Ranking the Top 25 DCs in college football in 2023 Joe Rossi #3

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#3 for Joe Rossi

3. Joe Rossi, Minnesota​

Minnesota isn’t landing elite blue-chip recruits, which makes the results Rossi is producing all the more impressive. The Gophers were No. 4 nationally in scoring defense in 2022 (13.8 ppg.) and 6th in 2021 (17.3). In 2022, Minnesota was also 6th nationally in 3rd-down defense (28.7%).

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Ranking the Top 25 DCs in college football in 2023

Several of the best defensive minds in the game are in the B1G. Who is the best of the best?
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That's awesome. Joe's the man! He really does a fantastic job with the talent he has to work with.

The Gophers defense also improved a lot due to excellent ball possession numbers. The Gophers have ranked 5th, 7th, 3rd, and 4th in the nation in TOP during the Rossi tenure.

That means the D is getting opponents off the field and the O is keeping them there.
 

It was only a matter of time before he started getting significant recognition. Just gotta keep him here (keep paying the man!) for as long as he wants to remain a DC and not a coach.
 


gopherbadgerman said:
He’s good. Another good year or two I’d be shocked if he doesn’t get a HC job.
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Assuming he wants to be a head coach it would seem likely he gets that opportunity in the near future. Will be a shame to lose him when that time comes but at the same time it is great to see guys earn promotions to head coaching gigs and it reaffirms that they are making good hires when guys are in demand.
 


It's the numbers like the 3rd down defense that really standout. There is some help in the scoring average because we really really control the ball, but getting off the field on 3rd down is somewhat independent of that. He deserves big things, but hoe he wants to stay here.
 

Not sure exactly how much Rossi is making at Minnesota, but you can be sure that if he has another year like the last few, he will be offered well over 2 million by one of those SEC schools.
 


It's clear that all these guys are excellent defensive coordinators. But overall I would say that its about as valid as those lists of the best universities (of limited value). That being said, I do have to give Rossi credit for having a very good defense without having a top tier pass rusher.
 



HoustonTXGopher said:
Not sure exactly how much Rossi is making at Minnesota, but you can be sure that if he has another year like the last few, he will be offered well over 2 million by one of those SEC schools.
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But he may love Minnesota and doesn't want to do with the snobbery of the SEC schools.
 

Hard to argue with #2. But considering the wealth of talent and resources Schumann has at his disposal, I'd drop him below Parker and Rossi.

In my opinion, any of the coaches on this list would have similar success given what Schumann has to work with!
 


These lists are so subjective and go so far on reputation. In the 80s, Dean Smith was widely regarded as the best coach in basketball despite being the only person who could hold Jordan to less than 20 pts/game. He consistently had his choice of the McDonalds all-Americans. Meanwhile, good coaches accomplished nearly as much with less talent.

So, I’d probably rank Iowa’s guy higher than Georgia just based on the embarrassing riches Georgia recruits. Rossi even more so. And why is Jim Leonard not on this list? Simply because he isn’t a DC at the moment.

Unfortunately Gopher Hockey is pretty much the Dean Smith case and has been for years!
 



WoodburyTim said:
It's the numbers like the 3rd down defense that really standout. There is some help in the scoring average because we really really control the ball, but getting off the field on 3rd down is somewhat independent of that. He deserves big things, but hoe he wants to stay here.
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Very true. I remember the days when they could stop anyone on 1st and 2nd, then on 3rd, give up the automatic first down. No matter the distance. At least it seemed like it.
 






This year will be a real tough one for Rossi and the defense I think. We'll be facing a handful of high power offenses. If we still rank in top 5 defenses by the end of the year this year I think it will solidify him as the best DC the U has every had, and easily one of the best DCs still working in college football.

HC jobs will be there if he wants them, but selfishly I hope he's the type of guy who wants to be a coordinator for the rest of his career. If that is the case, I think he and his family like MN and Fleck enough that he stays here even if offered more money to DC at other schools.
 

HoustonTXGopher said:
Not sure exactly how much Rossi is making at Minnesota, but you can be sure that if he has another year like the last few, he will be offered well over 2 million by one of those SEC schools.
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Ryan Burns said on his podcast last night when they broke down the Gophers D, that he could confirm that Rossi turned down an SEC D coordinator job this winter to stay at Minnesota. He didn’t say which school offered him. Anyone know??? I’m guessing it wasn’t one of the top SEC programs because they probably would have thrown enough money at him to get him to leave. I’m guessing a middle of the pack program???
 

U2Gopher said:
Ryan Burns said on his podcast last night when they broke down the Gophers D, that he could confirm that Rossi turned down an SEC D coordinator job this winter to stay at Minnesota. He didn’t say which school offered him. Anyone know??? I’m guessing it wasn’t one of the top SEC programs because they probably would have thrown enough money at him to get him to leave. I’m guessing a middle of the pack program???
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That would be my guess. If the D has another good year, Rossi will deserve a big raise. He’s making 1.1 million this year, and he probably should get 1.5 million.
 

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