The Sports Huddle Summay: Coach Jerry Kill - 8/12/12

DL65

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Mike Max filled in for Dave Mona on today's Sports Huddle. Coach Kill sounded quite enthused about the team and where it is presently in the two-a-days. He also cited a number of players that caught his eye in the scrimmage and practices.

1) Mike Max opened the show asking about the recent scrimmage, including apparent struggles: Kill said he saw a lot of good things in the scrimmage and didn't sound too conerned about the struggles. They're where he thought they'd be at this time. The first person he cited was Marquies Gray: "Marquies played well . . . threw as good as I've seen him do it." Receivers caught the ball well and cited the following receivers that he sounded quite excited about: Jamel Harbison, Andre McDonald, A.J. Barker, and Marcus Jones.

Offensive linemen mentioned as playing well in the scrimmage: Zac Epping and the Olson brothers. He also cited Joe Bjorklund as having a good camp and has shown improvement.

Defensive linemen cited: Ra'Shede Hageman (sounded excited about Ra'Shede"s play, improvement and potential), Roland Johnson, Cameron Botticelli, Michael Amaefula, Ben Perry, and true freshman Alex Keith.

Linebackers: Lamonte Edwards and Brendan Beal "stood out."

Defensive backs cited: true freshmen - Antonio Johnson, Eric Murray, and Damarius Travis.

Tailacks: Kill mentioned and sounded really high on KJ Maye. (Also mentioned Maye's receiving abilities.) He also said all of the talibacks played well and have been looking good in practice.

He closed the segment saying, "There are six or seven special freshmen."


2) Sid said he didn't think the defense looked good in the scrimmage: Kill responded, "I thought they did . . . it's about where I thought we'd be at this time . . . played about 100 players." He admitted they struggled at times because of miscommunication, which isn't surprising when you're experimenting and playing so many players. Again, Kill didn't sound upset about the struggles . . . talked about the practices leading up to the scrimmage and the two practices following saying he's "pleased with their effort." They're going to do some team building exercises today.

3) Sid said they seemed to throw a lot in the scrimmage: Kill said it may have seemed as though they were throwing more, however, they weren't: "No, we're going to be a team that runs the ball." They want to be balanced on offense. He went onto say they're looking at personnel and situations and getting the players in the right positions and determing what they need to do to improve as a team.

4) Sid asked if freshmen will play this year: Kill responded, "Yes." Although Kill said nothing is certain, he cited the following (sounded excited): KJ Maye, Jamel Harbison, Andre McDonald, Eric Murray, Damarius Travis, Antonio Johnson. Kill closed the question saying BTN staffers were at the scrimmage/practices and that they were "high" on Minnesota's freshman class.

5) Max asked about the backup QBs: "Max is doing some good things as are the other two." Not a lot of time spent on the query. He then said the next week is critical (evaluations) and a lot of decisions will be made.

6) Sid on punting: "Work in progress." Kill cited Peter Mortelli (the most consistent punter and that he averaged more than 40 yards per punt). Kill also mentioned the Aussie freshman Christan (didn't get his last name), "Has a chance to settle in." He also mentioned David Schwerman. In closing he said, "We'll be better." He then talked about the importance of competition that they're presently enjoying in the kicking game and the importance of "Performance under pressure (gameday)."

7) Sid then asked about the freshmen class: Kill feels good about the class and then repeated the BTN comments about the group. Kill closed saying, "We've got a talented class." However, he tempered his enthusiasm by saying there's a big difference between freshmen and juniors. He feels good about the future, however.

8) Sid asked about the secondary and sang the praises of Troy Stoudermire: Again, Kill stressed the competiton that they're enjoying in the secondary. He said all jobs are open and nothing is certain at this time (the past is the past, and what's important is what a player does now). He did say Martez Shabazz is playing as well as anybody. And, once again, he metioned Eric Murray as a player that has caught his eye.

9) Sd asked about Marcus Jones: "He's done a good job returning punts and kicks . . . he's consistent."


Go Gophers!!
 

My favorite part was when Max was reading text messages that were sent in: "Mike Max sucks", "Mike Max is an idiot, get him off the air."
 

Thanks, DL. First time in months I haven't listened in.

Peter Mortell and Christian Eldred looked good Friday. Mortell has the leg, and Eldred dropped a couple inside the 10 with nice touch.

It will be incredibly difficult to keep KJ Maye, Jamel Harbison, Andre McDonald off the field. MarQueis Gray is going to be a very tough QB to defend this season...
 

Great write up DL, thanks! For #4, did he say that he thought Murray, Johnson and Travis were looking good, or that he thinks they may play this year? I thought all three would red-shirt for sure with all of the JUCOs we brought in.
 

My favorite part was when Max was reading text messages that were sent in: "Mike Max sucks", "Mike Max is an idiot, get him off the air."

Max is 'okay' on the radio, but who in the hell picks out his wardrobe and dresses him on TV.

Bad would be an improvement.
 


I'm reading Mark Rosen's book and it sounds like Rosen pretty much picks his own wardrobe. I was kind of surprsied by that. So maybe Maxie is to blame himself.
 

For all the criticism Kill receives for not being a great recruiter, it seems like this freshman class is shaping up to be a very strong class. Of course, nothing is for certain until game day, but it sure does seem that this crop of freshman look to make an immediate impact.
 

Great write up DL, thanks! For #4, did he say that he thought Murray, Johnson and Travis were looking good, or that he thinks they may play this year? I thought all three would red-shirt for sure with all of the JUCOs we brought in.

+1, also curious about this. I sure hope we redshirt as many people as can.
 

For all the criticism Kill receives for not being a great recruiter, it seems like this freshman class is shaping up to be a very strong class. Of course, nothing is for certain until game day, but it sure does seem that this crop of freshman look to make an immediate impact.

Agreed. I don't care if the press ranked it number 10 or 11 in the Big Ten, that was a solid class.
 



Great write up DL, thanks! For #4, did he say that he thought Murray, Johnson and Travis were looking good, or that he thinks they may play this year? I thought all three would red-shirt for sure with all of the JUCOs we brought in.

I don't believe anything has been determined yet; however, in item one, Kill said there are "6 or 7 special freshmen." I'm sure he'd like to redshirt the freshmen. That said, he mentioned Murray, Travis and Johnson three times during his appearance on the Sports Huddle. He also said the next week will be a critical time for roster-related decisions and evaluations. I suspect depth in the secondary will be a factor when they decide whether or not they're redshirted, too.


Go Gophers!!
 

For all the criticism Kill receives for not being a great recruiter, it seems like this freshman class is shaping up to be a very strong class. Of course, nothing is for certain until game day, but it sure does seem that this crop of freshman look to make an immediate impact.

That criticism usual comes from people that don't know how to evaluate talent whatsoever. I honestly don't either, so I defer to people that do--college football coaches. That said, from what I have seen so far--and I've been closely watching the U freshman for about 6-8 years--there is something different about these freshmen.

This will be a watershed class for this program, not only for their talent, but the fact that they will all likely still be here 3-4 years from now--something we rarely experience.
 

Linebackers: Lamonte Edwards and Brendan Beal "stood out." Yes!
 

Freshman Class

Kill has always preached that it takes at least a couple of years before you will know how good a recruiting class is but he seems to be having a great deal of difficulty in controlling his excitement for the 2012 class after just one week of fall camp. He remarked several times how amazed the Big Ten crew that's here were with the strength of this class. It appears that even though this class was ranked last in the Big Ten by the recruiting experts that it is in reality a very strong class. Maybe Kill is a better recruiter than some people thinks he is, particularly in identifying talent.

As far as punting, the elephant in the room is Dan Orseski. It is probably best that it isn't being discussed and that he be left alone to work though what I am sure is a very difficult time for him. The less said the better.
 



I don't believe anything has been determined yet; however, in item one, Kill said there are "6 or 7 special freshmen." I'm sure he'd like to redshirt the freshmen. That said, he mentioned Murray, Travis and Johnson three times during his appearance on the Sports Huddle. He also said the next week will be a critical time for roster-related decisions and evaluations. I suspect depth in the secondary will be a factor when they decide whether or not they're redshirted, too.


Go Gophers!!

Hopefully we can red-shirt all three. We'll be set-up pretty nice in the future at DB if we can do this, and would probably only need to add one more DB in the 2013 class with Myrick on board. This class appears to have the chance to be pretty good, and it will be fun to watch their development over the next 4-5 years.
 

Hopefully we can red-shirt all three. We'll be set-up pretty nice in the future at DB if we can do this, and would probably only need to add one more DB in the 2013 class with Myrick on board. This class appears to have the chance to be pretty good, and it will be fun to watch their development over the next 4-5 years.

That part is what makes us true fans, watch the development over a period of time, and don't just look at the here and now!!!

Well stated John Galt.
 

Sid commented that he thought they threw more than ran the ball. I think the QB equation to running is hard to practice and show in intersquad scrimmages. This team should be able to have a nice balance.
 

Dr.Don said:
That part is what makes us true fans, watch the development over a period of time, and don't just look at the here and now!!!

Well stated John Galt.
When your a season ticket holder and watched\paid for way too many years of bad football that has not been "developing" - you cant help but feel that its all about winning "here and now". (6-6) is what we need THIS year.
 

Thanks for the recap DL65. I would hope the Gophers do plan to throw the football more than Kill is letting on at this particular moment. It's nice to hear that Beal is looking good as it would be great to see that kid actually get to play some football after all the work he's put in to rehabbing devastating injury after devastating injury. Surprised there wasn't a question asked about Cooper who most expected to be the playmaker in our LB corps this year, but who seems to be in competition for a job.
 

Hopefully we can red-shirt all three. We'll be set-up pretty nice in the future at DB if we can do this, and would probably only need to add one more DB in the 2013 class with Myrick on board. This class appears to have the chance to be pretty good, and it will be fun to watch their development over the next 4-5 years.

Kill wants to be able to play a lot of players so we can be strong during the fourth quarter. He also has said the best players will play. Therefore I suspect several true freshman will be playing and will not be red shirted.
 

Kill wants to be able to play a lot of players so we can be strong during the fourth quarter. He also has said the best players will play. Therefore I suspect several true freshman will be playing and will not be red shirted.

Yeah, it's an interesting question with college athletics. I do think it's a bit dependent on the position the player plays. I think it will be a bit more difficult for a true FR CB to avoid being RS than a true FR S. Does anyone know where Travis and Johnson are likely to play? I think of Travis as a S and Johnson more than likely a CB. Also, was Montgomery taking snaps at CB or S?
 

The only area where we don't have good depth is D tackle. That said, I have never seen a Gopher team with this much depth. Not even the last National champs had this kind of depth. For example, as good asd Decker was, I think McDonald and Harbison are more developed as freshmen than he was. Not saying they will be as good as he was, but that they are ahead at the same place. Murray was supposed to be too light and a sure redshirt, but he has really stood out. And don't forget this freshman class has future players like Nelson, Leidner, Persig etc. I was watching last year's Iowa game today and was amazed at how bad the d backs looked. We have really stepped up in that area. The same with linebacker, now that we have a real stud in the middle in the brace-less Beal.
 






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