Shama Writers Show No Love for Football Gophers

[BleedGopher]

Writers Show No Love for Football Gophers

College football writers aren’t infusing much sis boom bah into the hearts and minds of Gophers fans these days. The summer time experts are forecasting a dreary fall for the Gophers following last year’s 2-6 Big Ten finish, one spot ahead of last place Indiana, 1-7.

Athlon Sports predicts Minnesota will be 1-7 this year, finish last in the Legends Division and have a 4-8 overall record. Athlon does identify Gophers quarterback MarQueis Gray as one of “three sleepers” to watch in the conference. The publication also includes Minnesota’s Troy Stoudermire on its all-conference first team as the kick returner. Tight end Eric Lair, offensive lineman Ed Olson and linebacker Gary Tinsley are third team choices.

Athlon, Sporting News College Football Magazine, Lindy’s and Phil Steele all share the same view on the Gophers for 2011. Lindy’s sums up the pessimism by observing if the Big Ten had expanded to 14 teams instead of 12, “They (the Gophers) would be sitting two spots lower.”

Lindy’s ranks Minnesota a lowly No. 86 in the nation. The July 4 issue of Sporting News Magazine checked the Gophers in at a more respectable No. 77, at least placing Minnesota ahead of No. 90 Indiana among Big Ten teams.

After four years of the Tim Brewster coaching era, the talent is too minimal at Minnesota to play winning football this fall, the writers claim. But the arrival of new coach Jerry Kill offers promise, according to both the national and local views.

An anonymous opposing coach is quoted by Athlon as saying Kill is “phenomenal” and preferred that the Gophers new coach stayed at Northern Illinois. In the July 4 Sporting News former Gopher Karl Mecklenburg predicts Kill will have Minnesota playing hard and this season will be “the start of a steady climb back to national prominence for the maroon and gold.”

Worth Noting

ESPN.com’s Rick Reilly wrote a caustic column last week titled “Big Ten Primer for Big Red.” In the primer he introduced Nebraskans to the conference including fellow members of the Legends Division. About Minnesota he wrote: “The only thing they’re legendary for is losing. You’ll love them.”

Reilly described the conference’s names for its two football divisions (Legends & Leaders) as “incredibly anvil-brained.” He speculated that among the potential division names that didn’t make the final cut were “Cheats and Soon-to-be-caught Cheats.”

Bruce Smith Day will be Saturday, September 17 when the Gophers host Miami (Ohio. A bronze bust of Smith, the legendary Minnesota Heisman Trophy winner from Faribault, will be presented to the Gophers athletic department, according to Bruce Krinke. Krinke is part of a group that is honoring the Gophers’ only Heisman winner ever with the creation of two bronze busts. One will reside at the University and the other at Faribault High School. Krinke said via email that the Rice County Historical Society has found a 1941 audio recording of Smith’s Heisman acceptance speech in New York. The recording may become part of the Smith memorabilia at the University.

http://www.shamasportsheadliners.com/

Go Gophers!!

 

[jovs]

I don't get it, they won their last two conference games in 2010, return experience at most of the defensive positions, they are inexperienced but have decent talent on the offensive line, return decent experience if not depth at the offensive skill positions, and have possibly one of the sleeper candidates at quarterback. They will have as much familiarity with the system as they have had in any of the previous four years.

They aren't going to challenge for the conference title but they aren't going to be the conference door mat either. They could go 1-7, but they could also go 3-5 or 4-4 with a little luck.

 

[Monty519]

It does seem like it'd be hard to see us doing worse than last year, which 1 conference win would be. But not surprising. I see at least three "winnable" games in @Purdue, @Northwestern, and Illinois (maybe would even throw in @Michigan), but one of the issues lies in that 3 of those 4 are on the road, which complicates things. After last season, I'm not gonna give too much grief to the pundits, I mean, I didn't think we'd finish 3-9 last year, and we all know how that went down lol.

 

[tjgopher]

The problem is that all of the writers have broken this down by division. And, in the Legends Division, looking at with no bias, it would be hard for anyone to put MN ahead of NW, Mich, IA, NEB, and MSU. Not saying we won't surprise some people, but realistically in the preseason, we will be looked at as the bottom team in the division.

 

[Wahoo McDaniel]

Good to be overlooked?

As usual the national writers have the Gophers as the doormats of the upcoming season. This may turn out to be a good thing as Kill's teams have usually been the underdogs but have at times suprised their opponents.

Also, by the time the Gophers play their first Big Ten game at home vs Nebraska, the game films of Minnesota vs our nonconference opponents won't provide that much info for Nebraska. Certainly, though all of our opponents will be studying Kill's teams/films at Northern Illinois.

It would be great to see the Huskers take the Gophers lightly at TCF Bank stadium this year. Any chance of an early upset?

 

[Unregistered User]

Any chance of an early upset?

Yes, at U$C.

 

[1983]

Yawn...what are they supposed to say? let it play out.

 

[denguegopher]

Yawn...what are they supposed to say? let it play out.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Agree, thats about all they can say.

 

[JoeDirt]

As usual the national writers have the Gophers as the doormats of the upcoming season. This may turn out to be a good thing as Kill's teams have usually been the underdogs but have at times suprised their opponents.

Also, by the time the Gophers play their first Big Ten game at home vs Nebraska, the game films of Minnesota vs our nonconference opponents won't provide that much info for Nebraska. Certainly, though all of our opponents will be studying Kill's teams/films at Northern Illinois.

It would be great to see the Huskers take the Gophers lightly at TCF Bank stadium this year. Any chance of an early upset?

Sure there is, obviously though unlikely. But let's not forget that Nebraska has laid some real eggs as of late. The horrible 9-6 Iowa State game from two years ago, the "revenge" game against a five win texASS team in Lincoln, and the 'Huskers also had a real tough time with South Dakota State last year at home, many people believe that Nebraska got a gift from the refs to pull out that win. If we play a solid, mistake-free game we certaintly have a shot. T. Martinez has not proven himself a winner and neither has Pelini. Just look to the bowl game last year against Washington. I think Nebraska has some real cracks. If we can put up points against their awesome defense we have a real shot.

 

[Breakin' The Plane]

Writers Show No Love for Football Gophers

College football writers aren’t infusing much sis boom bah into the hearts and minds of Gophers fans these days. The summer time experts are forecasting a dreary fall for the Gophers following last year’s 2-6 Big Ten finish, one spot ahead of last place Indiana, 1-7.

Athlon Sports predicts Minnesota will be 1-7 this year, finish last in the Legends Division and have a 4-8 overall record. Athlon does identify Gophers quarterback MarQueis Gray as one of “three sleepers” to watch in the conference. The publication also includes Minnesota’s Troy Stoudermire on its all-conference first team as the kick returner. Tight end Eric Lair, offensive lineman Ed Olson and linebacker Gary Tinsley are third team choices.

Athlon, Sporting News College Football Magazine, Lindy’s and Phil Steele all share the same view on the Gophers for 2011. Lindy’s sums up the pessimism by observing if the Big Ten had expanded to 14 teams instead of 12, “They (the Gophers) would be sitting two spots lower.”

Lindy’s ranks Minnesota a lowly No. 86 in the nation. The July 4 issue of Sporting News Magazine checked the Gophers in at a more respectable No. 77, at least placing Minnesota ahead of No. 90 Indiana among Big Ten teams.

After four years of the Tim Brewster coaching era, the talent is too minimal at Minnesota to play winning football this fall, the writers claim. But the arrival of new coach Jerry Kill offers promise, according to both the national and local views.

An anonymous opposing coach is quoted by Athlon as saying Kill is “phenomenal” and preferred that the Gophers new coach stayed at Northern Illinois. In the July 4 Sporting News former Gopher Karl Mecklenburg predicts Kill will have Minnesota playing hard and this season will be “the start of a steady climb back to national prominence for the maroon and gold.”

Worth Noting

ESPN.com’s Rick Reilly wrote a caustic column last week titled “Big Ten Primer for Big Red.” In the primer he introduced Nebraskans to the conference including fellow members of the Legends Division. About Minnesota he wrote: “The only thing they’re legendary for is losing. You’ll love them.”

Reilly described the conference’s names for its two football divisions (Legends & Leaders) as “incredibly anvil-brained.” He speculated that among the potential division names that didn’t make the final cut were “Cheats and Soon-to-be-caught Cheats.”

Bruce Smith Day will be Saturday, September 17 when the Gophers host Miami (Ohio. A bronze bust of Smith, the legendary Minnesota Heisman Trophy winner from Faribault, will be presented to the Gophers athletic department, according to Bruce Krinke. Krinke is part of a group that is honoring the Gophers’ only Heisman winner ever with the creation of two bronze busts. One will reside at the University and the other at Faribault High School. Krinke said via email that the Rice County Historical Society has found a 1941 audio recording of Smith’s Heisman acceptance speech in New York. The recording may become part of the Smith memorabilia at the University.

http://www.shamasportsheadliners.com/

Go Gophers!!

The majority of people that write these articles gather their information from secondhand sources. How many Gopher games do you think someone who writes for Athlon or Lindy's has watched? I don't think the Gophers are going to light the world on fire, but the average scribe looks at the 3-9 record and assumes they won a conference game against another basement dweller and beat up a couple of doormats in the non-conference schedule. The "experts" have no idea that this squad was playing some decent football at the end of 2010. If the offensive line starts to gel and they can run the ball effectively while finding at least one player that can get consistent pressure on opposing QBs, this is a .500 team.