Stommes getting reps at RT

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Hooligan119th

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According to this strib article Stommes is seeing reps at RT in practice and we should see him out there a bit this Saturday.

http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/60463752.html?elr=KArksi8cyaiUjc8LDyiUiacyKUnciaec8O7EyUr

I've never sat down and watched film of their play but do you think it would be safe to assume that Stommes would be the better fit at LT with his athleticism and Alford at RT with his size? I guess I'm just assuming that Stommes would be the better pass protector and Alford the better run blocker...either way, the coaching staff recognizes that Wills still needs a lot of work and they are trying to find something that works. ...the only thing that bothers me about that is one would have thought with all the potential starters having been practicing since last Jan, they would have had plenty of time to recognize these problems they are having and tried different combinations to come up with the best fit. What do I know though...I'm not at practice everyday watching the guys. Just some random thoughts.
 

I bet you all the money in the world that Stommes isn't going to really have that many reps at RT. Watching the tape it's more mental errors on Wills' part than his athleticism or ability. These may not have been apparent in practice.
 

The issue with our OL are the OT's especially with pass protection. The Alford/Wills combo is not the solution. Stommes needs to be out there as he has best potential to improve as the season progresses. Wills needs to drop another 30 lbs.

It appears that Davis has no confidence in the other experienced OL leftovers from 08. Isn't Wynn on the shelf with a back? I thought he would be ready for a decent year. Looks as though Wills/Alford/Stommes are our only options.
 

rudy said:
I bet you all the money in the world that Stommes isn't going to really have that many reps at RT. Watching the tape it's more mental errors on Wills' part than his athleticism or ability. These may not have been apparent in practice.
Click to expand...

I'll take that bet, maybe not this Saturday, but soon enough I think you'll see Stommes starting at RT...Wills isn't strong enough to handle the rigors of the Big Ten...giving him a year to work his butt off in the weight room might be the way to go, then have him close to fully developed by the start of next yr.
 

Stommes

I think it will not be long before Stommes takes over for Wills. Wills has really struggled in pass protection this year. They need to do something. I'm sure both Wills and Stommes will see action this Saturday, but if Stommes stays healthy, I think he'll become the starter.
 


My head is spinning!!

I am not trying to second guess Coach Davis as he has been around. But I do wonder what is going on......

The starting five of Stommes, Alford, T/A or Davis/Carufel/Wills was pretty much set B4 Spring ball and held up to the first game and have been an Iron Five with Bunders added in at LG after three games. A very inexperienced group but certainly an upgrade in size. Then Alford to LT when Stommes went down, now Stommes likely to take over @ RT and Wills on the side. Davis named Stommes as starter at RT in the bowl game and moved Wynn to LG after 12 starts at RT which were surprises. Guys with over 40 starts between them last year (Tavale, Burris, Davis, Orton) that haven't even seen the field in three games. And the Iron Five are probably a bit better than what we had on the field last year and that isn't saying much. Davis appears to lack confidence in any of the two deep or they obviously lack the qualities he is looking for. Loosing Wynn to a back certainly didn't help as I felt he would challenge for a starting role.

Davis was hired to be the running game coordinator which has produced very little to date with not much hope it will get better the balance of the year.

I realized going into this season that the OL would be a huge ? but I had hoped that it would better than what I have seen. Maybe better things are ahead and Stommes can grab hold of a start and upgrade the play at tackle.

I trust that Davis has the best players on the field, that his experience will pay off and he is able to bring in an upgrade in talent starting in 2010 and the 09 Frosh will add to the mix next year.
 

O Line issues

I Tivo'd the Airforce and Cal game and sat down a looked exclusively at the line play. Wills had the roughest time of all the lineman. However Carufel is not the monster/nasty lineman that Brew had hoped for. Wills missed many assignments (mental errors) more than he got beat. The Gophers have tried to run on the right side using the so called strength of Wills and Carufel with limited success. They both had quicker defensive people in the Airforce game coming off blocks and make plays and Cal's defensive ends and linebackers were too skilled for Wills to consistantly block. When Weber has time, he looks good. However he is not getting a consitant pocket to step up into. Additionally the OC uses a tight end or back to assist Wills on pass blocking. Cal blitzed a fair amount, and most of the time Wills either got beat or picked the wrong person to block. Three times he blocked down on the DE, basically double teaming the DE with our guard, while the tight end or back blocked one-on-one with a linebacker. My point to this post, is he probably is the weakest link, so moving Stommes over makes some sense. Lastly there are multiple missed assignments, missed blocks, poor blocks by the center and left side of the line as well. The running issues and pass protection is not all on Wills, there are problems on the entire line.
 

gopherrising said:
I Tivo'd the Airforce and Cal game and sat down a looked exclusively at the line play. Wills had the roughest time of all the lineman. However Carufel is not the monster/nasty lineman that Brew had hoped for. Wills missed many assignments (mental errors) more than he got beat. The Gophers have tried to run on the right side using the so called strength of Wills and Carufel with limited success. They both had quicker defensive people in the Airforce game coming off blocks and make plays and Cal's defensive ends and linebackers were too skilled for Wills to consistantly block. When Weber has time, he looks good. However he is not getting a consitant pocket to step up into. Additionally the OC uses a tight end or back to assist Wills on pass blocking. Cal blitzed a fair amount, and most of the time Wills either got beat or picked the wrong person to block. Three times he blocked down on the DE, basically double teaming the DE with our guard, while the tight end or back blocked one-on-one with a linebacker. My point to this post, is he probably is the weakest link, so moving Stommes over makes some sense. Lastly there are multiple missed assignments, missed blocks, poor blocks by the center and left side of the line as well. The running issues and pass protection is not all on Wills, there are problems on the entire line.
Click to expand...

Thanks I only watched the first quarter of the air force game, and haven't had enough time to break it down.
 

Injuries

Injuries have played a part in the O-line struggling this year. Stommes and Wynn have been hurt and that has been well documented. I think Ned has been struggling with a calf muscle injury. Ned did not have pads on for the Cal game. Those three being hurt has been a factor in our O-line struggling. The player I wonder about is Burris. I thought he'd see more playing time then he has this year.
 



How about Ed Olson or Brooks? These were both very highly regarded recruits last year. Any word on either of them in practice. I know the OL is the toughest position for younger guys to break into, but boy do we need some help.
 

gopherrising said:
However Carufel is not the monster/nasty lineman that Brew had hoped for.
Click to expand...

I don't know why anyone should be surprised at this because I'm not. Carufel was the WORST offensive lineman of a really bad OL three seasons ago at ND. I had hoped it was just inexperience, but I have seen the same thing in all three games this year. He struggles in at least half of the snaps and he is not opening any holes.

The OL has been a disappointment to me.
 

We will know a lot more about this OL after this weekend. Syracuse was the first game, Air Force was an atypical smallish DL and Cal DL was way too good. How the OL does against an average or worse Big 10 DL in Northwestern will tell us what kind changes to make on the oline for the rest of the Big 10 season. If these upperclassman continue to stink it up against NW then it time to give the reps to some younger guys and invest in the future.
 

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