Tanner Morgan Announces Return For 2022

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I’m split on Morgan’s return but overall am more happy than not. I said in another post you can’t take out 2019. I know he had Johnson and Bateman but he was still the guy that went 21/22 396 yards and 4 TD vs Purdue and 18/20 339 yards 3 Td vs #4 Penn State. You simply can’t take games like that out of his resume. I truly think he was handicapped by conservative play calling and the offensive coordinator. Unfortunately Morgan falls right in line with Sanford’s track record.

If I had to choose between Morgan & Sanford I’d choose Morgan 100% of the time.
 

Bob_Loblaw said:
Yeah, they say he isn't going to enter the portal but it seems like this impacts ZA more than Athan.
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Yep, Athan will just be a redshirt freshman next year. I am sure he would love to be starting but I also don't think he will have a tough time sitting behind a 6th year senior who is the winningest QB in the history of the program.

Take another year to learn and grow and then be ready to be the guy as a redshirt Sophomore with 3 years left to lead the program.
 

I know he doesn't owe it to any of them, but I hope by Morgan coming back he takes on the mentor, coach teaching role for the younger guys in the room. It is a gift to get to play a 6th season, I am hopeful with the kind of leader and player he has been that Morgan takes on that teacher role/ Jedi role of passing on knowledge.
 

gopherdudepart2 said:
I know he doesn't owe it to any of them, but I hope by Morgan coming back he takes on the mentor, coach teaching role for the younger guys in the room. It is a gift to get to play a 6th season, I am hopeful with the kind of leader and player he has been that Morgan takes on that teacher role/ Jedi role of passing on knowledge.
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Can't imagine he wouldn't. I think his future is in coaching if he wants too
 


Bob_Loblaw said:
The only thing that should be Morgan off the field is if there is someone on the bench who gives us a better chance at winning. It's not about conservative or aggressive. That's the only test.
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With two or three guys with similar overall capabilities no one, including coaches, can say with 100% certainty who gives the best chance of winning on a certain day. You go with your best gut feeling.

By now, Tanner clearly gets that edge because he has started and played almost every snap for three and a half years.

Some coaches, as I said, are much more willing to test more than one guy to see how he performs in battle, not practice. Fleck is more conservative in his overall approach to football and prefers to go with what he knows from game experience. That is his comfort zone.
 

Something else that has not been discussed yet .......

What are the odds Tanner Morgan can play six years of college football, four and a half of those as the every game starter playing every snap almost every game ...... without getting injured?

The odds were very slim he could do it five years starting every game for three and a half years but he did. Every time he steps on the field he defies the odds, inviting inevitable comparisons to Tom Brady.

Tanner is already Minnesota's best quarterback ever statistically. Yet, he is not Minnesota's greatest quarterback ever because the Gophers have never had a great quarterback.

But if durability is the yardstick, Tanner will forever be the standard bearer at Minnesota.

And the odds say, somebody not named Tanner Morgan, will be directing the offense some time next year.
 

Dakota2 said:
With two or three guys with similar overall capabilities no one, including coaches, can say with 100% certainty who gives the best chance of winning on a certain day. You go with your best gut feeling.

By now, Tanner clearly gets that edge because he has started and played almost every snap for three and a half years.

Some coaches, as I said, are much more willing to test more than one guy to see how he performs in battle, not practice. Fleck is more conservative in his overall approach to football and prefers to go with what he knows from game experience. That is his comfort zone.
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Of course not, no one is arguing that player assessment is an exact science. That doesn't change the fact that the only criteria in choosing a QB is who the staff thinks gives us a better chance to win football games next year.

Are they guaranteed to be right in that determination? Of course not.
 

If Annexstad goes, too, I wonder what Kramer does? Athan will probably step in as no. 2; Knuth might be no. 3. Our offense is built to give the QB chances to run. Tanner doesn’t run much, but the chances are often there. Tanner just isn’t a threatening (or comfortable) runner. We will see Fleck’s RPO include the QB run option a little more once the Athan/Knuth era begins.
 




The Great Migration of formerly-heralded high school QBs to lower levels of play will only intensify and probably reach an absurd level before a natural equilibrium and cautionary tales emerge.

Look at poor Penn State. Their guy goes down to injury at Iowa and the backup is maybe the all time worst QB I’ve ever seen play meaningful minutes at the FBS level. They didn’t have anybody. That’s crazy. I think the urge or lure to play -at any level- will be irresistible for so many with the new transfer rules but I’ll yell at clouds anyway.
 

Any Gopher fan not ecstatic with this news is bonkers. Experience and consistency are huge advantages in college football. Morgan already has the most wins of any Gopher quarterback in history, and some would rather go with an unknown? The odds of winning the West next year improve significantly with Morgan on the team.
 

Bob_Loblaw said:
Of course not, no one is arguing that player assessment is an exact science. That doesn't change the fact that the only criteria in choosing a QB is who the staff thinks gives us a better chance to win football games next year.

Are they guaranteed to be right in that determination? Of course not.
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Glad you agree.
 



Nokomis said:
Any Gopher fan not ecstatic with this news is bonkers. Experience and consistency are huge advantages in college football. Morgan already has the most wins of any Gopher quarterback in history, and some would rather go with an unknown? The odds of winning the West next year improve significantly with Morgan on the team.
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We have a lot of holes in our line up next year as it is. I would rather have a new QB next year, so they get the experience and can lead us to a title in 23, rather than have them get their first starts in 23.
 

GFBfan said:
We have a lot of holes in our line up next year as it is. I would rather have a new QB next year, so they get the experience and can lead us to a title in 23, rather than have them get their first starts in 23.
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2022 lineup holes are still tbd. Fleck did a great job finding transfer guys to step right in this year. Plus there are guys in the system we haven’t seen yet. Not a sure thing we take a step backwards.
 

Pompous Elitist said:
The Great Migration of formerly-heralded high school QBs to lower levels of play will only intensify and probably reach an absurd level before a natural equilibrium and cautionary tales emerge.

Look at poor Penn State. Their guy goes down to injury at Iowa and the backup is maybe the all time worst QB I’ve ever seen play meaningful minutes at the FBS level. They didn’t have anybody. That’s crazy. I think the urge or lure to play -at any level- will be irresistible for so many with the new transfer rules but I’ll yell at clouds anyway.
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Yup. This is why I respect the heck out of Annexstad already, and even more so if he stays next year. Not exactly in the mold of the 4 and 5* recruits you're describing, but is there any doubt he could be starting for numerous FBS teams right now?
 

Does this mean Sanford Jr is gone?
 

Seeing a lot of "Fire Sanford and Morgan will be better" takes. While Sanford leaves a lot to be desired as an OC, it's clear he and Fleck were on the same page for how the offense should be ran. Virtually very little changed over the course of the season, even after duds against Bowling Green and Illinois.

Would love to see Tanner improve upon his ability to identify defensive sets, make quicker progressions from his 1st to 2nd read, limit telegraphing throws, and throw a better ball 8+ yards down field. Even slight improvements in all of these areas could result in an extra win or two next season, especially with a healthy Mo/Ky Thomas backfield.

Really hope PJ has him on a shorter leash next season and gives other guys the opportunity to spark the offense when things stall. This was a 10+ win defense if not for the offensive shortcomings. Whether it's Sanford or somebody else, please implement a tempo offense to change things up to keep the defense on their toes, generate momentu, and/or be able to play from behind in the 2nd half.
 


stocker08 said:
At least one person speculated this yesterday when Morgan wasn't announced with the outgoing seniors. Hopefully he can find some of the 2019 magic.
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The 2019 "magic" was Bateman and Johnson bailing him out.
 


RealU said:
Seeing a lot of "Fire Sanford and Morgan will be better" takes. While Sanford leaves a lot to be desired as an OC, it's clear he and Fleck were on the same page for how the offense should be ran. Virtually very little changed over the course of the season, even after duds against Bowling Green and Illinois.

Would love to see Tanner improve upon his ability to identify defensive sets, make quicker progressions from his 1st to 2nd read, limit telegraphing throws, and throw a better ball 8+ yards down field. Even slight improvements in all of these areas could result in an extra win or two next season, especially with a healthy Mo/Ky Thomas backfield.

Really hope PJ has him on a shorter leash next season and gives other guys the opportunity to spark the offense when things stall. This was a 10+ win defense if not for the offensive shortcomings. Whether it's Sanford or somebody else, please implement a tempo offense to change things up to keep the defense on their toes, generate momentu, and/or be able to play from behind in the 2nd half.
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I am most disappointed in the lack of growth from Morgan. He set the bar with his 2019 season. Blame the OC or Fleck all you want but it's up to Tanner to continue to get better. He's as good anyone when his feet are set and the WR has separation but the second he gets pressured he's a below average passer.
Tanner is good enough for a lot of posters on this board and that says a lot about the mentality around here.
 

RealU said:
Seeing a lot of "Fire Sanford and Morgan will be better" takes. While Sanford leaves a lot to be desired as an OC, it's clear he and Fleck were on the same page for how the offense should be ran. Virtually very little changed over the course of the season, even after duds against Bowling Green and Illinois.

Would love to see Tanner improve upon his ability to identify defensive sets, make quicker progressions from his 1st to 2nd read, limit telegraphing throws, and throw a better ball 8+ yards down field. Even slight improvements in all of these areas could result in an extra win or two next season, especially with a healthy Mo/Ky Thomas backfield.

Really hope PJ has him on a shorter leash next season and gives other guys the opportunity to spark the offense when things stall. This was a 10+ win defense if not for the offensive shortcomings. Whether it's Sanford or somebody else, please implement a tempo offense to change things up to keep the defense on their toes, generate momentu, and/or be able to play from behind in the 2nd half.
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It was brought up in another thread but there was a noticeable shift in the offense over the last two games, will be interesting to see if it carries over to the bowl game as well.

Morgan looked much more poised and they weren't running the play clock all the way down on every snap. The other thing that shifted over the last part of the year is BSF became a much bigger part of the passing game. He had 11 catches through the first 8 games and 12 catches over the last 4.

Another change I noticed was a big step up in the play of the WRs after the Iowa game. Fleck really called them out and to their credit they responded. They made some tough catches against Indiana and Wisconsin that would have been drops in a lot of other games this year.

I know there are some mixed feelings on here about Morgan coming back but to me this is a very good thing for the offense. There is always the desire to believe the backup QB is going to be great but I am willing to trust the coaches to put the guy out there who is going to give us the best chance to win. In the last two full Big Ten seasons, Morgan has been at the helm for a team that has gone 13-5.
 

RealU said:
Seeing a lot of "Fire Sanford and Morgan will be better" takes. While Sanford leaves a lot to be desired as an OC, it's clear he and Fleck were on the same page for how the offense should be ran. Virtually very little changed over the course of the season, even after duds against Bowling Green and Illinois.

Would love to see Tanner improve upon his ability to identify defensive sets, make quicker progressions from his 1st to 2nd read, limit telegraphing throws, and throw a better ball 8+ yards down field. Even slight improvements in all of these areas could result in an extra win or two next season, especially with a healthy Mo/Ky Thomas backfield.

Really hope PJ has him on a shorter leash next season and gives other guys the opportunity to spark the offense when things stall. This was a 10+ win defense if not for the offensive shortcomings. Whether it's Sanford or somebody else, please implement a tempo offense to change things up to keep the defense on their toes, generate momentu, and/or be able to play from behind in the 2nd half.
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The offensive approach was notably different the last couple games, the receivers helped him out, protection was good, and the outcomes and production were better. If CAB and Wright stick around next year Morgan’s ceiling is decently high. Much higher than 2021 as we just saw a couple years ago. This team could have easily been 10-2 or maybe 11-1 this year. No sense crying over it now, but we can at least discuss the aftermath.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
here's a thought - and a prediction -

next season, in every Gopher game, the TV announcer will come up with this fun fact:

"Tanner Morgan is older than X# of current NFL Quarterbacks."

I haven't done the research, but I would suspect there will be at least several NFL QB's who will be younger than Morgan next year.
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Former Goofer said:
This is terrible and horrible news. Holy crap.
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short ornery norwegian said:
here's a thought - and a prediction -

next season, in every Gopher game, the TV announcer will come up with this fun fact:

"Tanner Morgan is older than X# of current NFL Quarterbacks."

I haven't done the research, but I would suspect there will be at least several NFL QB's who will be younger than Morgan next year.
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Bring back the Axe said:
Let's face it, Morgan as a passer was basically Mitch Leidner this year. I'd be fine with it if I thought there was going to be an open competition next year, or if PJ showed any willingness to sit him down in games when he's not playing well.
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Thats not true. Leidner could barely even throw the ball.
 

My feeling on Tanner Morgan is that he's somewhere in the 80th-90th percentile of college quarterbacks. You can argue if he should be considered closer to 90 or 80 but I think most would put him in that range. I'll take a guarantee of that along with the experience over whatever is behind door #2, I would like to see someone else get snaps so our next QB isn't totally raw, but that doesn't always work out.

My real concern for him coming back is for his legacy, he has a chance to go out on top as part of one season that was arguably the best in 50 years and finish his last season with a win against Wisconsin and a bowl appearance. If we lose our entire offensive line next year and next men up aren't close, he could be captaining the ship when it goes down. I'd rather see a new quarterback struggle with a new offensive line and carry that experience forward, than watch Tanner struggle with no protection or time and leave on a sour 5-7 type season.

If by some magic he can talk OL guys into staying, great. If not, ugh....
 

LakerFan said:
My feeling on Tanner Morgan is that he's somewhere in the 80th-90th percentile of college quarterbacks. You can argue if he should be considered closer to 90 or 80 but I think most would put him in that range. I'll take a guarantee of that along with the experience over whatever is behind door #2, I would like to see someone else get snaps so our next QB isn't totally raw, but that doesn't always work out.

My real concern for him coming back is for his legacy, he has a chance to go out on top as part of one season that was arguably the best in 50 years and finish his last season with a win against Wisconsin and a bowl appearance. If we lose our entire offensive line next year and next men up aren't close, he could be captaining the ship when it goes down. I'd rather see a new quarterback struggle with a new offensive line and carry that experience forward, than watch Tanner struggle with no protection or time and leave on a sour 5-7 type season.

If by some magic he can talk OL guys into staying, great. If not, ugh....
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Lot of assumptions being made about the O-Line next year. There will be new faces but they aren't going to be totally raw or inexperienced. Shaw for example has multiple years as a starter under his belt, just not for us. Depending on who comes back there is going to be experience there as well as guys who have been learning and growing over the past few years which is what you want at O-Line.

We would all be well served to wait and see just who is and is not coming back before making too many assumptions about next year's O-Line.

There is a decent chance we will get a bit of a sneak peak at our 2022 offensive line in the bowl game.
 

I'm just not sure that Shaw and Boe are realistically Big Ten starting level guys for those two remaining interior positions. The other interior guys we have, are unknown. Cooper, Rusch's brother.

I think we need to pick up at least one portal guy. Don't think we can expect both JMS and Andries to come back.
 

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