First Look: Minnesota
Right: Sophomore quarterback Adam Weber has completed 71.8 percent of his passes and averages 241.8 yards per game.
AP Photo/Paul Battaglia
MINNESOTA, 4-0
Quickly, can you name the Big Ten school that has gone the longest without a Rose Bowl appearance?
That would Minnesota, who last played in Pasadena 47 years ago when the Golden Gophers defeated UCLA 21-3 back in 1962, led by the first African-American named All-American at the quarterback position, Sandy Stephens.
But that was the golden age of gridiron glory for Gopher football as Minnesota won a national championship in 1960, and made consecutive trips to the Rose Bowl in ’61 and ’62. The last time the Maroon & Gold laid claim to a Big Ten championship was in 1967.
While the 60s may have been the pinnacle of Minnesota football, last season was definitely a low point after the Gophers sustained the most losses for one season in school history by going 1-11 during the 2007 campaign.
Second-year head coach Tim Brewster has the Gophers moving in the right direction, quadrupling last year’s win output already with a record of 4-0. Granted, those wins were not against the big dogs of the BCS, in fact, none of them were, but victories against Northern Illinois (31-27), Bowling Green (42-17), Montana State (35-23), and Florida Atlantic (37-3) are positives.
Minnesota’s win over Florida Atlantic last Saturday was the most impressive to date. The Owls were the Sun Belt Conference champion a year ago and returned 17 starters. FAU defeated Minnesota in 2007 by the score of 42-29.
As the Gophers play their 29th and final year at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome before moving into TCF Bank Stadium, an on-campus facility seating 50,200 fans next season, it has been “Home Sweet Dome” for Minnesota so far in 2007, going 3-0 in a place more known for it’s Hefty bag in right field as the home of the Minnesota Twins.
Last Saturday at the Metrodome, 6-foot-3, 220-pound sophomore quarterback Adam Weber threw for 235 yards and a score on 19-of-24 passing with one interception while DeLeon Eskridge, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound backup running back, who was subbing for the injured Duane Bennett, rushed for 78 yards on 19 carries and two TDs to lead the Gophers past the Owls.
Minnesota’s 5-foot-10, 185-pound freshman running back, Shady Salamon, scored the game’s first touchdown on a 3-yard run before both teams traded field goals.
The Gophers took a 16-3 lead into halftime when Weber connected with Eric Decker on a 31-yard pass play with 4:58 left in the second quarter.
Eskridge had 1-yard touchdown runs in both the third and fourth quarters to give the Gophers a 30-3 lead, and 6-foot-1, 205-pound junior outside linebacker Simoni Lawrence closed out the scoring by returning an interception 50 yards for a TD with 9:47 remaining.
Weber, who threw 19 interceptions a year ago, has just one pick through four games this season. He’s 79-of-110 (71.8 percent) passing for 967 yards and seven TDs.
As a team last season, the Gophers ranked last in the Big Ten in turnover margin (-15). So far in 2008, Minnesota is a plus-11.
Decker, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound junior wide receiver, who hauled in 67 passes for 909 yards and nine TDs last year, is by far Weber’s favorite target with 32 receptions for 464 yards and four touchdowns in 2008.
Bennett, who tore his ACL against Bowling Green and is out for the year, was at the top of the depth chart at running back when the season began. Now Eskridge (47 att., 204 yards, 5 TDs) and Salamon (22 att., 122 yards, 2 TDs) are the two backs who will get the bulk of the carries the rest of the way.
Defensively, the Gophers are led by 5-foot-10, 194-pound junior free safety Tramaine Brock with 28 total tackles. William VanDeSteeg, a 6-foot-4, 256-pound defensive end, leads the team with six TFLs and shares the top spot with Lawrence and Barrett Moen, a 6-foot-3, 275-pound defensive tackle, with 1.5 sacks. Traye Simmons, a 5-foot-11, 175-pound cornerback and Kyle Theret, a 5-foot-11, 185-pound free safety both have two interceptions.
Minnesota had four very winnable games to start the season before they travel to Columbus to take on the Buckeyes in both team’s Big Ten opener on Saturday. While the Gophers enter Ohio Stadium with a record of 4-0, they may not win another game the rest of the season.
One thing is for sure, if Minnesota wants to be competitive during conference play, the defense has to vastly improve. Last season, the Gophers finished dead-last in the Big Ten and near the bottom among all 119 Division I-A teams in all four major statistical categories. Minnesota ranked 109th in scoring defense (36.7 ppg), 114th in rushing defense (229.3 ypg), 115th in passing defense (289.3 ypg), and 119th in total defense (518.7 ypg).
So far in 2008, Minnesota is 35th in scoring defense (17.5 ppg), 42nd in rushing defense (109.75 ypg), 94th in passing defense (245.0 ypg), and 65th in total defense (354.75 ypg) against teams who have a combined record of 4-9.
Those numbers are better, but the competition for the Gophers will be a lot tougher the rest of the way.
