Sid: Street & Smith’s college football preview magazine picked the Gophers to finish fourth in the Big Ten West

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Once again outsiders don't see what is being built here or insiders are convincing themselves we have more here than meets the eye. Just hope we have a season to figure out which one it is.

I personally would think the evidence or a great returning offense and top notch athletes on defense give a convincing argument that we have a team that could be special.
 

Such a weird prediction. Yes, Minnesota lost some great players to the NFL, but they also return a ton of production and NFL talent. It's not like all the stars aligned and 2019 was a once in a decade team. Odd.
 

MGGopher said:
Such a weird prediction. Yes, Minnesota lost some great players to the NFL, but they also return a ton of production and NFL talent. It's not like all the stars aligned and 2019 was a once in a decade team. Odd.
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I think it's just a lazy prediction. When in doubt, just pick the historical status quo. Of course, they make an exception for Nebraska. After all, eventually they have to have a good team, right?
 

the outside observers look at the Gophers and they see the following:
Graduated (or lost to the NFL) the #1 RB and a top reserve RB
Lost one of the top two WR's
Lost the best defensive player and leader of the secondary.
Lost two starting LB's and two DE's

And they say - "Gophers likely to take a step backwards with the talent they lost.

You have to realize - the people writing these articles are not spending hours pouring through the depth charts for every team and researching the back-up players.

These are "Readers Digest" style profiles of the teams, done quickly to meet deadlines. So they rely heavily on conventional wisdom.

And conventional wisdom on the Gophers is that, until they do it again, they could be a one-season wonder.

Respect is earned. When the Gophers put together two or three seasons in a row like 2019 (or close to 2019), then the national mags will look at the program differently. One good season does not erase decades of average or below-average performance.
 



Guessing they have to cater to the husker fans. They probably buy more magazines than us.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
the outside observers look at the Gophers and they see the following:
Graduated (or lost to the NFL) the #1 RB and a top reserve RB
Lost one of the top two WR's
Lost the best defensive player and leader of the secondary.
Lost two starting LB's and two DE's

And they say - "Gophers likely to take a step backwards with the talent they lost.

You have to realize - the people writing these articles are not spending hours pouring through the depth charts for every team and researching the back-up players.

These are "Readers Digest" style profiles of the teams, done quickly to meet deadlines. So they rely heavily on conventional wisdom.

And conventional wisdom on the Gophers is that, until they do it again, they could be a one-season wonder.

Respect is earned. When the Gophers put together two or three seasons in a row like 2019 (or close to 2019), then the national mags will look at the program differently. One good season does not erase decades of average or below-average performance.
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Agree for the most part with your take on this as these National publications aren't doing a deep dive. Assuming however that the order Sid listed the teams is the order of predicted finish, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Iowa, Gophers the Nebraska pick is the one that just doesn't make sense.

Putting a team that hasn't cracked .500 in the past 3 years and finished in the top 25 since 2012 as the number 2 pick in the division just doesn't make sense. Nebraska still has this hold on people that is not backed up by what they are doing on the field.

I could totally understand someone picking us 3rd behind Wisconsin and Iowa and obviously it is all worthless filler at this point anyway, still, 4th is too low for a team coming off an 11-2 season.
 

Nebraska football is the same thing as Illinois football.
 

Shoulder "crack" firmly in place.
 



How many different predictions are out there any way? Do they just follow each other as to what the other one is saying?
 



MNVCGUY said:
Agree for the most part with your take on this as these National publications aren't doing a deep dive. Assuming however that the order Sid listed the teams is the order of predicted finish, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Iowa, Gophers the Nebraska pick is the one that just doesn't make sense.

Putting a team that hasn't cracked .500 in the past 3 years and finished in the top 25 since 2012 as the number 2 pick in the division just doesn't make sense. Nebraska still has this hold on people that is not backed up by what they are doing on the field.

I could totally understand someone picking us 3rd behind Wisconsin and Iowa and obviously it is all worthless filler at this point anyway, still, 4th is too low for a team coming off an 11-2 season.
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The so called expert prognosticators don't see the robustness of the rest of the team that PJ Fleck has quietly been building. I still think the Gophers Defense will surprise. The Offense is still loaded and is reloading, and new faces may surprise the Big Ten.

What derails any team is key injuries. I presume Annexstad and Clark will be ready. There are a few horses in the stable after Mo Ibrahim. The WR Corps - we expect CAB and D Douglas to step up. There are others on the roster that we may be hearing from. There are also Daniel Jackson, Douglas Emilien, and Jonathan Mann in the incoming 2020 Class. Daniel Jackson looks like he is one to watch. There is great competition everywhere. The Defense has been beefing up in two recruiting classes. The Offensive Line is slowly but surely reloading. Quietly, the Gophers may be turning the screws on the Big Ten West.

It will be interesting to see how the Offense will morph under Mike Sanford. One more headache for opponents is what the Gophers will do with their Tight Ends. Hopefully, it won't take away production from the WRs or diminish the OL protection.

That shifting zone blocking and corralling of the vaunted Auburn Defense in the Outback Bowl was masterful. That was the best Gopher game that I have seen in my entire life. John Schmitz will be drafted into the NFL with several other line mates no doubt.

Quite a contrast from the RUTM days. Teams will have to think twice about scheduling the Gophers on their homecoming. No more patsies or doormats here.

We will see how the Covid Pandemic affect the conditioning of the team and injury prevention.

Year Four - it is hard to believe we are there.

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