People are dreaming about the defense!

[gold04]

There is no way the defense is going to be better this year. I hope people are right but I just can't see it. Our linebackers will be terrible. We won't have a pass rush and our corners will get burned all the time. I wish our defense would be the best in the Big Ten but I can't even see us being better than last year. Last years defense was under rated. Their stats at times were not good but they were on the field the whole time. Gophers are not a reloading team, they need to rebuild. Maybe next year the defense will be okay.

People are down on this years offense but I think they will be suprisingly good. Weber will have a stellar year. The O-line will be dominant, and the recievers will be lightning fast. The running backs will run by everyone. Maybe not that good, but I think the offense will be suprisingly good.

 

[GopherHomer]

I don't want to get in a fight about it, but I disagree. I admit that I could end up being wrong about the defense, but I just think there is too much talent for them to be horrible. I worry some about our secondary...I don't think Royston was very good before breaking his leg. Last year's defense main liability was their speed...not going to be a problem this year. This all being said, though, with the schedule we have there will still be games that we give up a lot of yards and points...it's a fact of college football

 

[Go Gophers Rah]

Gold04...

I appreciate your view, but wouldn't you have said the same thing last August?

I sure wasn't telling anyone that Nate Triplett and Lee Campbell would play as well as they did or that our defense would be FAR better than our offense. Especially given that we had a new coordinator.

Personally, I think our defense will hold up their part of the deal. They won't be stellar, but they won't receive 99% of the blame for losses like the '09 offense did.
It is typical for defenses to get their sea legs earlier in the season than offenses. My hope is that our defense will practice good fundamentals and not give up too many big plays in the first 3-5 games while the offense has a chance to jel.

Just my opinion.

Go Gophers!

 

[Schnoodler]

I don't know Gold, we're more talented and deeper everywhere. We just lack experience. We've been waiting for this group for a couple of years now. We lost Maresh sure, and we were looking forward to seeing him, but he had the biggest ? marks of the group because fo the surgery and other issues. So I really can't see what changed so much that we now aren't supposed to be excited about this group of kids. Last years group was placeholders for this group. We were lucky they performed well, but their goor performance didn't diminish what we were waiting for. We've been waiting and we're excited. The only real question is when they will be good, not if.

 

[gold04]

Last years defense performed very well at times. They gave up twenty points at PSU while being on the field the whole time. At Iowa they gave up 12 points while our offense could not move the ball period. I know at times our defense was dissappointing last year but for the most part they played pretty well. I hope I'm wrong about this years defense but time will only tell.

 

[mkAz]

People are down on this years offense but I think they will be suprisingly good. Weber will have a stellar year. The O-line will be dominant, and the recievers will be lightning fast. The running backs will run by everyone. Maybe not that good, but I think the offense will be suprisingly good.

Won't an improved offense also help out the defense???

 

[jovs]

Relative inexperience on the line could be a factor. Lets hope they find a way to win the first couple of games while developing the game day experience.

I think Tinsley is going to be key, if he is eligible and able to play the linebackers will probably be decent. Without him they are in trouble.

 

[gold04]

An improved offense will definetly help the defense. I just think our defense will struggle because these guys are young. I think next year they could be good but not that good this year.

 

[auric@heart]

I would disagree. The defense will be much the same, with experience that no one seems to see. Jewahn Edwards can be the key to the defense. He is a special talent, and I believe will play at a higher level this year. Kirksey his wingman saw extensive playing time last year and he will be more than reliable. When you think back to recruiting a couple years ago, Mr. Hageman was a highly valued recruit. Having seen him play at Washburn, he was very good on both sides of the ball. If he starts, we will be bigger, stronger, quicker than last year. Mr. Whilhite showed flashes of what you look for in a rush end. Those 4 are what will make or break this defense. There is some depth in players like Anthony Jacobs, another highly recruited player. There are two question marks in the back 7. Tinsley and Theret. Will they be in there? Tinsley is a bigger Campbell, equally physical. Theret and Royston could be one of the best safety tandems in the Big 10. The idea that Rallis can replace Triplett is not a reach, and Cooper backed up Lawerence last year. Its time for them to step in to spot light. The corners, Carter is everything you could want in press corner. Collado not so much.

I have to say there is more talent on the defensive side of the ball.

 

[gold04]

Maybe Cosgrove will prove once again why he was a good hire!

 

[JoeDirt]

I'm excited to see the progression throughout the season. The Gophers do have a lot of talent on the D, add in some experience and they could be very good by week 9.

 

[Bayfieldgopher]

Many of the D players being counted on this Fall saw a decent amount of PT in 08.. And they held their own for the most part. I like the potential of the D compared to that of the O which are mostly returnee's from an ineffective unit with one more year of experience. No question we need improved play from all 22 starters and ST's otherwise it could be a long year.

 

[nsmike]

J Edwards showed flashes of being dominant on the line I think he'll be an absolute monster this year. Both Edwards and Kirsey rotated enough that experience will not be a problem at DT. Jacobs has some experience and should be fine in the DL rotation the biggest question mark will be if Ferguson can step up and play well enough to give Edwards a breather. He looked good in the spring so I think we're OK there. The DEs will be at least as good as last year and have the potential to be much better. The expected starting LBs all rotated in and played last year. Rallis looked good playing safety in the box before he broke his leg, Tinsley was a monster in the Iowa game and Cooper sometimes looked better than Lawrence. Something a lot of people don't know is Hill often took Scout Team POW. Reeves will push both Cooper and Rallis for a starting position. C. Lewis looked real good last spring filling in for Theret as a combination CB/S he provides a great option if Collado doesn't work out opposite Carter. I think the starting DB's are as good as last year but depth is a concern. Even though they are young I thing better athleticism will cancel out the inexperience.

 

[Plinnius]

An improved offense will definetly help the defense. I just think our defense will struggle because these guys are young. I think next year they could be good but not that good this year.

If we suck this year, why would we be any good next year?

 

[Stargenes]

If we suck this year, why would we be any good next year?

I somewhat agree with you, but I would not quite state it that way. The Defense will be just as good as it was last year, however, we should have better 3rd down defense. The D in '09 just could not get off the field enough because of its inability to shut people down on 3rd down.

The Offense, on the other hand, better be better because the personnel can not get any more experienced. As long as Weber makes good decisions with the football and the Oline holds up strong, that unit will do very well. We do hae a little depth issues to work through in the secondary but maybe one or two true frosh have to play and we can have that resolved. We benefited greatly this Spring when Watkins and Lewis loaded up with reps and it appeared that Watkins is even good enough to be the Starter. So yes, I agree; we will be fine this year and even better next year defensively.

 

[bankonit]

Kirksey and Edwards are going to blow up and be 2 of the better DT's in the entire Big Ten. Tinsley is much better than Campbell and faster. Our LB's will be much improved from last year with Tinsley and Cooper as full time starters. I agree with the poster who said that last years players were basically place holders for a lot of our better defensive players who will explode onto the scene this year as full time starters.

 

[RodentRampage]

Won't an improved offense also help out the defense???

+1 any improvement on the offense makes the defense look better.

I don't know how good the defense is. Neither does the OP, who seems to swing from irrational exuberance to the pits of despair. We have new starters on defense. That's the extent of the evidence. To say we are "dreaming" if we think the defense will be
OK implies that the OP has actual information that the defense will be bad.

Kool Aid comes in many flavors. To defense is an unknown, but to assume that that means the defense will be awful is just another flavor of Kool Aid.

 

[ButchNashGuy]

Our defense is inexperienced but more talented and athletic than what we have been used to. The other advantage we have this year is consistency with the coaching staff and philosophy. We have guys that had some PT last year but even if they didn't they were learning the system that should help. On offense, we were awful last year with a couple exceptions. We are experienced but supposedly Horton has been able to keep the basics the same with out the "fischiness" of last year. I don't think our talent on offense is as bad as we had thought including Weber. I just don't think they knew what they were doing half the time.

 

[RodentRampage]

There is no way the defense is going to be better this year. I hope people are right but I just can't see it.

That indicates a lack of vision.

Our linebackers will be terrible.

On what do you base this?

We won't have a pass rush and our corners will get burned all the time.

Again, on what do you base this?

It's one thing for you to think the defense will be worse. But when you say we're "dreaming" if we don't think it will be terrible, that means you are saying you have some special knowledge, and to think otherwise is to think contrary to well-established reality.

The defense could be bad, or it could be better. There are unknowns, but it is a mistake to think that unknowns must turn out bad.

 

[[censored]]

There is no way the defense is going to be better this year. I hope people are right but I just can't see it. Our linebackers will be terrible. We won't have a pass rush and our corners will get burned all the time. I wish our defense would be the best in the Big Ten but I can't even see us being better than last year. Last years defense was under rated. Their stats at times were not good but they were on the field the whole time. Gophers are not a reloading team, they need to rebuild. Maybe next year the defense will be okay.

People are down on this years offense but I think they will be suprisingly good. Weber will have a stellar year. The O-line will be dominant, and the recievers will be lightning fast. The running backs will run by everyone. Maybe not that good, but I think the offense will be suprisingly good.

What I find interesting about people with your kind of perception is the complete lack of lack thereof with regard to how a good offense helps a defense. You say the defense will be worse, but the offense will be better. Well guess what... they are related. You hinted at the fact that the two are related in your post with the phrase "but they were on the field the whole time", but then your opinion blantantly ignores the simple fact that a better offense (see third down conversion) will lead to a fresher/better defense. I think the defensive talent is there and we'll see it before too long. And I hope the offense improves (specifically third down conversions) so that the defense will not be on the field the majority of the game. Personally I think the offense will improve (how could it not?), and the defense will not fall off from their performance last season. If anything, I see a good chance for marked improvement with some of the younger and more talented players getting a shot to contribute.

But again a good offense helps the defense and vice a versa. Your post just smacked of complete ignorance of that notion, so I had to speak up.

*Edit. Your first post was one of those that makes me respond without even reading the rest of the thread. Reading through it after I posted this I see that you acknowledge how a better offense will help the defense. So forgive me.