STrib: Gophers' passing struggles are especially aggravating for their fans

[BleedGopher]

Per Randy:

When last the Gophers took the field, they were on the receiving end of a 52-10 drubbing delivered by second-ranked Michigan, a team that imposed its will on Minnesota.

While Gophers fans understand that losing to a team that's a decent bet to be in the College Football Playoff for a third consecutive year wasn't a surprise, the manner of the loss — by 42 points and with little pushback — left a sour taste. Each facet of the Gophers' game can be assigned part of the blame for the result, but what's clearly frustrating the fan base is an offense that doesn't pass the ball effectively or often.

If you pore over the NCAA football statistics, it doesn't take long to see the issue. Among the 133 teams playing at the FBS level, the Gophers rank near the bottom in several passing categories. They're 130th in passing yards per game (132.8), 123rd in passing attempts per game (23.0), 128th in quarterback rating (107.79), 123rd in yards per attempt (5.8) and 117th in completion percentage (.551).

It would be easy to say quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis has struggled, but the trend goes back to when Tanner Morgan was the starter, too. The Gophers ranked 116th in passing yards per game last year and 118th in 2021. They were 126th in attempts per game last year and 127th in 2021. And their touchdown pass totals have ranked 103rd this year, 113th in 2022 and 106th in 2021.

Gophers' passing struggles are especially aggravating for their fans

College Football Insider: The Gophers' passing struggles this season are actually part of a trend that goes back to Tanner Morgan's time at quarterback.

www.startribune.com

Go Gophers!!

 

[MaxyJR1]

There are basically 17 P5 QB’s at a completion percentage of 70% or better. Arizona has two guys in this category. Our guy is at 55%

Much of this is system. Mertz is 2nd in category at Florida after leaving Wisconsin

We need to recruit better at WR and be less concerned about RB. We keep bragging about our plug and play RB’s. That’s great but until we start matching WR skill to Bates and Johnson again, we will struggle. A more accurate QB is also needed and better and taller WR’s would help that. Get athletes and get the ball in their hands. RB will take care of itself.

 

[MNVCGUY]

Our passing offense leaves a lot to be desired but if you take a look around the Big Ten we are definitely not alone in struggling to throw the ball with any sort of consistency. Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, and Maryland seem to have good passing offenses in terms of efficiency and TD/INT ratio......the rest.....yuck.

Outside of those top 4 and Northwestern....everyone else has a TD/INT total that is basically even and the efficiency numbers are not great either. Crazy at a time when passing offenses are so huge at the college and NFL level to see a major conference that really struggles to throw the ball.

 

[Ho Jon]

There are basically 17 P5 QB’s at a completion percentage of 70% or better. Arizona has two guys in this category. Our guy is at 55%

Much of this is system. Mertz is 2nd in category at Florida after leaving Wisconsin

We need to recruit better at WR and be less concerned about RB. We keep bragging about our plug and play RB’s. That’s great but until we start matching WR skill to Bates and Johnson again, we will struggle. A more accurate QB is also needed and better and taller WR’s would help that. Get athletes and get the ball in their hands. RB will take care of itself.

This is well and good, and factually correct, but until Fleck is willing to start unleashing any sort of passing game, it's a moot point. I think Kirk Ciarrocca had PJ's trust and more of a green light when calling plays. This offense looks just like the two years under Mike Sanford.

 

[gopherdudepart2]

We run the ball to control the clock and time of possession to try and minimize the exposure of the defense right now. Pretty obvious we are trying to play ball control to prevent breakdowns on the defensive side of the football due to injuries and the holes on the field created by that. It's kind of boring, but it is what it is to try and limit the exposure and catastrophic breakdowns.

 

[Dakota2]

We run the ball to control the clock and time of possession to try and minimize the exposure of the defense right now. Pretty obvious we are trying to play ball control to prevent breakdowns on the defensive side of the football due to injuries and the holes on the field created by that. It's kind of boring, but it is what it is to try and limit the exposure and catastrophic breakdowns.

Excellent analysis. You also could have pointed out we won TOP against Michigan to prove the validity of the strategy.

 

[gopherdudepart2]

Excellent analysis. You also could have pointed out we won TOP against Michigan to prove the validity of the strategy.

Those two pick sixes put a big harpoon in this strategy, and then that every time we tried to pass, Michigan was almost immediately in the backfield to wreck the pocket of the QB.

Someone else pointed out that it has become a tendency or obvious that Athan, has a specific place or hash he moves to when throwing the football, if the Michigan coaches picked up on this on film other teams have to. Gophers have been ball control, TOP, minimize possession team for years, which is a lot easier to do when you have a horse or rhino dominant running back like Mo Ibrahiam and really good offensive lineman. Experience and age matters when your a program like Minnesota. That and we had a better overall D-line and quite experienced linebackers last year. Then we lost any depth we had in LB room with the two transfers out and Injury to Cody L. When you are playing new people, and a lot of Redshirt freshman and Sophmore's as this years squad this becomes a much bigger challenge. That and the obvious much more difficult schedule.

 

[BilldGopher]

Actually articles about me being aggravated aggravates me even more. Thanks Randy.

 

[Dakota2]

Those two pick sixes put a big harpoon in this strategy, and then that every time we tried to pass, Michigan was almost immediately in the backfield to wreck the pocket of the QB.

Someone else pointed out that it has become a tendency or obvious that Athan, has a specific place or hash he moves to when throwing the football, if the Michigan coaches picked up on this on film other teams have to. Gophers have been ball control, TOP, minimize possession team for years, which is a lot easier to do when you have a horse or rhino dominant running back like Mo Ibrahiam and really good offensive lineman. Experience and age matters when your a program like Minnesota. That and we had a better overall D-line and quite experienced linebackers last year. Then we lost any depth we had in LB room with the two transfers out and Injury to Cody L. When you are playing new people, and a lot of Redshirt freshman and Sophmore's as this years squad this becomes a much bigger challenge. That and the obvious much more difficult schedule.

All this is true. It is also true we won TOP while losing by 42 points.

 

[MNVCGUY]

All this is true. It is also true we won TOP while losing by 42 points.

TOP is just one of the metrics Fleck uses to grade team performance in a game yet it is the one people here obsess about. I think he also includes things like explosive plays, turnovers and third down conversions in the equation where you have to win a certain percentage to have a good shot of winning the game. Sure someone can remember the actual formula he uses, too lazy to go find it.

TOP is important to Fleck but I don't think he is as obsessed with winning it as many in here believe he is.

 

[Dakota2]

Those two pick sixes put a big harpoon in this strategy, and then that every time we tried to pass, Michigan was almost immediately in the backfield to wreck the pocket of the QB.

Someone else pointed out that it has become a tendency or obvious that Athan, has a specific place or hash he moves to when throwing the football, if the Michigan coaches picked up on this on film other teams have to. Gophers have been ball control, TOP, minimize possession team for years, which is a lot easier to do when you have a horse or rhino dominant running back like Mo Ibrahiam and really good offensive lineman. Experience and age matters when your a program like Minnesota. That and we had a better overall D-line and quite experienced linebackers last year. Then we lost any depth we had in LB room with the two transfers out and Injury to Cody L. When you are playing new people, and a lot of Redshirt freshman and Sophmore's as this years squad this becomes a much bigger challenge. That and the obvious much more difficult schedule.

No, TOP is not a metric Fleck uses to evaluate. It is a strategy going into the game and much that transpires during a game is predicated on that strategy.

 

[Gopherchase]

We run the ball to control the clock and time of possession to try and minimize the exposure of the defense right now. Pretty obvious we are trying to play ball control to prevent breakdowns on the defensive side of the football due to injuries and the holes on the field created by that. It's kind of boring, but it is what it is to try and limit the exposure and catastrophic breakdowns.

Our Defense the last two years was ranked in the top five in the country — bad take.

 

[Replacement Gopher]

This is well and good, and factually correct, but until Fleck is willing to start unleashing any sort of passing game, it's a moot point. I think Kirk Ciarrocca had PJ's trust and more of a green light when calling plays. This offense looks just like the two years under Mike Sanford.

Do you really think Kirk had a green light to call plays?

There is a reason he left PJ twice.

 

[PMWinSTP]

We run the ball to control the clock and time of possession to try and minimize the exposure of the defense right now. Pretty obvious we are trying to play ball control to prevent breakdowns on the defensive side of the football due to injuries and the holes on the field created by that. It's kind of boring, but it is what it is to try and limit the exposure and catastrophic breakdowns.

So the Gophs have been doing what you lay out here for the past three years? Any chance it's the really the scheme they are running or the coaching staff...or both?

 

[NotAFanOfBecky]

So the question we need to ask is can the Gophers win against better teams while using this strategy? Can a lack of passing game beat top teams? They did against Penn State and Auburn (but I think Minnesota was the better team in this one) but that has been the exception. I think they.can beat teams that they are slightly more talented on a regular basis but not teams that are anything beyond that. At least we get to enjoy good seasons for the most part, but will it take us beyond? Certainly not in my opinion unless recruiting got significantly better, which we haven’t seen. Will it?

 

[Ho Jon]

Do you really think Kirk had a green light to call plays?

There is a reason he left PJ twice.

No, not what I said. More of a green light, meaning he had more input because PJ had more trust in him. Absolute green in all circumstances, no, just more rope.

And I don't think he left PJ just because of PJ. A mitigating factor, sure, but the two times he left, it was the same general area. Penn St. and Rutgers are only a couple of miles apart.

 

[upnorthkid]

So the question we need to ask is can the Gophers win against better teams while using this strategy? Can a lack of passing game beat top teams? They did against Penn State and Auburn (but I think Minnesota was the better team in this one) but that has been the exception. I think they.can beat teams that they are slightly more talented on a regular basis but not teams that are anything beyond that. At least we get to enjoy good seasons for the most part, but will it take us beyond? Certainly not in my opinion unless recruiting got significantly better, which we haven’t seen. Will it?

Morgan was 18/20 for 339 yards and 3 TDs vs PSU while we rushed for 3 yards a carry. Auburn was more balanced but we still threw for 279 yards and 3 TDs

 

[Replacement Gopher]

No, not what I said. More of a green light, meaning he had more input because PJ had more trust in him. Absolute green in all circumstances, no, just more rope.

And I don't think he left PJ just because of PJ. A mitigating factor, sure, but the two times he left, it was the same general area. Penn St. and Rutgers are only a couple of miles apart.

Couple = 250?

 

[Gophergrandpa]

So the question we need to ask is can the Gophers win against better teams while using this strategy? Can a lack of passing game beat top teams? They did against Penn State and Auburn (but I think Minnesota was the better team in this one) but that has been the exception. I think they.can beat teams that they are slightly more talented on a regular basis but not teams that are anything beyond that. At least we get to enjoy good seasons for the most part, but will it take us beyond? Certainly not in my opinion unless recruiting got significantly better, which we haven’t seen. Will it?

Uhm .., we had a great passing game in 2019 when we beat Penn State and Auburn. Gophers passed for 3300 yards and for 31 TDs in 2019. With our good passing game, matching our good rushing attack, we had the 2nd highest scoring offense in the Big Ten, and the third highest rated passing attack. In 2019, Tyler Johnson led the Big Ten in receiving yards and Rashod Bateman was No. 2 in receiving yards. We had a stellar passing game. That’s why we beat Penn State and Auburn. 2019 was the last year we had a good (actually great) passing game. It has been downhill, and hyper run-oriented since.

 

[Gophergrandpa]

Morgan was 18/20 for 339 yards and 3 TDs vs PSU while we rushed for 3 yards a carry. Auburn was more balanced but we still threw for 279 yards and 3 TDs

… and our rushing game in 2019 would enter the 4Q without extreme fatigue, because we ran 2 or 3 RBs regularly in a game, didn’t just grind one RB down.

 

[Ho Jon]

Couple = 250?

Sorry, meant couple of hundred. I didn't look it up.

 

[maroonfive]

Uhm .., we had a great passing game in 2019 when we beat Penn State and Auburn. Gophers passed for 3300 yards and for 31 TDs in 2019. With our good passing game, matching our good rushing attack, we had the 2nd highest scoring offense in the Big Ten, and the third highest rated passing attack. In 2019, Tyler Johnson led the Big Ten in receiving yards and Rashod Bateman was No. 2 in receiving yards. We had a stellar passing game. That’s why we beat Penn State and Auburn. 2019 was the last year we had a good (actually great) passing game. It has been downhill, and hyper run-oriented since.

We have no shot to even be .500 in the new Big Ten if we can't pass and recruit. We will be lost in the shuffle and an also ran. We are pretty much in that boat anyway.

Go Gophers !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[btowngopher]

Do you really think Kirk had a green light to call plays?

There is a reason he left PJ twice.

He left because he wanted to coach out east. He would have never came back if he had a problem with Fleck.

 

[MNVCGUY]

We have no shot to even be .500 in the new Big Ten if we can't pass and recruit. We will be lost in the shuffle and an also ran. We are pretty much in that boat anyway.

Go Gophers !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is going to be very tough to get out of the also ran category in the new Big Ten with the helmet schools at the top but I disagree that we can't continue to go .500 or better even with the new additions. We will still be in a good position to compete with the vast majority of the conference.

 

[Jack jones]

Your dreaming. If the B1G stays with the newadditions, you will be able count on 1 hand the number of B1G seasons above .500. Perhaps 1 out of 10 will be a the norm.

 

[SHGopher]

Among the 133 teams playing at the FBS level, the Gophers rank near the bottom in several passing categories. They're 130th in passing yards per game (132.8), 123rd in passing attempts per game (23.0), 128th in quarterback rating (107.79), 123rd in yards per attempt (5.8) and 117th in completion percentage (.551).

It would be easy to say quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis has struggled, but the trend goes back to when Tanner Morgan was the starter, too.

I would agree with the thread title, at least for me.

 

[MNVCGUY]

Your dreaming. If the B1G stays with the newadditions, you will be able count on 1 hand the number of B1G seasons above .500. Perhaps 1 out of 10 will be a the norm.

lol....you do know we don't play each of those teams every year right? In the 2024-2028 schedules that were released recently I count at least 6 games each year against teams other than Ohio State, Michigan, Oregon, Washington, Penn State or USC. So I guess in your reality we are doomed to sub .500 seasons, in mine I can see us still winning a decent number of Big Ten games even if it is unlikely we will be in a position to contend for the title most years in a divisionless format.

But as I posted in another thread not surprised one bit to see you taking the negative viewpoint, pretty sure it is the only one you know.

 

[Sparlimb]

We run the ball to control the clock and time of possession to try and minimize the exposure of the defense right now. Pretty obvious we are trying to play ball control to prevent breakdowns on the defensive side of the football due to injuries and the holes on the field created by that. It's kind of boring, but it is what it is to try and limit the exposure and catastrophic breakdowns.

And when we finish 4-8, we can talk about that amazing strategy and whether it really helped us at all.

 

[NotAFanOfBecky]

Uhm .., we had a great passing game in 2019 when we beat Penn State and Auburn. Gophers passed for 3300 yards and for 31 TDs in 2019. With our good passing game, matching our good rushing attack, we had the 2nd highest scoring offense in the Big Ten, and the third highest rated passing attack. In 2019, Tyler Johnson led the Big Ten in receiving yards and Rashod Bateman was No. 2 in receiving yards. We had a stellar passing game. That’s why we beat Penn State and Auburn. 2019 was the last year we had a good (actually great) passing game. It has been downhill, and hyper run-oriented since.

Yeah that is my point. I guess I didn’t word it well. Can we beat good teams by being hyper conservative? I personally don’t think so, unless we recruit better. We were able to have success with passing against good teams, but they were still overall run oriented. Having stud receivers helps. I liked the run heavy but still could pass of 2019. Don’t like what I’ve seen the last 3 years and don’t think the Gophers can win against better teams being ultra conservative. I think they need to get that passing game more up to par, some how, some way. Easier said than done.

 

[swelna]

If we move on from Harbaugh this year and make an external hire, Mack Leftwich is who I would look at trying to hire: https://txst.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/mack-leftwich/1601

Has a history of making QBs look good, their offense at Texas State is ranked pretty well at the moment (top 25 in both passing, rushing, and overall). Young guy that would hopefully be energetic and a good recruiter.

If PJ wants to try to avoid the external OC hire route, I hope he would give Simon or whoever else an extended test at play calling toward the end of the year ala what he did with Rossi.