BleedGopher
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per The Athletic:
Minnesota (11-2, 7-2 Big Ten last season | Big Ten West runner-up)
Under P.J. Fleck, Minnesota went from a losing record in what he called Year Zero (2017) to a victory against Wisconsin and a bowl game in Year 1 (or two, I forget) and last year won 11 games. The Gophers are recruiting at an elite level this offseason and boast the division’s best returning quarterback in Tanner Morgan. Can Minnesota keep up the momentum and become a West Division contender once again or will it fall back into the program’s traditional inconsistent ways in 2020?
Temple: Absolutely, I think Minnesota can be a West Division contender again. You look at that offense, even without the 1,000-yard receiver/running back combo of Tyler Johnson and Rodney Smith, and it’s still plenty formidable. Pro Football Focus said Morgan had “the best season from a quarterback you didn’t see coming” last season after he finished with the seventh-highest passing grade in the FBS. He still has All-Big Ten receiver Rashod Bateman, as well as Chris Autman-Bell and Demetrius Douglas. Mohamed Ibrahim is back at tailback, and all five starting offensive linemen return. The real unknown is whether Minnesota’s defense can play at a high enough level to sustain through the Big Ten after losing six starters.
Dochterman: It seems forever ago when Fleck classified his first season in Minneapolis as “Year Zero.” The Gophers benefitted from a helpful early-season schedule to start 8-0, then toppled Penn State at home to prove they were real. But their best season in any of our lifetimes still had pockmarks with losses to their two biggest rivals in Wisconsin and Iowa. Both defeats kept Minnesota out of Indianapolis and Pasadena.
Offensively, Minnesota has the best unit in the West. The Gophers averaged 34.1 points per game and should be even better this year. Morgan not only has talent, but he hides the ball so well on his zone reads. Bateman was the best receiver I saw last year until the Holiday Bowl. Minnesota’s offensive line is right there with the league’s best. However, the Gophers’ defense wasn’t quite on the same level as either Iowa or Wisconsin last year and losing Antoine Winfield and Carter Coughlin will hurt quite a bit.
Unlike last year, we’ll know really early if the Gophers are a threat. They play Iowa in Week 3 (way too early for my taste) on a Friday in Dinkytown, then face Wisconsin and Michigan consecutively in early October. If Minnesota sits 6-1 after that stretch, then it’s a top-10 team. If the Gophers are 4-3, they’re more in the top-25 range.
Sherman: I questioned Fleck’s style upon his arrival from Western Michigan. What works in the MAC has been proven over time not to necessarily fly in the Big Ten. Beneath the showy exterior, though, exists a message that resonates with his players. Fleck is recruiting better. He’s winning battles in the division for top players on enemy soil.
The Gophers’ toughness, I believe, is on par with Wisconsin and Iowa. If Fleck continues to upgrade talent beyond the skill positions, he’s got the ingredients needed to contend annually in the West.
What’s impressed me most about Minnesota is that Fleck didn’t have to fill the roster with his recruits. Admittedly, Tracy Claeys did not leave the cupboard bare in Minneapolis. But Fleck, from the outside, appears a tough sell for players who didn’t choose him as their coach. Clearly, it’s closer to the opposite.
His work in short time, with a dramatic turn midway through his second season, reminds me of Matt Campbell at Iowa State. Maybe they’re more alike than you’d think after a short conversation with both. If so, it bodes well for the Gophers’ chances to make a Big Ten title game in the next two to three seasons.
theathletic.com
Go Gophers!!
Minnesota (11-2, 7-2 Big Ten last season | Big Ten West runner-up)
Under P.J. Fleck, Minnesota went from a losing record in what he called Year Zero (2017) to a victory against Wisconsin and a bowl game in Year 1 (or two, I forget) and last year won 11 games. The Gophers are recruiting at an elite level this offseason and boast the division’s best returning quarterback in Tanner Morgan. Can Minnesota keep up the momentum and become a West Division contender once again or will it fall back into the program’s traditional inconsistent ways in 2020?
Temple: Absolutely, I think Minnesota can be a West Division contender again. You look at that offense, even without the 1,000-yard receiver/running back combo of Tyler Johnson and Rodney Smith, and it’s still plenty formidable. Pro Football Focus said Morgan had “the best season from a quarterback you didn’t see coming” last season after he finished with the seventh-highest passing grade in the FBS. He still has All-Big Ten receiver Rashod Bateman, as well as Chris Autman-Bell and Demetrius Douglas. Mohamed Ibrahim is back at tailback, and all five starting offensive linemen return. The real unknown is whether Minnesota’s defense can play at a high enough level to sustain through the Big Ten after losing six starters.
Dochterman: It seems forever ago when Fleck classified his first season in Minneapolis as “Year Zero.” The Gophers benefitted from a helpful early-season schedule to start 8-0, then toppled Penn State at home to prove they were real. But their best season in any of our lifetimes still had pockmarks with losses to their two biggest rivals in Wisconsin and Iowa. Both defeats kept Minnesota out of Indianapolis and Pasadena.
Offensively, Minnesota has the best unit in the West. The Gophers averaged 34.1 points per game and should be even better this year. Morgan not only has talent, but he hides the ball so well on his zone reads. Bateman was the best receiver I saw last year until the Holiday Bowl. Minnesota’s offensive line is right there with the league’s best. However, the Gophers’ defense wasn’t quite on the same level as either Iowa or Wisconsin last year and losing Antoine Winfield and Carter Coughlin will hurt quite a bit.
Unlike last year, we’ll know really early if the Gophers are a threat. They play Iowa in Week 3 (way too early for my taste) on a Friday in Dinkytown, then face Wisconsin and Michigan consecutively in early October. If Minnesota sits 6-1 after that stretch, then it’s a top-10 team. If the Gophers are 4-3, they’re more in the top-25 range.
Sherman: I questioned Fleck’s style upon his arrival from Western Michigan. What works in the MAC has been proven over time not to necessarily fly in the Big Ten. Beneath the showy exterior, though, exists a message that resonates with his players. Fleck is recruiting better. He’s winning battles in the division for top players on enemy soil.
The Gophers’ toughness, I believe, is on par with Wisconsin and Iowa. If Fleck continues to upgrade talent beyond the skill positions, he’s got the ingredients needed to contend annually in the West.
What’s impressed me most about Minnesota is that Fleck didn’t have to fill the roster with his recruits. Admittedly, Tracy Claeys did not leave the cupboard bare in Minneapolis. But Fleck, from the outside, appears a tough sell for players who didn’t choose him as their coach. Clearly, it’s closer to the opposite.
His work in short time, with a dramatic turn midway through his second season, reminds me of Matt Campbell at Iowa State. Maybe they’re more alike than you’d think after a short conversation with both. If so, it bodes well for the Gophers’ chances to make a Big Ten title game in the next two to three seasons.
Big Ten West roundtable: What teams, players and games will shape the division race?
The Athletic's college football insiders handicap the Big Ten West, break down the top players and explain why anything is possible in 2020.
theathletic.com
Go Gophers!!
