Post Game Thread: Gophers Bounce Back With Homecoming Win!

[MNVCGUY]

Good teams tailor the game plan to take advantage of weaknesses from one opponent to another. On balance they have an overall consistent strategy they play within all year based on their own talent. They don’t throw 51 times against one and 14 against another because “we didn’t need to throw.”

You play balanced every week so everything is clicking when you need it.

So what issues do you have with the offensive gameplan against Louisiana which saw us score 35 points, control the clock, and be up by 18 points late in the 4th quarter? We didn't throw a lot but were very efficient when we did.

And as to the second line we have that consistent strategy we play within all year based on our skill set and talent but some fans just don't like it because it involves running the ball a lot more than we pass it.

We may not throw a ton but outside of the North Carolina game we have actually been pretty successful when we have gone to the air.. Over the past 2 games Athan has completed nearly 80% of his passes.

 

[EG#9]

First of all, I am glad they won and the defense made some nice adjustments after a very shaky first half.

Offense:

We ran the ball 51 times for 201 yards for only 3.9 a carry and (almost more importantly) our long run of the day was 18 yards. That's just nowhere near good enough to spend 51 of your 65 offensive snaps running the ball. Lousiana, by comparision, ran for 27 times for 177 yards and 6.1 yards a carry. Take away the 52 yard TD run at the end of the game and they still ran the ball more efficiently than we did.

In the 2nd half we were gifted 3 short fields by the defense, here's what we did with them.

1st and 10 at their 47: Run for 2 yards
2nd and 8: Run for 1 yard
3rd and 7: Athan gets sacked
PUNT

1st and 10 at their 42: Run for 2 yards
2nd and 8: Run for 1 yard
3rd and 7: Athan gets absolutely crushed just after he releases a ball to Daniel Jackson for a huge conversion to the 28 yard line.

We'd go on to score after a shaky PI call gets us a first down at the 12.

1st and 10 at our 44: Run for 4 yards
2nd and 6: Run for 5 yards (Athan scramble)
3rd and 1: First down Athan "Philly Push"

1st and 10 at their 45: Run for a loss of 1
2nd and 11: Run for 2 yards
3rd and 9: Athan has a defender draped all over him and throws a pass to Crooms for 7 yards
4th and 2: PJ goes for it and the playaction to Jackson for the TD

We ran the ball on every 1st and 10 and also ran the ball (with no success) on 2nd and 8 twice and 2nd and 11. The two third down passes we completed were heavily contested by pass rush pressure and only one of the two resulted in a first down. This was a huge return to Fleck ball and as we've seen post 2019 it offers both a very low ceiling in terms of who we can beat and a very low floor as to who we can lose to. If that pass Athan completed to Crooms falls incomplete, we 100% punt the ball back to Louisiana and the one play that Fleck/Harbaugh/Simon/Whoever does get credit for (the pa pass to a wide open Jackson) never happens. Athan then finishes the day with 102 yards instead of 146 and the Gophers still likely win but more people are questioning things here. Athan made one poor throw in the 2nd half on a 3rd down slant, and one horrible read on the first half interception, but otherwise was very good. He was put in poor positions like I outlined, yet came through with 2 huge completions that changed the game. I would have much rather seen him get 25 opportunities against Louisiana to continue to improve rather than wait until Michigan where he's going to have to drop back 25 times.

I liked the addition of the "Philly push" to the short yardage package (sure would have been nice last week) but hated seeing the return of the Kramer version of the "Green Line". I will be interested to see if either is successful against high major defenses as our offense (for yet another year) is incredibly reliant on 3rd down short yardage run conversions.

Special Teams:

I don't know how Wenger can continue here. Redding has been the kick returner for like 16 games now and he doesn't know/understand the rules yet? He also had a return that failed to get to the 25 again which has happened way too frequently this year. Then we had yet another short field punt end in a touchback and on the flipside had a very short punt when we needed Crawford to boom one. I am not sure how we have not been able to upgrade the punter spot as a "developmental program" over the past 4 years. Finally we had Nubin make a rather reckless attempt to field the onside kick. I couldn't tell if we had a hands team out there or not (Daniel Jackson was on one side so I assume we did to a degree) but Coleman Bryson saved us from some unnecessary heartburn by getting on top of that ball. I am not sure why a veteran like Nubin would try to run up and field that ball well ahead of 10 yards, but it's very reminiscent to the Redding decision to catch the ball going out of bounds in the first quarter. There's just been way too many mistakes on special teams and far too few highlights for the entirety of Wenger's tenure.

 

[DCinOK]

I've been BSF's biggest fan, but now I'm thinking an old football cliche sums him up..."He looks good in a uniform...good enough to get you fired."

 

[WorkingMyTailOff]

I seem to recall us losing to Bowling Green a couple of years ago when we had a pretty good team.

He’s a troll. Louisiana is a solid team and their QB is talented. Those touchdown passes were all covered well by the Gophers’s defense, but perfect throws and catches by the Ragers.

 

[corcorangopher]

Even more pissed today about losing to Northworstern. Can’t be elite with recurrent mulligans.

 

[Word]

Even more pissed today about losing to Northworstern. Can’t be elite with recurrent mulligans.

So you would have been happier if we lost to Louisiana?

 

[BTChamp]

Brockington appears to be lost for the year as well.

Can't really follow the team too close where I am for now. What's up with him?

 

[gopherdudepart2]

Can't really follow the team too close where I am for now. What's up with him?

He got rolled up from behind when blocking for an Evans run just past first down marker. Brockington left the field on a vehicle with air cast and was on crutches second half. Looked like he hurt his ankle k8nd of severely.

 

[BTChamp]

He got rolled up from behind when blocking for an Evans run just past first down marker. Brockington left the field on a vehicle with air cast and was on crutches second half. Looked like he hurt his ankle k8nd of severely.

Thanks for the reply. That sucks. Really hoping for big things from him this year.

 

[PMWinSTP]

First of all, I am glad they won and the defense made some nice adjustments after a very shaky first half.

Offense:

We ran the ball 51 times for 201 yards for only 3.9 a carry and (almost more importantly) our long run of the day was 18 yards. That's just nowhere near good enough to spend 51 of your 65 offensive snaps running the ball. Lousiana, by comparision, ran for 27 times for 177 yards and 6.1 yards a carry. Take away the 52 yard TD run at the end of the game and they still ran the ball more efficiently than we did.

In the 2nd half we were gifted 3 short fields by the defense, here's what we did with them.

1st and 10 at their 47: Run for 2 yards
2nd and 8: Run for 1 yard
3rd and 7: Athan gets sacked
PUNT

1st and 10 at their 42: Run for 2 yards
2nd and 8: Run for 1 yard
3rd and 7: Athan gets absolutely crushed just after he releases a ball to Daniel Jackson for a huge conversion to the 28 yard line.

We'd go on to score after a shaky PI call gets us a first down at the 12.

1st and 10 at our 44: Run for 4 yards
2nd and 6: Run for 5 yards (Athan scramble)
3rd and 1: First down Athan "Philly Push"

1st and 10 at their 45: Run for a loss of 1
2nd and 11: Run for 2 yards
3rd and 9: Athan has a defender draped all over him and throws a pass to Crooms for 7 yards
4th and 2: PJ goes for it and the playaction to Jackson for the TD

We ran the ball on every 1st and 10 and also ran the ball (with no success) on 2nd and 8 twice and 2nd and 11. The two third down passes we completed were heavily contested by pass rush pressure and only one of the two resulted in a first down. This was a huge return to Fleck ball and as we've seen post 2019 it offers both a very low ceiling in terms of who we can beat and a very low floor as to who we can lose to. If that pass Athan completed to Crooms falls incomplete, we 100% punt the ball back to Louisiana and the one play that Fleck/Harbaugh/Simon/Whoever does get credit for (the pa pass to a wide open Jackson) never happens. Athan then finishes the day with 102 yards instead of 146 and the Gophers still likely win but more people are questioning things here. Athan made one poor throw in the 2nd half on a 3rd down slant, and one horrible read on the first half interception, but otherwise was very good. He was put in poor positions like I outlined, yet came through with 2 huge completions that changed the game. I would have much rather seen him get 25 opportunities against Louisiana to continue to improve rather than wait until Michigan where he's going to have to drop back 25 times.

I liked the addition of the "Philly push" to the short yardage package (sure would have been nice last week) but hated seeing the return of the Kramer version of the "Green Line". I will be interested to see if either is successful against high major defenses as our offense (for yet another year) is incredibly reliant on 3rd down short yardage run conversions.

Special Teams:

I don't know how Wenger can continue here. Redding has been the kick returner for like 16 games now and he doesn't know/understand the rules yet? He also had a return that failed to get to the 25 again which has happened way too frequently this year. Then we had yet another short field punt end in a touchback and on the flipside had a very short punt when we needed Crawford to boom one. I am not sure how we have not been able to upgrade the punter spot as a "developmental program" over the past 4 years. Finally we had Nubin make a rather reckless attempt to field the onside kick. I couldn't tell if we had a hands team out there or not (Daniel Jackson was on one side so I assume we did to a degree) but Coleman Bryson saved us from some unnecessary heartburn by getting on top of that ball. I am not sure why a veteran like Nubin would try to run up and field that ball well ahead of 10 yards, but it's very reminiscent to the Redding decision to catch the ball going out of bounds in the first quarter. There's just been way too many mistakes on special teams and far too few highlights for the entirety of Wenger's tenure.

Yeah the play calling with the short fields was classic Fleck. At least take a down field shot right away on one of those.

 

[Dakota2]

So what issues do you have with the offensive gameplan against Louisiana which saw us score 35 points, control the clock, and be up by 18 points late in the 4th quarter? We didn't throw a lot but were very efficient when we did.

And as to the second line we have that consistent strategy we play within all year based on our skill set and talent but some fans just don't like it because it involves running the ball a lot more than we pass it.

We may not throw a ton but outside of the North Carolina game we have actually been pretty successful when we have gone to the air.. Over the past 2 games Athan has completed nearly 80% of his passes.

You aren't listening. I know we beat Louisiana.

We will have tougher games ahead against teams that are physical. They can stop the run when they are fairly certain it is coming. Therefore, I advocate the balanced attack every game. I want the QB and receivers sharp all the time, not just if the game plan is suddenly different.

I would like to hear anyone argue that defense is not harder to play when it must cover all the field and not just a narrow area between the tackles.

By the way, we gained 9.2 yards per pass attempted Saturday. We gained 3.9 average on 51 runs.

 

[gopherdudepart2]

Winning football is fun to watch! Beats the alternative and sucking.

 

[GopherEnEspaña]

Either our DBs are talentless, or our DB coach needs to be changed out today.
Something...
these guys can't cover crap.

I think it's the former. Rossi got really lucky over the last few years with Winfield, a group of very good transfers, and 5th/6th year guys. We shouldn't have to be playing mediocre underclassman but here we are

 

[MNVCGUY]

You aren't listening. I know we beat Louisiana.

We will have tougher games ahead against teams that are physical. They can stop the run when they are fairly certain it is coming. Therefore, I advocate the balanced attack every game. I want the QB and receivers sharp all the time, not just if the game plan is suddenly different.

I would like to hear anyone argue that defense is not harder to play when it must cover all the field and not just a narrow area between the tackles.

By the way, we gained 9.2 yards per pass attempted Saturday. We gained 3.9 average on 51 runs.

So does balanced have to mean an equal number of attempts to you? Because to me 201 on the ground and 146 through the air against Louisiana is pretty balanced. Against Northwestern it was 244 on the ground and 153 through the air.

Passing game has been pretty dang effective the past 2 games. If we don't implode in the 4th quarter against Northwestern people would probably feel decent about where the offense is at overall following the rough game against North Carolina where Athan had a really bad game.

Athan's completion percentage over the past 2 games is up near 80%.

 

[Gophergrandpa]

You aren't listening. I know we beat Louisiana.

We will have tougher games ahead against teams that are physical. They can stop the run when they are fairly certain it is coming. Therefore, I advocate the balanced attack every game. I want the QB and receivers sharp all the time, not just if the game plan is suddenly different.

I would like to hear anyone argue that defense is not harder to play when it must cover all the field and not just a narrow area between the tackles.

By the way, we gained 9.2 yards per pass attempted Saturday. We gained 3.9 average on 51 runs.

Michigan allows under 90 rushing yards per game. It yields about double that in passing yards. Its DL members almost all are among the highest PFF graded in the nation. If our strategy is to run 75% of the time against Michigan, primarily confining our runs to the predictable, telegraphed, between-the-tackles variety, the Gophs will have to play the game of the year in order not to be slaughtered. Crawford’s foot will wear out. A balanced attack could well lead to more turnovers, and fail to eat the clock as effectively as PJ likes, but it is the risk the Gophers must take if we hope to win the game (rather than just control the extent of the loss). We need some explosive plays to have a chance. PJ and Harbaugh’s high school design running attack won’t cut it as our principal offensive weapon against the 2023 Michigan defense. We will need a complementary passing attack and, please, some unpredictability. And some luck. And special teams that, beyond Kesich, add some value. Go Gophers!

 

[Tlsbhansen]

In the investing world I think this would be referred to a "dead-cat bounce"

 

[Big Buds]

Really just sat back in the still strong September sun and watched this one. We did fine in the end but nothing to suggest anything easy from here now that non-conference is over.

And of course pleased with the win but would trade a W last week for the W this week in a heartbeat.

Loozanna was as advertised. Actually a stat heard coming in was a Sun Belt team had beat a FBS team each week so far. Only one Sun-FBS game today and that was us. Glad to break that streak.

Agree with title of thread this week is actually a bounce in the right direction. Last week was a bad bounce. Uffda factor for next week is off the charts.

SBC teams have beaten a P5 team every week leading up to this past Saturday. The SBC is FBS.

 

[MNVCGUY]

Michigan allows under 90 rushing yards per game. It yields about double that in passing yards. Its DL members almost all are among the highest PFF graded in the nation. If our strategy is to run 75% of the time against Michigan, primarily confining our runs to the predictable, telegraphed, between-the-tackles variety, the Gophs will have to play the game of the year in order not to be slaughtered. Crawford’s foot will wear out. A balanced attack could well lead to more turnovers, and fail to eat the clock as effectively as PJ likes, but it is the risk the Gophers must take if we hope to win the game (rather than just control the extent of the loss). We need some explosive plays to have a chance. PJ and Harbaugh’s high school design running attack won’t cut it as our principal offensive weapon against the 2023 Michigan defense. We will need a complementary passing attack and, please, some unpredictability. And some luck. And special teams that, beyond Kesich, add some value. Go Gophers!

This is not meant as a shot at you and far more of a general comment at a lot of the posts here, especially when they concern gameplanning and strategy.....

.....I really wonder sometimes just how dumb people believe coaches are. Coaches spend countless hours studying film and working with the players in an effort to put them in the best position to win. The strategy they go with on gameday is the one they feel has the best chance of working, not based on watching some games on TV but based on hours and hours of film study and of knowing our personnel and what they are and are not capable of doing. Plus countless hours studying what the other teams does and what their players are capable of.

I get second guessing moments in the game or decisions that are made on the fly but some of the comments in regards to preparation and gameplanning are just laughable.

 

[Gophergrandpa]

This is not meant as a shot at you and far more of a general comment at a lot of the posts here, especially when they concern gameplanning and strategy.....

.....I really wonder sometimes just how dumb people believe coaches are. Coaches spend countless hours studying film and working with the players in an effort to put them in the best position to win. The strategy they go with on gameday is the one they feel has the best chance of working, not based on watching some games on TV but based on hours and hours of film study and of knowing our personnel and what they are and are not capable of doing. Plus countless hours studying what the other teams does and what their players are capable of.

I get second guessing moments in the game or decisions that are made on the fly but some of the comments in regards to preparation and gameplanning are just laughable.

I don’t take it as a shot; didn’t mean to rile you. I certainly acknowledge that I have no standing—I lack the knowledge—to credibly second guess coaching game plans and decisions, as coaches know their team best and know what they think gives them the best shot to win. Two simple rejoinders: coaches themselves don’t operate with perfect knowledge, and coaches sometimes have tendencies—such as running a single running back into the ground until he breaks—that many knowledgeable folks and even other coaches might second guess. You don’t have to be an insider to know, however, that if the Gophs run the ball on 75% of plays against Michigan, even after/if we fall behind, it says a lot about what our coaches think about Athan and our receivers six games into the season. Athan has been pretty good and efficient the last two games. But he has thrown very few passes …

 

[Pompous Elitist]

This is not meant as a shot at you and far more of a general comment at a lot of the posts here, especially when they concern gameplanning and strategy.....

.....I really wonder sometimes just how dumb people believe coaches are. Coaches spend countless hours studying film and working with the players in an effort to put them in the best position to win. The strategy they go with on gameday is the one they feel has the best chance of working, not based on watching some games on TV but based on hours and hours of film study and of knowing our personnel and what they are and are not capable of doing. Plus countless hours studying what the other teams does and what their players are capable of.

I get second guessing moments in the game or decisions that are made on the fly but some of the comments in regards to preparation and gameplanning are just laughable.

By PJ‘s own admission he isn’t a details guy (18 ACT or whatever he says). We all get blinders sometimes if we don’t get honest feedback, like what you just dished out. Airing a desire for explosive plays, balanced attacks, avoiding predictability sound reasonable, right? Maybe they can’t deliver that right now. Michigan will be tough no matter what. Going down swinging is all we can ask for.

 

[Dakota2]

So does balanced have to mean an equal number of attempts to you? Because to me 201 on the ground and 146 through the air against Louisiana is pretty balanced. Against Northwestern it was 244 on the ground and 153 through the air.

Passing game has been pretty dang effective the past 2 games. If we don't implode in the 4th quarter against Northwestern people would probably feel decent about where the offense is at overall following the rough game against North Carolina where Athan had a really bad game.

Athan's completion percentage over the past 2 games is up near 80%.

Of course it does NOT mean that. Pretty silly question.

Balance means putting maximum stress on the defense by forcing them to cover the field. It means not having predictable tendencies on when we run or when we throw. There is no game plan which says these stats are set ahead of time. Play calling as the game develops is what defines who wins the strategy game, defense or offense.

Something else we often talk about but not in this context is the desire to see the team improve each week as the season progresses. Running a consistently balanced attack each week helps develop that steady improvement.

Finally, in response, I do not want to see passing just to reduce the running numbers. On the contrary, using the passing game to keep the defense spread does nothing but help the running game.

 

[Dakota2]

This is not meant as a shot at you and far more of a general comment at a lot of the posts here, especially when they concern gameplanning and strategy.....

.....I really wonder sometimes just how dumb people believe coaches are. Coaches spend countless hours studying film and working with the players in an effort to put them in the best position to win. The strategy they go with on gameday is the one they feel has the best chance of working, not based on watching some games on TV but based on hours and hours of film study and of knowing our personnel and what they are and are not capable of doing. Plus countless hours studying what the other teams does and what their players are capable of.

I get second guessing moments in the game or decisions that are made on the fly but some of the comments in regards to preparation and gameplanning are just laughable.

Here's an honest question for you, although granted, it does not directly address your post above. But it addresses what coaches know and what they do.

Could Fleck hire a proven, high-powered Offensive Coordinator at Minnesota other than his long-time friend KC, who quit working for him twice?

If a successful, experienced, high-profile OC were to interview with PJ and Fleck starts with "as you know, I want an offense that heavily features the run and burns the clock," does the guy say:

a. I understand that and although that is not my philosophy, you're the boss and I will adapt, or will he say:

b) Sorry, but I've become successful with my own philosophy of offensive football. If you want me for my experience, skill, and successful track record, I'll come. But I will not come and turn myself into something I don't believe in.

There may be a reason we end up with Mike Sanford and Greg Harbaugh.

 

[RememberMurray]

So far this season, Michigan has 116 passing attempts vs 186 rushing attempts. The Wolverines have fewer passing attempts than Minnesota does.

Yet, the Wolverines are often described as the B1G's best team.

Therefore, I have doubts about the supposed magical properties of a 'balanced' offense.

 

[MNVCGUY]

Here's an honest question for you, although granted, it does not directly address your post above. But it addresses what coaches know and what they do.

Could Fleck hire a proven, high-powered Offensive Coordinator at Minnesota other than his long-time friend KC, who quit working for him twice?

If a successful, experienced, high-profile OC were to interview with PJ and Fleck starts with "as you know, I want an offense that heavily features the run and burns the clock," does the guy say:

a. I understand that and although that is not my philosophy, you're the boss and I will adapt, or will he say:

b) Sorry, but I've become successful with my own philosophy of offensive football. If you want me for my experience, skill, and successful track record, I'll come. But I will not come and turn myself into something I don't believe in.

There may be a reason we end up with Mike Sanford and Greg Harbaugh.

I will answer the question you asked but the scenario/mock interview you laid out is ridiculous.

Could he hire a high-powered Offensive Coordinator - probably depends on how much money we could free up to pay said coordinator. Obviously an OC that wants to run a super up-tempo pass first system isn't going to interview here because that is not a style of offense Fleck will run. But this narrative that we have to run the ball 75% of the time or whatever is so tired and just not accurate.

In the 3 games we didn't have well in hand (North Carolina, Nebraska and Northwestern) we had 98 run and 93 pass plays. And the Northwestern game may skew this some because we were up big in the 4th before the collapse.

In the other two games where we were controlling the game and up big we we very run heavy but we were also 22 for 29 (76%) passing and extremely efficient throwing the ball when we needed to. When Fleck's team is winning he runs the ball and controls the clock and for the most part it is very effective. Doesn't lead to blowout wins but it does lead to wins.

If you take out the North Carolina game where Athan had a horrible day he has gone 60/92 - 65% with 5 TD and 3 INT in the other 4 games. Not world beating numbers by any stretch but not the disaster some want to make our passing game out to be either.

 

[Pompous Elitist]

So far this season, Michigan has 116 passing attempts vs 186 rushing attempts. The Wolverines have fewer passing attempts than Minnesota does.

Yet, the Wolverines are often described as the B1G's best team.

Therefore, I have doubts about the supposed magical properties of a 'balanced' offense.

If your players are just better than their players a team can run almost anything. Kent State protocol applies. When a mismatch applies or a desire to alter numbers or create spacing exists teams can altar their approach. MN can do it, if they choose, and we’ve seen some flickers of that. Maybe we’ll see more as the guys get more experience.

 

[Pompous Elitist]

I will answer the question you asked but the scenario/mock interview you laid out is ridiculous.

Could he hire a high-powered Offensive Coordinator - probably depends on how much money we could free up to pay said coordinator. Obviously an OC that wants to run a super up-tempo pass first system isn't going to interview here because that is not a style of offense Fleck will run. But this narrative that we have to run the ball 75% of the time or whatever is so tired and just not accurate.

In the 3 games we didn't have well in hand (North Carolina, Nebraska and Northwestern) we had 98 run and 93 pass plays. And the Northwestern game may skew this some because we were up big in the 4th before the collapse.

In the other two games where we were controlling the game and up big we we very run heavy but we were also 22 for 29 (76%) passing and extremely efficient throwing the ball when we needed to. When Fleck's team is winning he runs the ball and controls the clock and for the most part it is very effective. Doesn't lead to blowout wins but it does lead to wins.

If you take out the North Carolina game where Athan had a horrible day he has gone 60/92 - 65% with 5 TD and 3 INT in the other 4 games. Not world beating numbers by any stretch but not the disaster some want to make our passing game out to be either.

Yeah, it’s probably been more of an issue with players executing at times. I suspect some our barking at the moon will be addressed this weekend . Guys still have to block, throw, catch, and tackle.

 

[RememberMurray]

If your players are just better than their players a team can run almost anything. Kent State protocol applies. When a mismatch applies or a desire to alter numbers or create spacing exists teams can altar their approach. MN can do it, if they choose, and we’ve seen some flickers of that. Maybe we’ll see more as the guys get more experience.

1) You play to the strengths of your own team. I look at the Gopher offense and see the run-blocking of the offensive line and the talent of our runners as the main strengths. Our QB is talented but he seems to still be finding his way. The receivers are good, but certainly not great. It's wise to go with what you do best.

2) Whether you or I agree with him or not, Fleck believes that the best way to win any game is to take the air out of the ball, control the clock, and thereby give your defense time to rest, recuperate and make adjustments. I'd wager that Fleck believes this is especially true when playing against an opponent that is "just better" than the Gophers, like Michigan.

3) My own opinion: any attempt to play a more pass-oriented approach against the likes of Michigan would be a disaster. The Gophers played pass-first against Nebraska and were fortunate to win a game against a team that is clearly inferior to Michigan.

I haven't seen any evidence, to date, that more passing would lead to more success.

 

[Dakota2]

N

So far this season, Michigan has 116 passing attempts vs 186 rushing attempts. The Wolverines have fewer passing attempts than Minnesota does.

Yet, the Wolverines are often described as the B1G's best team.

Therefore, I have doubts about the supposed magical properties of a 'balanced' offense.

Nothing magical about common sense and intelligence. You put maximum stress on the defense by making them cover the field.

 

[Dakota2]

I will answer the question you asked but the scenario/mock interview you laid out is ridiculous.

Could he hire a high-powered Offensive Coordinator - probably depends on how much money we could free up to pay said coordinator. Obviously an OC that wants to run a super up-tempo pass first system isn't going to interview here because that is not a style of offense Fleck will run. But this narrative that we have to run the ball 75% of the time or whatever is so tired and just not accurate.

In the 3 games we didn't have well in hand (North Carolina, Nebraska and Northwestern) we had 98 run and 93 pass plays. And the Northwestern game may skew this some because we were up big in the 4th before the collapse.

In the other two games where we were controlling the game and up big we we very run heavy but we were also 22 for 29 (76%) passing and extremely efficient throwing the ball when we needed to. When Fleck's team is winning he runs the ball and controls the clock and for the most part it is very effective. Doesn't lead to blowout wins but it does lead to wins.

If you take out the North Carolina game where Athan had a horrible day he has gone 60/92 - 65% with 5 TD and 3 INT in the other 4 games. Not world beating numbers by any stretch but not the disaster some want to make our passing game out to be either.

I’m summary you are satisfied with the offense so far. I am not. We have a lot of talent not being used well. But we beat Louisiana.

 

[Dakota2]

Have

1) You play to the strengths of your own team. I look at the Gopher offense and see the run-blocking of the offensive line and the talent of our runners as the main strengths. Our QB is talented but he seems to still be finding his way. The receivers are good, but certainly not great. It's wise to go with what you do best.

2) Whether you or I agree with him or not, Fleck believes that the best way to win any game is to take the air out of the ball, control the clock, and thereby give your defense time to rest, recuperate and make adjustments. I'd wager that Fleck believes this is especially true when playing against an opponent that is "just better" than the Gophers, like Michigan.

3) My own opinion: any attempt to play a more pass-oriented approach against the likes of Michigan would be a disaster. The Gophers played pass-first against Nebraska and were fortunate to win a game against a team that is clearly inferior to Michigan.

I haven't seen any evidence, to date, that more passing would lead to more success.

Have you checked the run defenses of Michigan, Iowa, and Ohio State?