Strack: Can PJ Fleck Change His Best?

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BleedGopher

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per Strack:

Hopeful for change​

PJ Fleck’s teams will always value the run game on offense. He’s one of the younger coaches in college football but the way he wants to play is as old school as it gets. Control the clock, rack up time of possession and avoid huge mistakes. So it’s certainly plausible we see him revert back to his instinct to overfeed running backs.

But this is the first time as Minnesota Gophers head coach where his most talented offensive player is the quarterback. The first time it’s made sense for PJ to formulate his offensive strategy around a young gunslinger.

Because of that, I remain hopeful that Fleck will change his best as he gains more trust in Athan’s right arm. He and Kirk Ciarrocca made Kaliakmanis their #1 priority of the 2021 recruiting class for a reason. They brought him in to lead this program into the future.

Now that the kid appears ready to take his rightful seat on this offensive throne, all PJ has to do is give him the ball. Let Athan cook. If he does that, the future is bright. If not, he’ll transfer and so will all of his wide receivers.

In turn, PJ’s program will stall out and struggle to rise to greater heights than what we’ve already seen. So, what’s it going to be, Mr. Fleck? Adapt or die, right?

www.minnesotasportsfan.com

Can PJ Fleck Change His Best?

The Minnesota Gophers need to modernize their offense and it looks like they have the quarterback to do it. But will PJ Fleck actually change his best and do what's necessary?
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Go Gophers!!
 






Michigan has a 62% run / 38% pass mix this year. Minnesota had a similar 63% / 37% mix in 2019. Fleck's very good 2016 Western Michigan team had the same. I believe this is Fleck's preferred mix if the talent allows. That said, I thought he relied way too much on Mo this year in many situations which hurt the passing game and the offense in general. Unbelievably, I believe the passing game talent might exceed the running game next year, so it will be fun to see how it plays out.
 


Panthadad2 said:
Michigan has a 62% run / 38% pass mix this year. Minnesota had a similar 63% / 37% mix in 2019. Fleck's very good 2016 Western Michigan team had the same. I believe this is Fleck's preferred mix if the talent allows. That said, I thought he relied way too much on Mo this year in many situations which hurt the passing game and the offense in general. Unbelievably, I believe the passing game talent might exceed the running game next year, so it will be fun to see how it plays out.
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Did relying on Mo hurt the passing game or did the coaches feel they had to rely on Mo because they couldn't trust the passing game?

Look at all the threads about the receivers/TE this year, they were flat out unreliable in a lot of games. The key difference in the Wisconsin game was that they went out and won some of the 50/50 balls and made plays for the most part. Even BSF managed to avoid the costly drops and had a big day.

We all know the offense is going to have to look different next year. Story is correct that this will be one of the first times where the most talented player on offense is the QB. Will be fun to see if AK can take the next step and really tap into the potential he has shown. If he does it will be a ton of fun to watch as a fan.
 

MNVCGUY said:
Did relying on Mo hurt the passing game or did the coaches feel they had to rely on Mo because they couldn't trust the passing game?

Look at all the threads about the receivers/TE this year, they were flat out unreliable in a lot of games. The key difference in the Wisconsin game was that they went out and won some of the 50/50 balls and made plays for the most part. Even BSF managed to avoid the costly drops and had a big day.

We all know the offense is going to have to look different next year. Story is correct that this will be one of the first times where the most talented player on offense is the QB. Will be fun to see if AK can take the next step and really tap into the potential he has shown. If he does it will be a ton of fun to watch as a fan.
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The key difference in the Wisc game was at QB. The receivers are fine.
 



PMWinSTP said:
The key difference in the Wisc game was at QB. The receivers are fine.
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Aside from the 3rd quarter, I thought the pass protection was much better in that game though. So many games this year it wouldn't matter who was QB - if you have 0.5sec to throw, you won't look good.
 


Panthadad2 said:
Michigan has a 62% run / 38% pass mix this year. Minnesota had a similar 63% / 37% mix in 2019. Fleck's very good 2016 Western Michigan team had the same. I believe this is Fleck's preferred mix if the talent allows. That said, I thought he relied way too much on Mo this year in many situations which hurt the passing game and the offense in general. Unbelievably, I believe the passing game talent might exceed the running game next year, so it will be fun to see how it plays out.
Click to expand...

I wonder if there's a Strack-type in Ann Arbor, telling Harbaugh he needs to throw more often in order to grow as a coach.
 





Athan is the game changer. I do believe PJ will adapt the playcalling to suit him. We had a generational running back and it wasn't enough.

I don't think it has to be a huge pendulum swing. A 60-40 split will be ok if we are able to generate explosive plays, but the reality is we weren't able to do that through the air almost at all this year. Having a QB with this kind of arm, and (hopefully) receivers that can get open should fix a lot of this.

The current formula has very small margin of error to be successful. We absolutely were 2-3 plays away from 2 additional wins - AND - my current armchair opinion is that keeping defenses a bit more honest against the pass is a better formula to get over the top.
  • Must add receivers that can get open or run effective routes
  • Must take deep shots and find success intermittently
  • Protect Athan
If you can do those things, the 60/40 split won't matter. If you can't, a 50/50 split may not make a difference.

Take everything I say with a grain of salt - I like football...i'm not an analyst.
 

Replacement Gopher said:
Unfortunately I am with you.
His past shows he doesn’t change. Some of the comments on this thread are the same things were saying last year.
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You rely on your best player. Since he's been here its been an RB. That changes now so of course he changes. Nothing says he doesn't change. Although he will still want TOP.
 

mngolf said:
You rely on your best player. Since he's been here its been an RB. That changes now so of course he changes. Nothing says he doesn't change. Although he will still want TOP.
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Yes.

For example, 2019 was different from 2021-22.

Play to your strengths.
 

RememberMurray said:
Yes.

For example, 2019 was different from 2021-22.

Play to your strengths.
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If he can get receivers that can separate and catch, he'll look very similar to 2019. Difference being that he'll have a QB that can run too. That is a different wrinkle.
 

mngolf said:
If he can get receivers that can separate and catch, he'll look very similar to 2019. Difference being that he'll have a QB that can run too. That is a different wrinkle.
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You're right. Kaliakmanis' running ability should be utilized, although I hope they don't over-do it. We want him healthy, not all banged-up.

The throwing ability is very impressive. Lots of zip, and a quick release. I hope the staff has an offseason program to help him, specifically with accuracy. He put some throws right on the money, but he was off target on others. A bullet throw that is high or behind the receiver can lead to tipped balls and INTs, because the ball is on top of the intended target so quickly he has less time to adjust.
 

RememberMurray said:
You're right. Kaliakmanis' running ability should be utilized, although I hope they don't over-do it. We want him healthy, not all banged-up.
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Athan should put some weight on his frame this offseason, looking skinny for guy we could call designed runs for 5-10 times a game
 

BigGopher69 said:
Athan should put some weight on his frame this offseason, looking skinny for guy we could call designed runs for 5-10 times a game
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I agree, but he's young. Guys his age often do muscle-up as they mature.

And he's a good runner, but he's no Michael Vick. Just my opinion, but I think 10 carries a game might be pushing it. I am picturing a Mahomes-like ability to extend pass plays while moving around in the pocket, with the occasional scamper upfield for a crucial first down.
 

Panthadad2 said:
Michigan has a 62% run / 38% pass mix this year. Minnesota had a similar 63% / 37% mix in 2019. Fleck's very good 2016 Western Michigan team had the same. I believe this is Fleck's preferred mix if the talent allows. That said, I thought he relied way too much on Mo this year in many situations which hurt the passing game and the offense in general. Unbelievably, I believe the passing game talent might exceed the running game next year, so it will be fun to see how it plays out.
Click to expand...
Im not arguing for either direction, BUT those percentages can be deceiving. For example, if a team passes early in the game and is blowing the opponent out they will more than likely in the second half be running the ball a majority of the time to close out the game. Would be interesting to have a little more context to those percentages when you do a comparison.

If you look at the Michigan games they won pretty handily in a lot of them.
 

MNVCGUY said:
Did relying on Mo hurt the passing game or did the coaches feel they had to rely on Mo because they couldn't trust the passing game?

Look at all the threads about the receivers/TE this year, they were flat out unreliable in a lot of games. The key difference in the Wisconsin game was that they went out and won some of the 50/50 balls and made plays for the most part. Even BSF managed to avoid the costly drops and had a big day.

We all know the offense is going to have to look different next year. Story is correct that this will be one of the first times where the most talented player on offense is the QB. Will be fun to see if AK can take the next step and really tap into the potential he has shown. If he does it will be a ton of fun to watch as a fan.
Click to expand...
Good post! I agree AK's growth is key for next year, but I think RB is the biggest question mark heading into next season. We need someone to step into that RB1 role and even a RB2 should be considered up for grabs.
 

Replacement Gopher said:
Unfortunately I am with you.
His past shows he doesn’t change. Some of the comments on this thread are the same things were saying last year.
Click to expand...
Not sure how to feel. 19' tells me they can and will adapt if the personnel is there.
 

Word said:
Aside from the 3rd quarter, I thought the pass protection was much better in that game though. So many games this year it wouldn't matter who was QB - if you have 0.5sec to throw, you won't look good.
Click to expand...
He has much more pocket presence, mobility and sense of where the pressure is coming from and moved enough to buy time. The defense has to account for all that as opposed to Morgan. Other times he stayed in longer than Morgan would have, to get the pass off.
 

RememberMurray said:
I wonder if there's a Strack-type in Ann Arbor, telling Harbaugh he needs to throw more often in order to grow as a coach.
Click to expand...
Hmm...I think most out here would take the 2019 mix every time.
 


PMWinSTP said:
Hmm...I think most out here would take the 2019 mix every time.
Click to expand...

Play to your strengths. Different strengths in 2019 compared to 2021-22.

Marrying yourself to a particular run/pass ratio just for it's own sake shows a lack of flexibility. The goal is to win the game, not to maintain a certain number of throws. if you have great receivers and a hot QB, you should throw more. If you lack those things but have Mo, you run more.
 

mngolf said:
If he can get receivers that can separate and catch, he'll look very similar to 2019. Difference being that he'll have a QB that can run too. That is a different wrinkle.
Click to expand...
The QB threat to run adds a wrinkle no doubt, but as I mentioned in other he also has great pocket presence and uses his mobility to buy time. He also will stand in there under pressure and make the throw.
 

RememberMurray said:
I agree, but he's young. Guys his age often do muscle-up as they mature.

And he's a good runner, but he's no Michael Vick. Just my opinion, but I think 10 carries a game might be pushing it. I am picturing a Mahomes-like ability to extend pass plays while moving around in the pocket, with the occasional scamper upfield for a crucial first down.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I like Athan more as a threat to run and an ability to evade the rush more than I like him as someone we actually design running plays around.
 

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