Official 2014 Spring Football Thread: Articles, Tweets, Analysis & More...

Donate To GopherHole
Donovan said:
I was at the practice today. The kickers were out early, and all looked good kicking, especially Santoso. However, later they practiced field goals with a live scrimmage, and nearly every kick was off target. Amazing what a little pressure does.
Click to expand...

Which other kickers stood out? Does anyone know who is in contention to start besides Santoso?
 

McPeePants said:
Which other kickers stood out? Does anyone know who is in contention to start besides Santoso?
Click to expand...

I have no clue who is actually in contention but I think I've noticed two other kickers. One seems to not have enough leg IMHO. I'm not sure he kick it 45 yards. The other seemed to have a respectable leg. I admit I am a little concerned about the accuracy of all of them.
 

zman said:
I have no clue who is actually in contention but I think I've noticed two other kickers. One seems to not have enough leg IMHO. I'm not sure he kick it 45 yards. The other seemed to have a respectable leg. I admit I am a little concerned about the accuracy of all of them.
Click to expand...

Andrew Harte was the next best from my eye test, and Justin Junemann was the other one taking kicks, but Santoso is in another level in terms of ability. In warmups he hit from 55, and on most of his kicks from 40 yards the ball was still going up. Legit NFL leg in terms of strength. I only saw him miss one in warmups outside of a 60-yarder.

He did hook a couple in a row in the "game situation" drill (as did everyone else), but if he isn't the starter I'll be absolutely shocked.
 

Ogee Oglethorpe said:
I'm a major Williams fan as well. Kind of shocked he didn't have his own break out year last year but he'll be fine moving forward.

The emergence of Cobb last year should have major ripple effects across the program/roster. Cobb showed everyone in the program that if you work hard and focus on your business, you can go from in the doghouse or almost forgotten to a major impact player/starter.

Let's see who steps out of the shadows this year!! Maybe it's even Williams, who knows
Click to expand...

Williams was poised for a breakout year last year, was getting a nice look in non-conference & then he got into Kill's doghouse & stayed there the rest of the year. Sounds like he took care of his business though & they're starting fresh this Spring.
 




STrib: Linebacker Poock's knee injury concerns Gophers

Cody Poock has established himself as a potential starting linebacker for the Gophers this spring after transferring from Iowa Western Community College. So there was obvious concern Saturday when Poock limped off the field because of a right knee injury.

Head trainer Ed Lochrie accompanied Poock to the training room, then returned to update head coach Jerry Kill and linebackers coach Mike Sherels.

“I know it’s a knee [injury], but I don’t know the severity of it,” Kill said. “So we’ll find that out. You don’t want anybody to ever get banged up.”

http://www.startribune.com/sports/253053551.html

Go Gophers!!
 

Defensive line was very quick. Your going to love the defensive backs next fall.
Shut down man to man, no problem.
Big crowd at practice.
 

diefirma said:
I just want to echo what Johnny Gopher posted in a different thread. I agree with everything and would add a few items.

McKinzy is talented but looked very raw - like all QBs do when they first come in.

Leidner looks like the real deal. He is clearly the number one and his workouts with the wide receivers are showing. We WILL have a passing attack in the fall. I don’t know how good it will be, but it will definitely be better, with the potential to be very good.

Steveler also looked good although in my mind he is the clear number two. Steveler is fairly fast and if he ever breaks contain he will do some damage to the other team. I would expect him to get a lot of playing time in the first two games and whenever feasible during the season. With just a little bit of real game experience he can be a number two we won’t have to worry about.

Rhoda is good and not far behind Steveler but is a clear number three.

Of note to me was both Leidner and Steveler threw some VERY ACCURATE long passes. If the Gophers can hit one or two of those every game (or 20 for that matter) it will greatly loosen up the defenses.

Edwards is fast - Abdullah, Mark, Gorden fast. Just having him run jet sweeps will make defenses adjust and also loosen up defenses.

The receivers as a group looked pretty good to me. I know Kill recruits kids with good hands but I couldn’t tell if they were making catches because they had good hands or because the balls from the QB’s were on target. It is amazing how good a receiver can be if the ball hits him in the hands.

The pass D looked really good to me. When the receivers didn’t catch the ball it was usually because a D back was swatting it away.

The running backs looked fresh. I thought both Kirkwood and Williams had some nice runs and I can see both of them playing - especially towards the end of games if we have a lead and are trying to run out the clock.

I focused mostly on the offense but I did note a couple of things about the defense. I have already mentioned the D backs but I also noticed Wilson looked good, and Campbell is tall and fast. I would expect both of them to have good years.

I don't think I have posted anything that isn't common knowledge but I just wanted to reinforce some observations
Click to expand...

Thank you! It's similar to what I saw as well when I went.
 



When you talk about fast, there is quick off the line, good straight line speed, ability to cut and not loose speed, and then there is that 5th gear run away from everyone speed. Few have that, and we have not seen it recently. I think Edwards has it.
 


die hard gopher said:
Sorry to go off topic with the video but seeing Wozniak at 0:20 playing out wide! Wow. I like that a lot and it shows that he will be more then just a blocker and be a legitimate threat in the receiving game and will probably stay at TE instead of just developing into another OT.
Click to expand...

So I haven't been following the team closely, and am still not familiar with everyone. For some reason, when I saw him, I was thinking it was Santoso.

And yes, I know, that makes no sense.
 

LB depth takes a hit, maybe an outside chance to get him back in October/November but I would bet he probably just takes the redshirt year.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Tough break for the <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Gophers&src=hash">#Gophers</a>. Hearing that OLB Cody Poock does indeed have a torn ACL and will have surgery once the swelling goes down.</p>— Ryan Burns (@RyanBurnsGI) <a href="https://twitter.com/RyanBurnsGI/statuses/450634849586397184">March 31, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 



<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>After looking over <a href="https://twitter.com/MikeSherels">@MikeSherels</a> practice notes, it appears his linebackers are good at "hugging"? <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23gophers&src=hash">#gophers</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23learninglingo&src=hash">#learninglingo</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23coachswife&src=hash">#coachswife</a></p>— Emily Sherels (@EmilySherels) <a href="https://twitter.com/EmilySherels/statuses/450808206550257665">April 1, 2014</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Go Gophers!!
 

Looks like the spring game won't be replayed on BTN until Sunday the 13th at 6:30 PM CST.
 

Aaaaaaah! Speed kills with Kill's 2014 class. Twelve signees have 4.6 40 or better.
 


The right move IMO:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>With Cody Poock out with a torn ACL, the <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Gophers&src=hash">#Gophers</a> played Jack Lynn at 1st-team outside LB today. He had been backing up Wilson at MLB.</p>— JoeChristensen (@JoeCStrib) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeCStrib/statuses/451144567929053184">April 1, 2014</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 


per the STrib:

Gophers' Lynn moved to OLB after teammate's injury

The Gophers were contemplating a position switch for Jack Lynn anyway. Cody Poock’s knee injury just sped up the process.

Lynn, a redshirt sophomore who had been backing up senior Damien Wilson at middle linebacker, moved into Poock’s outside linebacker spot with the first-team defense Tuesday.

It was the Gophers’ first practice since Saturday, when Poock tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.

“We had two [middle] linebackers playing really well, so we were going to work [Lynn] outside,” coach Jerry Kill said. “Jack’s really improved his athleticism, and you’re trying to get your best players on the field.

“We took a harder look at it [after Poock’s injury], and thought, ‘Hey, we need to do this sooner than we thought.’ ”

http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/253482991.html

Go Gophers!!
 

per the STrib:

Good offensive showing

Thursday’s 11-on-11 drills included a a 75-yard touchdown pass from Mitch Leidner to Donovahn Jones and a 70-yard touchdown run from Berkley Edwards.

“There’s no question that the execution offensively is getting better,” Kill said

http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/253849951.html

Go Gophers!!
 


per the STrib:

Ndondo-Lay making his mark

As a beat writer, I'll take any access I can get, of course. One under-the-radar player who has stood out to me this spring, for example, is Robert Ndondo-Lay. He's a redshirt junior defensive lineman from Minneapolis DeLaSalle who transferred to Minnesota last summer from Winona State.

He's a 6-5 athlete in a No. 69 jersey, and the tenacity he has charging the quarterback, if not the skill, reminds you a bit of Jared Allen. Ndondo-Lay has the size to play defensive tackle and the speed to play defensive end. He's had a ton of reps this spring with defensive end Hank Ekpe out with a virus and defensive tackle Shoobee Timms out with a hamstring injury.

"He is a high-motor guy; he plays hard," defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys said of Ndondo-Lay. "When you have his size and you play hard, it gives you an opportunity. And if he continues to develop like he has, he will give us a chance to rotate our front four like we’ve wanted to.

"He’s played a little bit of defensive end, and he’s played some defensive tackle. So he really could help us in either place, if we got into a jam. So he’ll have a role on the team by the time we get to the fall."

http://www.startribune.com/sports/blogs/253923621.html

Go Gophers!!
 


Ndondo-Lay, you say? Never heard of him. I had never heard of John Schlecht either. If I recall, he came out of nowhere (maybe St. Cloud St.?) and he turned into a great interior defensive lineman. Just like Claeys said, a high motor guy, he plays hard.
I know his name now. He has piqued my interest and I'll be watching him.
 

Killjoy said:
Click on the link below and then go down to "Gophers OC Matt Limegrover talks Spring Practice with Reusse" to hear the conversation.

http://www.1500espn.com/sportswire/gophers
Click to expand...

Leave it to Reusse to spend the majority of the interview talking about topics you can ask Limegrover at any time. I'd like to hear how the offense is looking, not the early enrollee process, high school QB's, etc. Maybe that's just me though.
 

Sounds like the offense is rolling early on in spring practice... that's great should we be worried about the defense then?
 

gopherhoopsguy said:
Sounds like the offense is rolling early on in spring practice... that's great should we be worried about the defense then?
Click to expand...

Today the defense looked solid through the first half of the possessions. Got some turnovers, stopped the offense fairly easily. The offense clicked on in the second half and was real fun to watch. Also the defense was laying some BIG hits today. BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGGGGGGGGGGGGGG hits.
 

Some big plays today were a long connection to Maye from Leidner, a 30+ yard TD run by Leidner, and a long TD run by Edwards. Seems like Berkley makes at least one big play every practice.
 


You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom