Matt Garin....is this the year?

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CWCWCW

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I was excited when Garin decided to come to Minnesota. He got plenty of early playing time, but was just too light to make a difference. Last year, there was a thread asking who would benefit most with a change to Coach Kill. I picked Garin. He played some last year, but still seemed to be overmatched in most cases.
Will this be a breakout year, or will he be passed by? When Kill has mentions standouts on defense, I've never heard him speak his name.
If there is a need for a "come from nowhere" type of player, it's the defensive line. If not Matt, hopefully our next Schlect or Riley is on our squad this year.
 

I think it'll be tough for him. I don't think he is going to have much luck breaking the 2-deep. I'd obviously love to see the kid start making an impact but he's really going to have to come a long ways to start being an impact player.
 

It would be nice to see Garin make a leap forward, but not much is ever heard about him. Right now it seems that Amaefula and Wilhite will be 1/2 at Right DE, and Perry/Cockran 1/2 (not sure which order, it sounds like Cockran was playing with the 1s by the end of spring) on the left side.
 

I think it is just a case that his "lights haven't come on" yet at the B1G level. Remember Nate Triplett? This whole team has the potential to ignite. Or not for that matter. Mature leadership is important. We just don't know how much we are going to get this year. I hate having to be patient. I wish the first game was Saturday.
 

Needs to move to LB and work on quickness/flexibility IMO. Didn't look like a natural DE to me and looked like tried to add too much weight. Didn't really show any rush moves and easily moved around relatively easily at DE IMO.

Should be a LB.
 


Seems like he's lost in the shuffle. Cochran and Amaefula are the ends of the future.
 

Do not see a breakout year for Garin. He has seemed lost when on the field and just does not appear to have Big Ten or maybe even D1 talent.
 

Just to kind of add onto what I already said, he looks to be 3rd at best on the depth chart. He is supposedly a really nice kid, he's done a lot of charity type things (I remember a segment Doogie did with him) and all that, so I am definitely pulling for him.

However, FireCosgroveGuy hit the nail on the head, he doesn't look natural at DE. Maybe he would be better served to move to MLB, I don't really know. He has similar size of Beal and it's a position that is thin on our squad. I have no idea if he can make that transition. Either way, I hope he catches on at whatever position he plays.
 




Bob_Loblaw said:
Just to kind of add onto what I already said, he looks to be 3rd at best on the depth chart. He is supposedly a really nice kid, he's done a lot of charity type things (I remember a segment Doogie did with him) and all that, so I am definitely pulling for him.

However, FireCosgroveGuy hit the nail on the head, he doesn't look natural at DE. Maybe he would be better served to move to MLB, I don't really know. He has similar size of Beal and it's a position that is thin on our squad. I have no idea if he can make that transition. Either way, I hope he catches on at whatever position he plays.
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+2 That is assuming that he could/ would be willing to play MLB. I think he could be a decent run stuffing LB in the right scheme. I will say however that there is still time. He may just turn it on in a big way this season. Some players just need to grow into their bodies and the position.
 

Yep, that's a great point STP. We have become so accustomed to judging players early in their careers (because we've been forced to play so many youngsters) that sometimes we forget that a guy like Garin is only going to be a JR. There are countless examples of good football players who didn't do much before they were Juniors.
 

When I visit Goph practices, I spend more time on the DL practices than anywhere else. For straight line speed MG is great in drills, maybe the best of the DEs, but he does not seem to excel on any other aspects oif the position. I don't know if the issue is instincts or what. There is no lack of physical talent, but he does not seem to progress as a player.
 

He's not good enough to play right now.

He could stick kick everybody's asses who's ever posted on GH though.
 



I to have thought of Garin as a middle linebacker type , because he is light for a DE

You have to be really fast at his size or really strong. He Garin is in between.
He seems like a sprinter with good straightline speed but not good hip movement or the ability to pull up and chase down the back from the back side. He should be on kick coverage as the guy that blast
the wall. He seems best when he is just running forward and blitzing off the line or filling a gap. I to would have him drop weight and be a blitzing linebacker for fall camp in an ideal world. Problem is we lack D-line depth and that has been where he has played. On the line he get's eaten up because
he is not strong enough to over power and shed the tackle and doesn't have the long arms you need to get seperation. He likes to speed rush, one thing he is for that part is a speed guy, he has natural quickness, to the outside but takes such long routes and sharp angles to get to the QB that he often vacates his gap and they just cut back and run right against it.

Would he be a good fulltime MLB , not right now, he has never been in that spot, that, and because he doesn't seem to adjust well to changes in the play or change of direction plays at the line, that is his biggest weakness as a lineman he doesn't know when to break off his pass rush and close down on the back that is cutting back his way, if he would make that adjustment shut down the running game as much as the pass rush he would play. He is a guy that you can key on, and know for the most part on film he doesn't make the adjustment in his pass rush at this point in time.

I like the guy, he plays really hard but if he wants to be a starter he is going to have to start recognizing the cutback before it develops.
 


gopherdudepart2 said:
You have to be really fast at his size or really strong. He Garin is in between.
He seems like a sprinter with good straightline speed but not good hip movement or the ability to pull up and chase down the back from the back side. He should be on kick coverage as the guy that blast
the wall. He seems best when he is just running forward and blitzing off the line or filling a gap. I to would have him drop weight and be a blitzing linebacker for fall camp in an ideal world. Problem is we lack D-line depth and that has been where he has played. On the line he get's eaten up because
he is not strong enough to over power and shed the tackle and doesn't have the long arms you need to get seperation. He likes to speed rush, one thing he is for that part is a speed guy, he has natural quickness, to the outside but takes such long routes and sharp angles to get to the QB that he often vacates his gap and they just cut back and run right against it.

Would he be a good fulltime MLB , not right now, he has never been in that spot, that, and because he doesn't seem to adjust well to changes in the play or change of direction plays at the line, that is his biggest weakness as a lineman he doesn't know when to break off his pass rush and close down on the back that is cutting back his way, if he would make that adjustment shut down the running game as much as the pass rush he would play. He is a guy that you can key on, and know for the most part on film he doesn't make the adjustment in his pass rush at this point in time.

I like the guy, he plays really hard but if he wants to be a starter he is going to have to start recognizing the cutback before it develops.
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I don't think Garin is light for DE. He is our largest DE (tied with DL Wilhite). He is 250 lbs.

But other than that, I agree with your post about him at MLB.
 


Garin did see time at TE in HS and that is probably the position he's best suited for if he makes a position switch. He really is a solid athlete. Maybe a little stiff in the hips for the defensive side of the ball, but i've always felt a move to TE could be beneficial for him. He can catch, he can run and he can block.
 

By now, if Garin could play LB, he would have been moved. He's not fast enough - period.

It's not just the physical part of the game - he has been caught out of position way, way too often for someone who has played as much as he has. Watching him play drives me nuts.

Maybe the light will come on, but it hasn't to date. It sounds like he's a good kid, which is great, but he hasn't shown to be a B10 caliber player.
 

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