
If they wrote something that interests you, visit the site and give them credit for what they put out. Do you look into the windows of stores you don't like and ask them to give you a free shirt if you see one you like among the ones you don't?
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station19 said:
If you don't want them to get the clicks don't read the articles.........very simple.
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Good points. I suppose hungan1 is curious about what the largest newspaper in the Twin Cities is writing, but also is, like me, making a philosophical decision to boycott the sTrib. No harm in him asking, but in attacking him and defending them you seem to be taking sides. I know which one I'm on.
 

killme said:
Good points. I suppose hungan1 is curious about what the largest newspaper in the Twin Cities is writing, but also is, like me, making a philosophical decision to boycott the sTrib. No harm in him asking, but in attacking him and defending them you seem to be taking sides. I know which one I'm on.
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Seem to?
 

Great news re: Jones. The best recruit we've had in the modern era...really excited to see the competition at RB this spring and next year. It's pretty amazing to think that we're losing Cobb, who just had the single greatest rushing season in Gopher history and is the 7th all-time leading rusher in school history, and we should be just as good next year.
 



John Galt said:
Great news re: Jones. The best recruit we've had in the modern era...really excited to see the competition at RB this spring and next year. It's pretty amazing to think that we're losing Cobb, who just had the single greatest rushing season in Gopher history and is the 7th all-time leading rusher in school history, and we should be just as good next year.
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Cobb= proven commodity
Jones = hasn't played a snap of college FB yet.

As I see it, the Gophers potentially might be just as good next year, but saying they should be as good is making an assumption that, at this point, is unsupported by the facts in evidence.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Cobb= proven commodity
Jones = hasn't played a snap of college FB yet.

As I see it, the Gophers potentially might be just as good next year, but saying they should be as good is making an assumption that, at this point, is unsupported by the facts in evidence.
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He also hasn't been on the practice field for a year. I think, like the NFL, RB is a position that is pretty easy to fill, but there are just a small percentage that really do something special. Cobb, with his YAC, is one of those elite commodities. But, I'm confident our RB production won't diminish next year.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Cobb= proven commodity
Jones = hasn't played a snap of college FB yet.

As I see it, the Gophers potentially might be just as good next year, but saying they should be as good is making an assumption that, at this point, is unsupported by the facts in evidence.
Click to expand...

This is college football. Teams lose 8 starters on defense and expectations stay the same. Losing a running back in a sport where running backs are a dime a dozen should not alter expectations much. Wisconsin is losing a Heisman finalist and they aren't sweating as much as some of us are over losing Cobb.
 




I don't know if he has been able to be in the training facility. Lifting, conditioning, et al. But his work in the classroom is commendable. He did everything they asked, and to their credit the staff did what they could for him. He from what I remember features an unbelievable jump cut, and explosion out of the cut. Whether that translates we will see.
 

afurry91 said:
This is college football. Teams lose 8 starters on defense and expectations stay the same. Losing a running back in a sport where running backs are a dime a dozen should not alter expectations much. Wisconsin is losing a Heisman finalist and they aren't sweating as much as some of us are over losing Cobb.
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That's because Wisconsin has another great running back waiting in the wings. And, ELITE running backs are not a dime a dozen.
 


Here is the entirety of the "article":

ORLANDO, FLA. -- The Gophers held their first Florida practice today in preparation for the Citrus Bowl, and Star Tribune photographer Liz Flores and I made it just in time to see it. The team allowed photo and video access for the first 20 minutes, so we'll wrap some of that into tonight's coverage.
Some quick jottings off practice:
* Gophers coach Jerry Kill confirmed that running back Jeff Jones finished the fall semester with a high enough GPA (Jones needed a 2.5 or above) to gain eligibility for spring practice. Sid Hartman had this news in his Sunday column. The Gophers were just waiting for the grades to become official, and now that's a done deal.
* Drew Wolitarsky, who missed the last four games with a sprained ankle, looked very good running drills. Kill said Wolitarsky is good to go for the bowl game.
* Kill said offensive tackle Ben Lauer, who has been out with mono, would have a limited role, at the most, in the bowl game. That limits the Gophers depth. They have Josh Campion and Jonah Pirsig starting at tackle, and those two will have their hands full against Missouri's defensive ends.
* It was overcast at Freedom High School but a very comfortable 72 degrees. Temperatures are expected to be in the low 80's the next three days.


I felt so dirty clicking that link.
 

killme said:
Good points. I suppose hungan1 is curious about what the largest newspaper in the Twin Cities is writing, but also is, like me, making a philosophical decision to boycott the sTrib. No harm in him asking, but in attacking him and defending them you seem to be taking sides. I know which one I'm on.
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Only taking the side of getting compensated for doing work. If you want to boycott the Strib because your feelings got hurt that they don't write enough fluff pieces about the Gophers that's fine, but then don't want it both ways when they do write something of interest. The Gophers earned the lack of coverage they got in the past, and now they are earning the press they are starting to get.
 

I think people are boycotting the strib because of souhan. Pretty understandable.


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jmag21 said:
I think people are boycotting the strib because of souhan. Pretty understandable.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Don't let facts get in the way of Ski U Master's soap box.
 

It is very Minnesotan to look at the most athletic RB (my opinion) recruit in decades and worry that he won't be any good. Peak Minnesotan, as Matt Humbert would say.

He'll get by on athleticism alone; whether he has Cobb's incredible durability, toughness, and nose for the hole remain to be seen. I'm not concerned he'll flop, that's a very low probability. I think he was actually as underrated as a RB recruit as Michigan's Derrick Green was comically overrated.

With the big blocking WRs we have (woli) and coming in (holland) the simple swing pass to a back like Jones will be exciting, or screens. Out with one weapon (Maxx), in with another.
 

jmag21 said:
I think people are boycotting the strib because of souhan. Pretty understandable.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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And probably wishing the Strib would go broke. Never mind there are hundreds of other people working there.........But hey, I still want to read the articles.
 

Ski U Master said:
Only taking the side of getting compensated for doing work. If you want to boycott the Strib because your feelings got hurt that they don't write enough fluff pieces about the Gophers that's fine, but then don't want it both ways when they do write something of interest. The Gophers earned the lack of coverage they got in the past, and now they are earning the press they are starting to get.
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Not sure where you got the impression my feelings were hurt by sTrib's lack of fluff. jmag21 obviously has been paying attention. It's not that hard to figure out.
Section2 said:
Not without the staff, but he has practiced. He will be way ahead of a freshman.
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I agree he will be ahead of the incoming freshmen, mostly due to acclimation to college, and work in the weight room, but I don't understand your first sentence. I'm pretty sure he isn't allowed to be with the team or be involved in workouts in the weight room. I don't think the coaches, including Eric Klein, can work with him.
 


Pompous Elitist said:
It is very Minnesotan to look at the most athletic RB (my opinion) recruit in decades and worry that he won't be any good. Peak Minnesotan, as Matt Humbert would say.

He'll get by on athleticism alone; whether he has Cobb's incredible durability, toughness, and nose for the hole remain to be seen. I'm not concerned he'll flop, that's a very low probability. I think he was actually as underrated as a RB recruit as Michigan's Derrick Green was comically overrated.

With the big blocking WRs we have (woli) and coming in (holland) the simple swing pass to a back like Jones will be exciting, or screens. Out with one weapon (Maxx), in with another.
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My only concern is his blocking ability, which we know nothing about at this point. That will be the one thing that will keep him from 20-25 carries a game, just like it was mentioned in the past kept Cobb out initially. I hope he's stellar at it from the get go.
 


frozengopher said:
My only concern is his blocking ability, which we know nothing about at this point. That will be the one thing that will keep him from 20-25 carries a game, just like it was mentioned in the past kept Cobb out initially. I hope he's stellar at it from the get go.
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Agreed. I'm making the assumption he will have his head screwed on right. Sometimes getting away from home is good, sometimes it's bad depending on friends and other influences. If not, all bets are off.

He's a physical player and seems to like contact. If he can learn, he can block.
 

frozengopher said:
My only concern is his blocking ability, which we know nothing about at this point. That will be the one thing that will keep him from 20-25 carries a game, just like it was mentioned in the past kept Cobb out initially. I hope he's stellar at it from the get go.
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He could be the best pass blocker in the world and we'd still complete 52% of our passes, so I don't see the big deal. Lol. Throw him out there for better or worse.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

killme said:
I agree he will be ahead of the incoming freshmen, mostly due to acclimation to college, and work in the weight room, but I don't understand your first sentence. I'm pretty sure he isn't allowed to be with the team or be involved in workouts in the weight room. I don't think the coaches, including Eric Klein, can work with him.
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Your wrong on the weight room he's allowed contact with the weight coach, nutritionist,and tutoring/academic support team. I'm not sure if he can workout with the team in the weight room but he is being supervised.
 

GopherSteak said:
Did he get redshirted this year?
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Sorry, that question along with *********** is banned at the GopherHole. Also please do not bring up star ranking systems. If you follow those rules you will make the world a better place.
 

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