Buck Bravo

3-0.  At the end of the season, that will be the only relevant statistic from this week.  After an emotional win on the road versus Bowling Green, the youth and inexperience of the Gopher Football team was apparent versus the Montana State Bobcats.  Despite numerous mistakes, Minnesota was still able to walk away with a win.  Perhaps a disappointing win versus Montana State will build character for the Gopher squad.  Here’s a few observations from Saturday:

Youth and Inexperience - The Gophers are one of the youngest teams in Division IA football.  In fact, they have the third fewest seniors of any Division IA team.  I can count ten true freshmen who have seen the field.  Most notable is that the offensive line has started and played a few redshirt freshmen.  Of any position in football besides quarterback, the offensive line benefits most from age and experience.

Defensive Chemistry - I’m able to count eight players who have seen the field on defense who were not wearing maroon and gold last year.  There is undoubtedly an upgrade in talent on the field with the addition of Tramaine Brock, Traye Simmons, Simoni Lawrence, Marcus Sherels and Cedric McKinley among others.  On several of the successful Montana State passing plays, including the first quarter touchdown, there were breakdowns in zone coverage.  The good news is that our defensive players were not beat by better athletes.  They made mistakes in coverage assignments.  It’s important to remember that many of these players have only been working together since August.  As the season progresses and players acclimate themselves to the system and to each other, expect fewer breakdowns in coverage.

Wide Receivers - Eric Decker is having an All American season.  Additional wide receivers need to step up and become threats before entering Big Ten play.  I’m still optimistic that the true freshmen quartet of Brandon Green, Xzavian Brandon, Brodrick Smith and Da’Jon McKnight are learning the complex Gopher spread offense and fine tuning their skills.  Adam Weber will need more options than Eric Decker and Jack Simmons to be successful in the Big Ten.

Deleon Eskridge - Deleon Eskridge had a great game with 114 yards rushing and three touchdowns.  When he was hit, he would continue to move forward.  He made great cuts and has Division I speed.  My previous post analyzed the options for replacing Duane Bennett, and it appears that the answer is Deleon Eskridge.

After last week’s victory at Bowling Green, it was easy to overlook that the Gophers are a young and inexperienced team.  Expect the Gophers to improve as the year progresses, but expect growing pains along the way.  The Golden Gopher Football blog gives a nice gameday recap including a statistical analysis.  Rome wasn’t built in a day.  Here’s a great video recap of the game:

The second long touchdown pass from Chandler Harnish to Nathan Palmer evoked nightmares of a year gone by for many in Gopher Nation.  But 1998 is not 1997, and Father Time and Fate granted a different outcome on the gridiron battleground.  The Gophers looked very good at times and shaky at others, but in the end pulled out a victory.

In my prior post, I predicted a 45-17 win for the Gophers.  I can speculate on what might have happened if Eric Decker’s touchdown hadn’t been taken away and Ryan Collado’s blown coverage hadn’t resulted in two touchdowns.  The bottom line is that the score of 31-27, while a win, was far different from what I expected.  Here’s my take on the offense:

Adam Weber appeared to be a more accurate passer than this time last year.  Besides Eric Decker, the options that Weber had as wide receiver targets were sparse.  Weber looked more mature and confident at quarterback, but he was telegraphing his passes.  Good linebackers and defensive backs key on the quarterback’s eyes, and Weber is giving them plenty of warning as to where he plans on throwing the ball.  While he had a great game versus Northern Illinois, teams with quicker defensive personnel could take advantage of this tendency.  If he can learn to avoid staring down his primary target, he could become an elite NCAA passer.  That’s a BIG IF, because if he continues to telegraph passes expect the interceptions to be numerous versus top tier opponents.  It’s important to remember that he’s only a sophomore and should continue to mature and develop throughout the season.

Jack Simmons looked every bit the part of an NFL tight end.  If he can avoid injury, expect him to be a first or second round draft pick this coming Spring.  Nick Tow-Arnett also had some big time catches, demonstrating that he’s more than just a blocking tight end.

Eric Decker had a great day with 89 yards receiving and a touchdown, but I expected to see a few of the new freshmen wide receivers see the field.  Ralph Spry and Ben Kuznia are servicable, but Weber will need the likes of Brandon Green and Brodrick Smith on the field in order to have multiple open targets throughout the season.

The offensive line has some new starters, and at times I thought that their youth and inexperience was apparent.  Defensive end Larry English of NIU looked like a man among boys out on the field.  It’s too bad he isn’t wearing maroon and gold this year.  Adam Weber didn’t have enough time in the pocket, and the O-line needs to gel as the season goes on and they gain experience.

Duane Bennett had a solid game with 92 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries.  Most importantly, he didn’t fumble and he gave us proof of breakaway speed with a 61 yard touchdown run.  I did notice that on a few occasions he carried the ball with the inside hand.  Ahman Green has had a long career in the NFL while holding the ball in just his left hand, so as long as there aren’t any fumbles that’s a moot point (unless Bennett prevents himself from being able to stiff-arm a defender).  Bennett looks to have become a quick, elusive, and speedy back with good hands.  He’s a great fit for the Gopher’s spread offense.

If Adam Weber continues to develop while avoiding telegraphed passes, a few freshmen wide receivers step up and play to expectations, and the young offensive line gels, we could be in for another record setting offense in 2008.  I’ll be back to analyze the defense and conclude my game 1 recap Monday evening.  Until then, enjoy the following video link sent to me by a reader.

Come Saturday evening all of the news, hype, optimism, pessimism, and speculation will be irrelevant as the Gophers give us a showing of realism on the field.  The 2008 season opener will show Gopher Nation how much the returning Gophers have progressed since last year, how talented the junior college transfers are, and how the defense looks under new defensive coordinator Ted Roof.  Based upon this video of last year’s NIU team versus Tulane, I expect the Gopher offense to have a strong showing: 

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With a year of running the spread offense under his belt, I expect Adam Weber to have a strong showing at quarterback and showcase his skills.  Signs of progress from last year would be audibles that result in successful plays, checking down the first receiver option for secondary and tertiary options, and accurate passing on slant patterns and out routes.  Eric Decker should remain his primary target and have a solid game.  Expect Duane Bennett to receive the bulk of the carries, and keep an eye on Jay Thomas to see if he can make confident cuts with his reconstructed knees.

There are high hopes for the revamped Gopher secondary.  Junior college transfer Traye Simmons was touted as a shut-down corner, and hopefully will live up to his nickname of “Big Play Traye.”  Another junior college transfer, Tramaine Brock, will have a chance to legitimize his reputation as a ferocious hitter with blazing speed.  Kyle Theret is the only returning member of the defensive backfield who will be starting.  Marcus Sherels, who switched to cornerback from wide receiver, can affirm reports that the transition was for the best.  According to this blog, NIU has a question mark at quarterback.  I’d be very concerned if the Gopher secondary doesn’t have a strong showing.

The Gopher linebackers are somewhat of a question mark, with Steve Davis the only returning starter at the top of the depth chart.  Lee Campbell has the size to be a solid middle linebacker.  Simoni Lawrence, another junior college transfer, has been solid in practice as a hybrid defensive back/linebacker.  At just over 200 pounds, I just hope that he can hold up to the physical punishment of playing linebacker.  I will also be curoius as to how/if junior college transfer Rex Sharpe will be used in the linebacker rotation.

The defensive line will need to demonstrate improvement with the pass rush.  Hopefully junior college transfer Cedric McKinley will show that his size and speed can translate into performance on the field as a defensive end.  Eric Small’s added size, along with the addition of freshman Jewhan Edwards, should make a difference in run-stopping ability.  Justin Anderson of NIU had over 1200 rushing yards last year, and will be a good test for the defense.

I expect the Gophers to have a solid performance against NIU, and would be surprised if the game is even close.  Actually, I’d be VERY concerned if this game is close.  I’ll predict a final score of 45-17 in favor of the Gophers.

Willie VanDeSteeg was a 2004 graduate of Glencoe-Silver Lake High School, which fields a class AAA football team in western Minnesota.  VanDeSteeg was rated a two star recruit by both Rivals.com and Scout.com.  In my opinion, his low two star rating was probably less of a reflection of his ability and more likely a result of playing for a small school in the rural Midwest.  There are often cases of players who grow and mature after reaching college, but VanDeSteeg recorded 75 tackles and 20 sacks his senior season.  20 sacks from a 6′4, 245 pound high school kid should be worth at least a three star rating at almost any level of play.  Many Minnesota high school players in the past few years have been chronically underrated again, and again, and again.

VanDeSteeg had a breakout season in 2006 with 10 sacks, which was third best in the Big Ten.  In 2007 he only recorded one sack, but broke a bone before the start of the season that hampered his performance.  Having one effective arm may be a successful strategy at times, but not as a defensive end.  The off-season proved to be an eventful one for VanDeSteeg, but he claims that he’s now ready for a strong senior season.

Realistically expect Willie VanDeSteeg to have a very good season in 2008 that is on par with his 2006 performance.  If indeed Eric Small has bulked up and Cedric KcKinley plays as well as some expect, Willie Vandesteeg should see less double-teams from offensive blockers and have a great season.  If he exceeds 10 sacks, do’t be suprised to see him go in the first few rounds of the 2009 NFL draft.

Entering the 2008 football season, the Gophers have added six junior college transfers to their squad.  Junior college transfers, or JUCOs, are players who used one or two years of their NCAA eligibility to play football for junior college teams.  Why would a Division 1 Big Ten Football program want to add players to their recruiting class that only have one or two years of eligibility left instead of high school recruits who could contribute to the program for four years?  First, JUCOs have a few more years of maturity and experience, and can contribute to a program immediately.  Second, the Gophers had several holes to fill after last year’s 1-11 season, and many incoming freshmen may not be physically ready or experienced enough to play right away.  Third, many JUCOs are players that were either overlooked by scouts, matured after high school, or needed to improve upon their academics before being accepted to a Division I-A program. 

JUCO players can offer immediate assistance to teams in need of talented players.  In 1997, Bill Snyder of Kansas State brought in 12 junior college players.  One year later, Kansas State realized their first ever number one ranking during the season.  Apparently, Kansas State is revisiting that strategy once again.  I think it highly unlikely that the six Gopher JUCO transfers will bring us to the Rose Bowl, but I do expect the defense to have a much better year. 

Expect to see JUCO transfers Tramaine Brock, Traye Simmons, and Simoni Lawrence start in the defensive backfield.  Don’t be surprised to see Lawrence play some downs as a linebacker, too.  Cedric McKinley should add size and speed at defensive end.  Rex Sharpe was a highly recruited player coming out of high school in 2005, and originally committed to Auburn.  After overcoming some adversity, he is looking forward to being an impact player as a linebacker for the Gophers.  Potentially, the Gophers could be adding three talented defensive backs, a defensive end with excellent size and speed, and a linebacker who could be a difference maker.  On offense, David Pittman should be a versatile weapon for the Gophers.

Hopefully, the Gophers’ six JUCO recruits will add a shot of adrenaline to the program for the 2008 season.  While these players don’t have a full four years of eligibility to play football at the University of Minnesota, they should help improve the team as the Gophers look to expand the Gopher Nation prior to the opening of their new stadium in 2009.  Long term, their presence may allow some of the linebacker and defensive line high school recruits to redshirt in 2008.  An extra year in the weight room prior to the eligibility clock ticking away can do wonders for a player’s strength and size.  In 2008, expect there to be nothing junior about Gopher JUCOs.