Strack: College Football World is Sleeping on 2023 Gophers

[BleedGopher]

Per Strack:

Chill out on the schedule difficulty…​

Now, let’s talk about this very scary schedule everyone is talking about. Again, I’m not calling for Gopher upsets over the #2 and/or #3 ranked teams in the country, Michigan and Ohio State respectively. But are the West rival Badgers or Hawkeyes really going to live up to their preseason hype in 2023?

Let’s not forget, Wisconsin hit the reset button this offseason, hiring Luke Fickell from Cincinnati. Look, there’s no doubt the Badger fanbase should be excited about where their offense is about to go. Fickell is a great hire. But this is year 1. Even in the instant transfer portal age, new programs almost always start slower than anticipated.

Meanwhile, Iowa did nothing to improve their completely non-existent pass game, outside of bringing in Michigan back-up QB, Cade McNamara, and continue the nepotistic employment of Brian Ferentz, son of head coach Kirk Ferentz, as offensive coordinator. Even after the Hawkeyes ranked in the bottom-ten OF 129 FBS TEAMS last season, both in scoring offense (17.7 PPG) and yards gained (251.5 YPG).

I do not trust Fickell to turn the Wisconsin Badgers around in one season, when he’s not the one who recruited most of the team. And until the Iowa Hawkeyes move on from the Ferentz’, their football program will continue to decline. Sometimes, it’s just time to move on. At this point, Fleck’s inability to win vs Iowa is all in his own head.

Will the Minnesota Gophers win the Big Ten West in its final season of existence? I’ve been a Minnesota Sports fan far too long to call for anything like that. But there’s no doubt they will be better than advertised and suprise a lot of people throughout the next few months.

College Football World is Sleeping on 2023 Gophers

The 2023 Minnesota Gophers are being slept on by just about everyone who cares about college football but they're about to find out.

www.minnesotasportsfan.com

Go Gophers!!

 

[gopherbadgerman]

Written by a true fan

 

[short ornery norwegian]

McNamara is a definite upgrade at QB for Iowa - IF they have the right pieces to surround him.

maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think they brought in McNamara to throw seam routes to the TE on every passing down. So do they have WR's who can make plays, and what plays will Sonny Boy be calling during the game?

 

[Some Day...Maybe]

McNamara is a definite upgrade at QB for Iowa - IF they have the right pieces to surround him.

maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think they brought in McNamara to throw seam routes to the TE on every passing down. So do they have WR's who can make plays, and what plays will Sonny Boy be calling during the game?

I’ve been very impressed by McNamara when I’ve watched him. I thought he should have been the starter at Michigan.

 

[Schnauzer]

I had to double check to make sure I didn’t write that.

It exactly follows the theories that I and most of the Gopher fan base is hoping for this year. Wisconsin needing more time (seasons) to reach their Fickell potential and Iowa continuing to flounder offensively may not be guaranteed but it certainly is plausible.

Another word on Iowa that I think about… beating them in 2010 and 2011 was two unexpected happy flukes. Iowa was the better team. Things like that have a way of evening out. The Gophers lost in 2019, 2021, and 2022 - each time with MN being the better team. It’s time for another “evening out” regardless where the game is played.