SiouxScore

They did until about a week ago. The stories all say the conference changed the bylaws recently to not make football a requirement. With how quick St. Cloud and UMC announced they were dropping their football programs you have to think they were pushing to change the bylaws.

I think that was part of the problem that Johnson sold the hit a little bit. PJ wasn’t putting on a show at all like it or not that’s how he is. He is the first one out there like that anytime one of his players go down. The situation just looked really weird because of how quick Johnson popped up.

I've seen every snap of Morgan this year and also seen a couple full games of Lance and parts of other games. I like Lance and he has played well but no way am I gonna say a QB who hasn't played one FBS team is as good or better than a guy who has proven it at that level and was all conference in the Big Ten leading his team to 10 wins.

Ohio State has 5 wins over current top 25 teams. 2 vs #8, and 1 each vs #10, #14, and #20. LSU has 4 wins 1 each over #4, #9, #11, and #12. I think I'd still have Ohio State #1 just based on what I've watched all year.

So it seems like a pretty easy year for the playoff committee but if anyone could screw it up it would be these guys based on some of their rankings the past few weeks. Only real intrigue today seems to be is Ohio State #1 or is LSU? Pretty big decision too because I would much rather play Oklahoma than Clemson.

I don't know that it makes a huge difference but that Johnson drop certainly is one that you can look back on. Weird thing is PJ had already checked on a few guys who were down earlier in the game just like that and he has always done that. They tried to say he ran out their too fast that time but he pretty much always gets out there like that with an injury. Seemed like it was just a convenient excuse to throw the flag on the Gophers since they had already thrown one on Iowa after that play.

Gophers kicking game is shaky to start with and was even worse that day with their starting kicker out. He had missed a long field goal that I still have no idea why they attempted and also ended up missing a extra point later in the game. I was all for going for it there down 20-13 and it was a great play call Johnson just plain dropped it.

PJ is in the big ten title game if the Gophers show up for the 1st half at Iowa. I was really worried when Annexstad got hurt during fall camp because I thought he was the best option at QB. Better arm than Morgan, bigger, faster, more athletic, etc. Morgan proved himself though this season. He was much more confident and showed a stronger arm. The biggest thing though might be the intangibles as everyone raves about his leadership abilities. Biggest thing for him to continue to progress is get better at feeling the rush and he must improves his pocket presence. Lance is definitely a better runner than any QB the Gophers have right now Kramer would be the closest as he is very athletic. Gophers don't have a whole lot of true QB run reads in their RPO offense though. Lot of fans think the QB is supposed to pull if the DE crashes each run play but that just isn't true. Gophers have maybe 5 run plays a game where Morgan is truly supposed to read the backside DE. Lance is doing a great job for NDSU and the Gophers have a great group of 4 QBs. The most talent and depth their QB room has seen in a long time.

As long as our guys keep putting the puck in the net they can do whatever the hell they want to celebrate.

As good if not better than the All B1G 2nd team QB. Alright.

Gophers wanted Lance to camp and would give him a look at QB but he was more being looked at as an athlete. Lance only wanted to be a QB so he didn't camp and took the NDSU offer. I've been impressed with Lance but I'm not sure how he'd fit into the Gophers offense. I'm pretty happy with the Gophers QB situation with 4 really solid QBs and 2 having made a number of starts plus a 4 star kid committed for 2021.

Pinto

Hain

Yeah the loss of Faalele really hurt. They have been rotating 6 OL most of the season but coming into the Penn State game they added the wrinkle of going 6 OL at the same time which they hadn't shown previously. From the sounds of it they were gonna use that 6 OL package quite a bit today and when the injury happened it really threw off some things game plan wise.

Disappointing result today for the Gophers. Almost roles reversed of last year in Wisconsin. I really think the call from Fleck to punt on 4th and 2 from the Wisconsin 35 on that 2nd drive up 7-0 changed the game. Gophers did an excellent job of containing Taylor but then it is like when Wisconsin adjusted the Gophers never did defensively. Refs really let the DBs play today which definitely hurt the Gophers. Wisconsin was missing a couple DBs and allowing the backups to grab handfuls of jersey without PI wasn't ideal.

You knew Minnesota would bring more tonight and they did. Much more focused on trying to be physical and make things tougher in the neutral zone. I thought we still made a number of plays though but it was much sloppier. Lots of mishandles, whiffs, and just the puck bouncing over guys sticks tonight. Would have been nice to finish on a few more chances but some times you just have to grind it out to get the sweep.

Great energy and great start from the guys put Minnesota on their heels right away. A little sloppy in the defensive zone at times but for the most start played very well. Created a ton of great chances and were relentless on the puck. I know we scored 9 goals but I really thought both Lafontaine and Moe made a couple real big saves each. You have to think Minnesota is gonna come with a much better effort and a little angry so gotta be ready not to just respond to what they bring but to still set the tone tomorrow night just like you did tonight.

Last year when he was in his head was spinning and he tried to shoot the ball from the outside with a really ugly shot. I'm glad to see he is playing inside more and he has definitely added some muscle. He has definitely improved and I hope he can continue to progress. The UND big Rebraca(sp?) impressed me tonight. They chose to leave him with Oturu 1-on-1 a lot defensively and he did well. Definitely frustrated Daniel a little at times.

Had his best game of the season tonight. Always plays with that energy and tenacity but finished a few more plays tonight. Probably his 2nd best game of his young Gopher career. Didn't know he had that post move and finish with the left hand in him though.

I don't know if I ever think he will be a key guy but he has loads of athleticism. He is much better this year at understanding concepts and it seems like the game has slowed down for him a bit. He isn't ever going to be a big scorer with his skillset I don't think but he plays extremely hard, can grab some rebounds, and brings a ton of energy. Type of guy that seems like a great teammate as well.

Oturu was a huge commit he picked Minnesota over Kansas as a Junior in high school and the rest of the big boys were gonna be coming after him too. Kalscheur and Omersa were definitely more under the radar guys when you look at the offer list. Pitino was able to land Jarvis Johnson who never played because of a heart issue and Amir Coffey as big time recruits. Michael Hurt was thought to be a solid get when he committed although he really hasn't produced. It really is frustrating to see so many really good players leave for other places. It really seemed for a long time like they were gonna land Garcia and he is my top guy in the Minnesota '20 class. You could say Suggs as the top guy but I don't think he has ever been realistic. If he goes to college I'd be shocked if it wasn't Gonzaga and it has been that way since last winter although there is a very real chance he goes pro instead and plays in a place like Australia for a year. Lately it is a problem in both football and basketball to get the top Minnesota kids to stay home. You look at the last couple classes for football and the top 2 go to Notre Dame and Nebraska last year, this year is a little different with the top 2 being the 2 Minnehaha kids is Johnson and Suggs. Johnson is undecided but if he was gonna be a Gopher it seems like he would've committed already and Suggs will play basketball, even the 21 class the top 2 are committed already to Wisconsin and Iowa. On the basketball side of things in 19 they were after Hurt who went to Duke and Nnaji who went to Arizona who wanted some things that Pitino just wouldn't do and they went after Tyrell Terry(Stanford) a little but I think other guys were higher on the board. In the 20 class you have Garcia who picked Marquette, Carlson who picked Wisconsin, Crowl was a weird situation picking Wisconsin. His family was mad the Gophers didn't offer on a campus visit earlier in the spring even though they hadn't been able to watch him yet and they said they wanted to wait and see his progress. If the family wants to be mad about it that is fine but the Gophers offered as soon as they saw him play in the open period and 2 days after Wisconsin. Wisconsin had him on campus for their team camp but didn't offer after the camp instead waiting another 3 weeks. They also missed on Gabe Madsen who wanted to play with his brother and the Gophers didn't offer his brother so they both picked Cincinnati. Kerwin Walton is the guy still undecided in the class and the Gophers are trying on him but not sure I feel real confident in any locals in any sport right now. EDIT: Also missed Dain Dainja for the 2020 class. He is committed to Baylor. Gophers were after him early but the interest kind of trailed off because of academics. He has some work to do.

This is a much different Gopher team than the last few years. The last few years you had Amir Coffey's ability to get to the hoop and really this offense was predicated on getting to the rim and getting to the free throw line. The other big part of the offense was throwing it to the walking double double Jordan Murphy on the block and letting him go to work inside. This year they will throw it to Oturu inside but he can also step out and hit the 3 and plays very well in space. The ball movement is much crisper with this years squad and they shoot it a ton better than they have the past few seasons. Daniel Oturu is the top player for the Gophers and has been very good this year. The only problem is some times he doesn't get enough touches. The last game against Central Michigan he really didn't do much as they doubled him before he even got the ball some times. If he keeps playing as well as he has in the stretch against Oklahoma, Butler, and Utah he could be a 1st round pick after this year. The rest of the Gopher starters are PG Marcus Carr. He has been a little frustrating as he has been very up and down in the early going. He sometimes over dribbles the ball and makes some bad decisions but more often than not he has been moving the ball well and he can create for others as well as himself. He has really struggled at the free throw line and he has got there a decent number of times so that is a big part of the frustration. SG/SF Gabe Kalscheur and Peyton Willis. Both are excellent defenders and great 3 point shooters. Gabe struggled with his shot a little early in the season but seemed to find it a little against Central Michigan with 5 3 pointers. Willis handles the ball a little better and has been very consistent with just one bad game at Utah. The PF spot has mostly been grad transfer Alihan Demir. He has really struggled to finish around the rim and on the defensive end at times as well. Seems like he is still trying to fit in to his new role. He has been a little better the last couple games. Bench-You will probably see SR Michael Hurt as first off the bench. He isn't real flashy but usually makes the right play and is in the right spot. He will spend time at the 3 and 4 and is coming off his best game of the season. FR Tre Williams will get minutes at the 2/3 and is a solid defender that can hit the 3 if left open. SO Jarvis Omersa will probably play the backup 5 minutes. He is the best athlete on the floor nearly every time he steps on it. Tendency to pick up fouls. Loads of potential but play needs to be more consistent in his time on the court. FR Isaiah Ihnen will probably get the backup 4 minutes. He is a long lean athlete that has loads of potential. He missed the first 3 games with a wrist injury. In each of the games he has played he has knocked down a 3 and done a good job of creating a couple turnovers with deflections.

Gophers take care of Northwestern to clinch at least a share of the B1G West and wisconsin beats Purdue. Next Saturday Gophers and Badgers for the Axe, a spot in the B1G Championship, and Gameday making their first trip to Minnesota.

Played a solid defensive game. Left a little to be desired offensively at times but bottom line made a big play when you needed it to get the win.

This team is really fun to watch. Such a different style than last year and just seem to be playing more freely and confident. I don't know if there is one returner that looks like they didn't make a significant jump from last season to this season. I'm not talking about just in production either if you watched last season and are now watching this season the difference in guys is so obvious.