The Gophers likely lose the USC and UCLA games without Koi Perich's big plays. They'd have a 2-5 record right now.

[SeaBee_Gopher]

With all the attention Koi is getting, I hope he doesn't get a big head, but facts are facts! He caused a fumble and had the game sealing interception at the end of the USC game. Without those two big plays, we probably don't win, right? As we all know, winning the turnover battle is one of the most predictable metrics to winning football.

He had a game changing interception again at UCLA, not the one at the end of the game, but the one he had at the 9:49 mark of the 3rd quarter. It robbed them of a possession and set us up with a short field at the UCLA 38. We scored a touchdown on that drive. He also got 15-yards and a kid ejected for targeting because he was aggressive fielding a punt. That was a big 15-yards.

His aggressive play may well have been the difference in those two games. Without him, PJ might be trying to defend having a 2-5 record right now including 0-4 in the B1G!

Of course, we're also just a hair away from being 6-1 this year. It truly is a game of inches! Our current record of 4-3 feels about right.

 

[GopherFanatic19]

Posts like these are so dumb. Yes, Koi showed up, you could probably say the same about ever team in the nation and their star player. Bama could have 3 loses if it wasn’t for (insert blank) player

 

[btowngopher]

Posts like these are so dumb. Yes, Koi showed up, you could probably say the same about ever team in the nation and their star player. Bama could have 3 loses if it wasn’t for (insert blank) player

You could make the same case for other gopher players even. Yes Koi made some big plays, but they didn’t single handedly win the games.

 

[SeaBee_Gopher]

You could make the same case for other gopher players even. Yes Koi made some big plays, but they didn’t single handedly win the games.

I agree. It's a team sport so no one can single handedly win a game. What's fascinating to me is seeing in real time that adding one difference making player can potentially swing a game from a loss to a win, especially in a tightly contested game. We all know this is true, but it's interesting seeing it. He's started to play more the last couple games and has made plays that contributed to swinging things in our favor. Without him, a slightly less talented player probably makes a solid play, but maybe not the game changing play we needed to win the game.

I give PJ a lot of credit for identifying the right times to get him into the game to maximize his talents while minimizing the impact of his inexperience. I also think there is an element of luck to this and don't expect it to continue every week. Alabama's amazing freshman wide receiver, Ryan Williams, probably had his worst game of the year this past Saturday for example. My experience is, however, the more talented you are the luckier you get.

 

[A_Slab_of_Bacon]

Eh… he is a very impactful player.

But you could say the same about other players.

It takes a whole team.

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

That's the nature of close games. Didn't have a lot of margin for error in either USC or UCLA. So one blown or made play by lots of players could have been
the difference.

Conversely, North Carolina and Michiga. were close losses. Bet there are a lot of individual players where a few less mistakes or more big plays would have us at 6-1. How your season goes is largely dictated by which teams have enough players do just enough or not quite enough.

 

[highwayman]

Stu Pidd.

Time is linear. You cannot take out or reverse any moment of time. “What if” is a mentally demeaning exercise.

Stay in your lane.

 

[DarthGopher]

With all the attention Koi is getting, I hope he doesn't get a big head, but facts are facts! He caused a fumble and had the game sealing interception at the end of the USC game. Without those two big plays, we probably don't win, right? As we all know, winning the turnover battle is one of the most predictable metrics to winning football.

He had a game changing interception again at UCLA, not the one at the end of the game, but the one he had at the 9:49 mark of the 3rd quarter. It robbed them of a possession and set us up with a short field at the UCLA 38. We scored a touchdown on that drive. He also got 15-yards and a kid ejected for targeting because he was aggressive fielding a punt. That was a big 15-yards.

His aggressive play may well have been the difference in those two games. Without him, PJ might be trying to defend having a 2-5 record right now including 0-4 in the B1G!

Of course, we're also just a hair away from being 6-1 this year. It truly is a game of inches! Our current record of 4-3 feels about right.

Attributing all the success (or all the failure) to one player in the game of football is wonky. That is not how this game works. Has he made a positive difference? Absolutely. Has he been the only difference? Not even close.

 

[Gopherchase]

Yikes what a bunch of dorks. Would the Gophers have won the past two games if Perich doesn’t make the plays he did? No. Were the plays spectacular in general and would other players have struggled to make same. Yes. Of course it’s a team game but superstars matter in W and L.

 

[SeaBee_Gopher]

Yikes what a bunch of dorks. Would the Gophers have won the past two games if Perich doesn’t make the plays he did? No. Were the plays spectacular in general and would other players have struggled to make same. Yes. Of course it’s a team game but superstars matter in W and L.

Anyone that watches Alabama knows that they are a few Ryan Williams heroic, unbelievable catches away from having a crazy bad year (relatively speaking). He's a 17-year old true freshman. And I root against Alabama. Ryan Williams looks like a top 5 pick in a couple years. That level of player sticks out...even on Alabama.

Koi could be a first round draft pick if he keeps improving. Someone compared him to Harrison Smith on a previous thread and I think maybe this is what it would have been like to watch him play at Notre Dame all those years ago. That level of elite athlete has a disproportionate impact on the outcome of games and we're seeing it early in his career. Has he made mistakes? Of course, but he's made some great, game changing plays already in his young career. Believe me, I did not want to add another Koi post to this board. I just thought it was interesting to speculate on the immediate, potential W/L impact he's had on the last two games.

 

[DrunkDons]

Awesome, now make the inverse argument about our kicker.

 

[MNfootballfan]

You could say the same about other players on the team, but no one can deny that Koi flat makes plays that change the outcome of games. Other players on our team are valuable but I think it is a fair argument saying that we most likely don't beat USC without Koi's forced fumble and interception. Could someone else have made those plays? Sure. Did they? No.

 

[Allshade]

With all the attention Koi is getting, I hope he doesn't get a big head, but facts are facts! He caused a fumble and had the game sealing interception at the end of the USC game. Without those two big plays, we probably don't win, right? As we all know, winning the turnover battle is one of the most predictable metrics to winning football.

He had a game changing interception again at UCLA, not the one at the end of the game, but the one he had at the 9:49 mark of the 3rd quarter. It robbed them of a possession and set us up with a short field at the UCLA 38. We scored a touchdown on that drive. He also got 15-yards and a kid ejected for targeting because he was aggressive fielding a punt. That was a big 15-yards.

His aggressive play may well have been the difference in those two games. Without him, PJ might be trying to defend having a 2-5 record right now including 0-4 in the B1G!

Of course, we're also just a hair away from being 6-1 this year. It truly is a game of inches! Our current record of 4-3 feels about right.

And Eastern's tipped ball resulting in an int deep in our territory was also game changing imo. A huge play. Unsung hero.

 

[60's Guy]

I agree. It's a team sport so no one can single handedly win a game. What's fascinating to me is seeing in real time that adding one difference making player can potentially swing a game from a loss to a win, especially in a tightly contested game. We all know this is true, but it's interesting seeing it. He's started to play more the last couple games and has made plays that contributed to swinging things in our favor. Without him, a slightly less talented player probably makes a solid play, but maybe not the game changing play we needed to win the game.

I give PJ a lot of credit for identifying the right times to get him into the game to maximize his talents while minimizing the impact of his inexperience. I also think there is an element of luck to this and don't expect it to continue every week. Alabama's amazing freshman wide receiver, Ryan Williams, probably had his worst game of the year this past Saturday for example. My experience is, however, the more talented you are the luckier you get.

There is NO question, having that one difference making player often determines whether you win or lose. It's not very often any Gopher teams have had a difference making player who has any consistency to their performance. We have guys who make a play once a year or one time in their career but guys who come up big nearly every game are special. Koi is very fun to watch! He is different!

 

[MaxyJR1]

Fleck should probably fully fund his NIL deal+

 

[Mr. 131]

This may seem silly - but one thing that always strikes me about sports talk is how we (fans/pundits/humans) tend to think of things as being on the same trajectory regardless of what tweaks we fantasize.

Example - "We would have won if we didn't give up that sack." Or "If the ref didn't call that DPI we would have gotten the ball back and won..."

This never makes sense to me because each and every event affect all future events. You can't remove or change a play and assume you know the outcome still. For all us mouth-breathing Denny'- line-cooks, I'm just sayin that when it comes to football, there's a multiverse....things aren't all on the same timeline regardless of what changes you'd make.

So if Koi doesn't intercept the USC ball, we don't know how the game would turn out. We may have won on a fumble...we may have lost because a sideline ref has a heart attack and dies and we get a bad spot.

Existentialism aside, Koi is a friggen stud for the Gophers and I really wish Dinkytown athletes could get official replica jerseys.

 

[Dakota2]

This may seem silly - but one thing that always strikes me about sports talk is how we (fans/pundits/humans) tend to think of things as being on the same trajectory regardless of what tweaks we fantasize.

Example - "We would have won if we didn't give up that sack." Or "If the ref didn't call that DPI we would have gotten the ball back and won..."

This never makes sense to me because each and every event affect all future events. You can't remove or change a play and assume you know the outcome still. For all us mouth-breathing Denny'- line-cooks, I'm just sayin that when it comes to football, there's a multiverse....things aren't all on the same timeline regardless of what changes you'd make.

So if Koi doesn't intercept the USC ball, we don't know how the game would turn out. We may have won on a fumble...we may have lost because a sideline ref has a heart attack and dies and we get a bad spot.

Existentialism aside, Koi is a friggen stud for the Gophers and I really wish Dinkytown athletes could get official replica jerseys.

Yes, you can change one play late in a game and know the outcome. That would be an absurd erroneous penalty on an onside kick that we executed successfully and set ourselves up to win.

 

[Mr. 131]

Yes, you can change one play late in a game and know the outcome. That would be an absurd erroneous penalty on an onside kick that we executed successfully and set ourselves up to win.

Silly thing to argue about, so I won't take it past this - but recovering that onside kick at most (and in your own words) "sets ourselves up to win," it does not guarantee a different final outcome. Everything affects everything.

 

[denguegopher]

This may seem silly - but one thing that always strikes me about sports talk is how we (fans/pundits/humans) tend to think of things as being on the same trajectory regardless of what tweaks we fantasize.

Example - "We would have won if we didn't give up that sack." Or "If the ref didn't call that DPI we would have gotten the ball back and won..."

This never makes sense to me because each and every event affect all future events. You can't remove or change a play and assume you know the outcome still. For all us mouth-breathing Denny'- line-cooks, I'm just sayin that when it comes to football, there's a multiverse....things aren't all on the same timeline regardless of what changes you'd make.

So if Koi doesn't intercept the USC ball, we don't know how the game would turn out. We may have won on a fumble...we may have lost because a sideline ref has a heart attack and dies and we get a bad spot.

Existentialism aside, Koi is a friggen stud for the Gophers and I really wish Dinkytown athletes could get official replica jerseys.

Both are true. But over the years I cannot tell you how many times I have said to myself (well sometimes I have screamed it) late in a Gopher game, "Someone make a play!! We make a play, we win." IIRC I have frequently wanted a sack in tight situations, but I do not ever remember getting one at that point in the game, where if we get that sack there is a 99.99% chance that we win. Of course, there is no way to know if the plays that he made determined that we won the last two games, but damn, did they ever make it more likely that we would. IMHO (as others [60'Guy] have written) playmakers are critical in winning close games and they make those plays at critical junctures. Go Koi, Go Gophers!

 

[GoldenMAV30266]

“Good player helps team win games” got it

 

[Dakota2]

Silly thing to argue about, so I won't take it past this - but recovering that onside kick at most (and in your own words) "sets ourselves up to win," it does not guarantee a different final outcome. Everything affects everything.

So I take it you are ok with an official's mistake deciding a close game. I'm not ok with that.

 

[Lou Brown]

Love the excitement 3 is creating in Gopher Football!

 

[Mr. 131]

So I take it you are ok with an official's mistake deciding a close game. I'm not ok with that.

I don’t have any idea why you are concluding that! Lol - no man, not at all. That was terrible.

 

[Dave H]

So I take it you are ok with an official's mistake deciding a close game. I'm not ok with that.

That isn't what he said, he said if the call hadn't been made and the Gophers get the ball it is not a guarantee they win. That doesn't make the call or result better, its just a fact.

 

[Dakota2]

That isn't what he said, he said if the call hadn't been made and the Gophers get the ball it is not a guarantee they win. That doesn't make the call or result better, its just a fact.

The only thing guaranteed is that you don't get the chance to win or go to OT with a short field when an official makes an egregiously erroneous call that decides the game.

 

[Crosby]

I love Koi. Great player, and an impact player obviously. He has been an absolute stud. But, as others have said, you can make that case for other players too. How about Brosmer? If AK is still our QB, there is no way that we win that UCLA game. That last TD pass to Taylor was terrific. AK would have either air mailed that into the stands, or it would have been thrown three feet behind Darius, which would have caused a tipped ball, which would have been an interception. Game over. And not to take anything away from Koi, but I think I probably could have caught that last Hail Mary interception vs UCLA. Maybe.

 

[MNVCGUY]

The only thing guaranteed is that you don't get the chance to win or go to OT with a short field when an official makes an egregiously erroneous call that decides the game.

Nobody is disputing it was a horrible call. But your original point was that you can change one thing and know the outcome and you used the Michigan call as your proof which isn't accurate.

If you change the call, we still have no clue how that game turns out. Yes we would have been setup with great field position and the chance to either win or tie but any number of things could have happened from there. Penalties, turnovers, missed kicks......we might have won, we might not have....the bad call robbed us of the chance to find out but the bad call didn't necessarily change the outcome of the game, it might have, but Michigan very well may still have come out with the win regardless.

The only time changing one play 100% affects the outcome is when it is the final play of the game. If the USC player catches the TD instead of Koi or if Kesich hits the game winner against UNC.....those are the only true situations where you can say changing one result definitely changes the outcome of the game. A play that happens during the game might affect the outcome but you never know what would have happened after that play so you can't say it with any certainty (even though fans always do).

 

[PMWinSTP]

This may seem silly - but one thing that always strikes me about sports talk is how we (fans/pundits/humans) tend to think of things as being on the same trajectory regardless of what tweaks we fantasize.

Example - "We would have won if we didn't give up that sack." Or "If the ref didn't call that DPI we would have gotten the ball back and won..."

This never makes sense to me because each and every event affect all future events. You can't remove or change a play and assume you know the outcome still. For all us mouth-breathing Denny'- line-cooks, I'm just sayin that when it comes to football, there's a multiverse....things aren't all on the same timeline regardless of what changes you'd make.

So if Koi doesn't intercept the USC ball, we don't know how the game would turn out. We may have won on a fumble...we may have lost because a sideline ref has a heart attack and dies and we get a bad spot.

Existentialism aside, Koi is a friggen stud for the Gophers and I really wish Dinkytown athletes could get official replica jerseys.

True, still fun to talk about the "what ifs" though.

 

[Dakota2]

Nobody is disputing it was a horrible call. But your original point was that you can change one thing and know the outcome and you used the Michigan call as your proof which isn't accurate.

If you change the call, we still have no clue how that game turns out. Yes we would have been setup with great field position and the chance to either win or tie but any number of things could have happened from there. Penalties, turnovers, missed kicks......we might have won, we might not have....the bad call robbed us of the chance to find out but the bad call didn't necessarily change the outcome of the game, it might have, but Michigan very well may still have come out with the win regardless.

The only time changing one play 100% affects the outcome is when it is the final play of the game. If the USC player catches the TD instead of Koi or if Kesich hits the game winner against UNC.....those are the only true situations where you can say changing one result definitely changes the outcome of the game. A play that happens during the game might affect the outcome but you never know what would have happened after that play so you can't say it with any certainty (even though fans always do).

My only point has been that college football allows an erroneous call from an incompetent official to decide the winner of a football game, without officials' review.

That is wrong and harmful to the credibility of college football.

You can little girl blabber all you want that we might have fumbled, had penalties, missed kicks, quit and gone home, conceded, played Shikanjanski at quarterback and Reddick at running back. All bullshit. The Gophers had already scored three 4th quarter touchdowns. The adrenalin lift of recovering the onside kick was through the moon. The odds are high we would have won in regulation and overwhelming we would, at minimum, gone to OT.

 

[60's Guy]

I love Koi. Great player, and an impact player obviously. He has been an absolute stud. But, as others have said, you can make that case for other players too. How about Brosmer? If AK is still our QB, there is no way that we win that UCLA game. That last TD pass to Taylor was terrific. AK would have either air mailed that into the stands, or it would have been thrown three feet behind Darius, which would have caused a tipped ball, which would have been an interception. Game over. And not to take anything away from Koi, but I think I probably could have caught that last Hail Mary interception vs UCLA. Maybe.

You are kinda missing the point though...UCLA had receivers who could of caught it, the Gophers had other DB's who could of caught it...but what makes Koi special is he is in the right place to make the play. Nobody else was. And then there are the guys who are in the right place but don't complete the play, whatever the situation. Koi has the instincts to be in the right spot and the ability to complete the play. Not many guys do both consistently.