Who were your favorite players from the Brewster/Kill eras?

GopherEnEspaña

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Since signing day is over and we are almost towards the end of the road, I might as well get a head start on some offseason content.

Found myself randomly watching old highlights and I'd be curious to hear your answer.

Loved watching Hageman. Da'Jon McKnight is my sleeper pick. Edit: Can't forget my 6'10 TE Nate Wozniak

Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad and safe travels to all my fellow Gopher brethren.
 
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Decker is obvious. Minnesota legend. Looked like a man amongst boys at times.

I forgot about Myrick, he was a stud. Ran a 4.28 at the combine, surprised he didn't hang around longer.
Perhaps my favorite play at the Bank, especially given the situation, tie ballgame in the middle of the 4th Q.

 




Not sure if they count since they finished their career with Fleck but Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks certainly are up there. Otherwise-

On offense:
  • Eric Decker
  • Adam Weber
  • David Cobb
  • Maxx Williams
  • Donnell Kirkwood
  • MarQueis Gray
  • Jonah Pirsig
Defense:
  • Briean Boddy-Calhoun
  • Brock Vereen
  • Troy Stoudermire
  • Eric Murray
  • Michael Carter
  • D.L. Wilhite
  • De'Vondre Campbell
  • Ra'Shede Hageman
Special Teams:
  • Ryan Santoso
  • Peter Mortell
 




Just some random names that I think of fondly for different reasons.

Eric Decker - Just an amazing athlete and talent.

Marquise Gray - The fact he stayed loyal to the Gophers despite all the pitfalls along the way.

Briean Boddy-Calhoun - His strip of the ball against Nebraska was one of the biggest jumps from the couch I can remember. I'm pretty sure I hit my head on the ceiling.

Shannon Brooks - When signing an autograph for my son, my kid asked him about his cross and bible verse tattoo's and he had a legit 2-3 minute conversation with my son (age 10-11ish?) about his faith.

Kim Royston - Prodigal son returned. He was a bright spot during an otherwise turbulent time.
 

Maxx Williams was a steal. Our staff knew what he could be, but nobody else had half a clue.

Ryan Santoso was a great weapon. I'm shocked he hasn't had a great NFL career. If he kicked or punted as well in the pros as he did in college, he should be making millions of dollars and getting his toes licked by beautiful women.

Michael Carter was a defensive weapon.
 


Not sure if they count since they finished their career with Fleck but Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks certainly are up there. Otherwise-

On offense:
  • Eric Decker
  • Adam Weber
  • David Cobb
  • Maxx Williams
  • Donnell Kirkwood
  • MarQueis Gray
  • Jonah Pirsig
Defense:
  • Briean Boddy-Calhoun
  • Brock Vereen
  • Troy Stoudermire
  • Eric Murray
  • Michael Carter
  • D.L. Wilhite
  • De'Vondre Campbell
  • Ra'Shede Hageman
Special Teams:
  • Ryan Santoso
  • Peter Mortell
That is a pretty solid list.
 




Found myself randomly watching old highlights and I'd be curious to hear your answer.

Loved watching Hageman. Da'Jon McKnight is my sleeper pick. Edit: Can't forget my 6'10 TE Nate Wozniak
Wozniak had the hands of a lobster. Useless in the receiving game.

Loved watching M. Gray. Very few, if any, other athletes played on offense for the Gophs in the last few decades that could break a play and just plain beat any athlete on the other side of the ball. Wish there would have been a clear positional fit for him from day 1 but he was still an awesome dude.
 



Lee Campbell. Should have caught a redshirt was great as a senior would have been better the next year.
 

David Cobb, Eric Decker, and Marqueis Gray.

No idea why, but I loved Jack Lynn at Linebacker... Big fan of Cedric Thompson, Damien Wilson, and DeVondre Campbell
 
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Wozniak had the hands of a lobster. Useless in the receiving game.

Loved watching M. Gray. Very few, if any, other athletes played on offense for the Gophs in the last few decades that could break a play and just plain beat any athlete on the other side of the ball. Wish there would have been a clear positional fit for him from day 1 but he was still an awesome dude.

Lol. Wozniak had the had the coordination of a blind dog. It was just funny seeing how comically tall and awkward he was.

Regarding Gray - totally agree. I was really disappointed in how the Gophers staffs handled him during his time here. If I remember correctly, he was a 4* and top dual-threat in the country behind Pryor. I don't care how bad his mechanics were, they should have gave him a spread option and had him run it 25 times a game. Watching these highlights now is ridiculous:

 

Not sure if they count since they finished their career with Fleck but Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks certainly are up there. Otherwise-

On offense:
  • Eric Decker
  • Adam Weber
  • David Cobb
  • Maxx Williams
  • Donnell Kirkwood
  • MarQueis Gray
  • Jonah Pirsig
Defense:
  • Briean Boddy-Calhoun
  • Brock Vereen
  • Troy Stoudermire
  • Eric Murray
  • Michael Carter
  • D.L. Wilhite
  • De'Vondre Campbell
  • Ra'Shede Hageman
Special Teams:
  • Ryan Santoso
  • Peter Mortell

Good list. Kirkwood was great. He was like a tree stump with legs out there. Bummer he had so many nagging injuries towards the end of his career - nobody wanted to tackle that guy.

DL Wilhite is a name I haven't thought about in awhile - guy had a great motor and finally put some respect on the edge of our D-line for once.
 



Regarding Gray - totally agree. I was really disappointed in how the Gophers staffs handled him during his time here. If I remember correctly, he was a 4* and top dual-threat in the country behind Pryor. I don't care how bad his mechanics were, they should have gave him a spread option and had him run it 25 times a game. Watching these highlights now is ridiculous:

Definitely. He was moved around a lot and showed skill with whatever he did. His total stats don't reflect how athletic he was.
  • Rushing: 1,731 yards, 12 Touchdowns
  • Receiving: 766 yards, 6 Touchdowns
  • Passing: 2,053 yards, 14 Touchdowns
  • Total: 4,550 yards, 32 Touchdowns
 

warning - controversy -

Mitch Leidner.

Yes, he had flaws and limitations. but I always got the feeling that Leidner would literally try to run through a brick wall in order to try and win a game.

and for all the heat he took from fans -
finished his career with 7,287 yds passing for 36 TD and 1,495 yds rushing for 33 TD.

when he graduated, he was the only MN QB with more than 30 TD both passing & rushing.

he wasn't perfect. far from it. but he put on the Gopher jersey and tried his best.
 




warning - controversy -

Mitch Leidner.

Yes, he had flaws and limitations. but I always got the feeling that Leidner would literally try to run through a brick wall in order to try and win a game.

and for all the heat he took from fans -
finished his career with 7,287 yds passing for 36 TD and 1,495 yds rushing for 33 TD.

when he graduated, he was the only MN QB with more than 30 TD both passing & rushing.

he wasn't perfect. far from it. but he put on the Gopher jersey and tried his best.
That's a no for me dawg.
 





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