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Minnesota

Jerry

Well-Known Member
May 29, 2001
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We can debate Michigan...and Franklin...and Clifford...until the cows come home, but hopefully the team has got its head back on straight and is focusing on Minnesota because that's shaping up to be a pretty huge game. The fact is, this season is salvageable. As things stand, we'll be favored in every game except Ohio State. This is not the time to lose poise and do the familiar swoon after a loss.

The Gophers have a decent defense, but their offense has recently looked mediocre. In fact, after losses to Purdue and Illinois, their emotional state can't be much better than ours at this point.

They do have an excellent back (Mo Ibrahim) and a fairly good O-line, but after the shots their QB, Tanner Morgan, took against Illinois before leaving the game late with an injury, I have a hard time seeing how he'll be ready this Saturday. Naturally, their coach is playing it coy and suggesting he could be OK to play. We'll see.

The receivers aren't great, and their passing attack has struggled in the losses, so their plan on offense is no great secret: the power game a la Michigan with Ibrahim carrying the load. Shut that down, and you shut down their offense.

Minnesota seems to be a fashionable betting pick, but I'm not buying it. I think we show up with something to prove and score a solid win in the whiteout. Then again, I thought we'd beat Michigan, so there's that.
 
T
We can debate Michigan...and Franklin...and Clifford...until the cows come home, but hopefully the team has got its head back on straight and is focusing on Minnesota because that's shaping up to be a pretty huge game. The fact is, this season is salvageable. As things stand, we'll be favored in every game except Ohio State. This is not the time to lose poise and do the familiar swoon after a loss.

The Gophers have a decent defense, but their offense has recently looked mediocre. In fact, after losses to Purdue and Illinois, their emotional state can't be much better than ours at this point.

They do have an excellent back (Mo Ibrahim) and a fairly good O-line, but after the shots their QB, Tanner Morgan, took against Illinois before leaving the game late with an injury, I have a hard time seeing how he'll be ready this Saturday. Naturally, their coach is playing it coy and suggesting he could be OK to play. We'll see.

The receivers aren't great, and their passing attack has struggled in the losses, so their plan on offense is no great secret: the power game a la Michigan with Ibrahim carrying the load. Shut that down, and you shut down their offense.

Minnesota seems to be a fashionable betting pick, but I'm not buying it. I think we show up with something to prove and score a solid win in the whiteout. Then again, I thought we'd beat Michigan, so there's that.
Morgan and Ibriham were 3* recruits. One of their OL was unrated but made the BiG preseason team.

If Minny beats PSU they are getting more from less.

P.S. We better not open up by having Singleton running between the tackles.
 
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It's an inflection point game for Franklin and this program. Covid this and extenuating circumstances that, the last few years have not been good. Franklin has received his big extension(clearly not based on merit), commitments to improve facilities, the most expensive coordinators money can buy....it's time to stop the mid-season swoons. There are 2 themes that have been consistent since JF took over...poor play and motivation after bye weeks(and with time in between like Bowl games) and poor play and motivation after emotional losses. I heard some things before Michigan that had me encouraged about how Franklin and staff were adjusting how they handle the bye week...it fooled me into believing they would win or be competitive against Michigan, we know how that worked out. Now we get to see how Franklin reacts this year to a loss with a physical team coming it. He is a very emotional coach, so the whiteout I think helps more than a typical 12:00 noon game would after a loss. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. I'm picking Minnesota, but I wouldn't be shocked by a clean victory for PSU either.
 
It's an inflection point game for Franklin and this program. Covid this and extenuating circumstances that, the last few years have not been good. Franklin has received his big extension(clearly not based on merit), commitments to improve facilities, the most expensive coordinators money can buy....it's time to stop the mid-season swoons. There are 2 themes that have been consistent since JF took over...poor play and motivation after bye weeks(and with time in between like Bowl games) and poor play and motivation after emotional losses. I heard some things before Michigan that had me encouraged about how Franklin and staff were adjusting how they handle the bye week...it fooled me into believing they would win or be competitive against Michigan, we know how that worked out. Now we get to see how Franklin reacts this year to a loss with a physical team coming it. He is a very emotional coach, so the whiteout I think helps more than a typical 12:00 noon game would after a loss. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. I'm picking Minnesota, but I wouldn't be shocked by a clean victory for PSU either.
I agree. This has last years Illinois game written all over it.

The weather is supposed to be good, so maybe that helps.
 
We can debate Michigan...and Franklin...and Clifford...until the cows come home, but hopefully the team has got its head back on straight and is focusing on Minnesota because that's shaping up to be a pretty huge game. The fact is, this season is salvageable. As things stand, we'll be favored in every game except Ohio State. This is not the time to lose poise and do the familiar swoon after a loss.

The Gophers have a decent defense, but their offense has recently looked mediocre. In fact, after losses to Purdue and Illinois, their emotional state can't be much better than ours at this point.

They do have an excellent back (Mo Ibrahim) and a fairly good O-line, but after the shots their QB, Tanner Morgan, took against Illinois before leaving the game late with an injury, I have a hard time seeing how he'll be ready this Saturday. Naturally, their coach is playing it coy and suggesting he could be OK to play. We'll see.

The receivers aren't great, and their passing attack has struggled in the losses, so their plan on offense is no great secret: the power game a la Michigan with Ibrahim carrying the load. Shut that down, and you shut down their offense.

Minnesota seems to be a fashionable betting pick, but I'm not buying it. I think we show up with something to prove and score a solid win in the whiteout. Then again, I thought we'd beat Michigan, so there's that.
The match up between their offensive line/running back vs our defensive line/LB is not a favorable one. We will need to score some points to win.
 
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The match up between their offensive line/running back vs our defensive line/LB is not a favorable one. We will need to score a lot points to win.

I think Manny loads up to stop the run and forces either their dinged-up starter or 2nd-string guy to throw the ball against a pretty good secondary. I mean, these guys have scored all of 24 points combined in two consecutive losses to Purdue and Illinois.

I feel very confident about this game. Playing at home...the atmosphere will be electric. If we can't beat a wounded 2-loss Minnesota team in these circumstances, we're in a lot worse shape than I thought.
 
We can debate Michigan...and Franklin...and Clifford...until the cows come home, but hopefully the team has got its head back on straight and is focusing on Minnesota because that's shaping up to be a pretty huge game. The fact is, this season is salvageable. As things stand, we'll be favored in every game except Ohio State. This is not the time to lose poise and do the familiar swoon after a loss.

The Gophers have a decent defense, but their offense has recently looked mediocre. In fact, after losses to Purdue and Illinois, their emotional state can't be much better than ours at this point.

They do have an excellent back (Mo Ibrahim) and a fairly good O-line, but after the shots their QB, Tanner Morgan, took against Illinois before leaving the game late with an injury, I have a hard time seeing how he'll be ready this Saturday. Naturally, their coach is playing it coy and suggesting he could be OK to play. We'll see.

The receivers aren't great, and their passing attack has struggled in the losses, so their plan on offense is no great secret: the power game a la Michigan with Ibrahim carrying the load. Shut that down, and you shut down their offense.

Minnesota seems to be a fashionable betting pick, but I'm not buying it. I think we show up with something to prove and score a solid win in the whiteout. Then again, I thought we'd beat Michigan, so there's that.
Hard to know the mental state of the players. Hopefully the captains are able to rally them for renewed effort. As you said, there is still much to play for. Will be interesting viewing.
 
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We can debate Michigan...and Franklin...and Clifford...until the cows come home, but hopefully the team has got its head back on straight and is focusing on Minnesota because that's shaping up to be a pretty huge game. The fact is, this season is salvageable. As things stand, we'll be favored in every game except Ohio State. This is not the time to lose poise and do the familiar swoon after a loss.

The Gophers have a decent defense, but their offense has recently looked mediocre. In fact, after losses to Purdue and Illinois, their emotional state can't be much better than ours at this point.

They do have an excellent back (Mo Ibrahim) and a fairly good O-line, but after the shots their QB, Tanner Morgan, took against Illinois before leaving the game late with an injury, I have a hard time seeing how he'll be ready this Saturday. Naturally, their coach is playing it coy and suggesting he could be OK to play. We'll see.

The receivers aren't great, and their passing attack has struggled in the losses, so their plan on offense is no great secret: the power game a la Michigan with Ibrahim carrying the load. Shut that down, and you shut down their offense.

Minnesota seems to be a fashionable betting pick, but I'm not buying it. I think we show up with something to prove and score a solid win in the whiteout. Then again, I thought we'd beat Michigan, so there's that.
Was thinking during the Michigan game that Manny should/would try a jumbo package that VT used to beat Ohio State in the 'Shoe a few years back...five man front with 3 DT's and two DE's, two LB's and 4 DB's. Get more beef up front to better control UM's run game, and depend on the heralded DB's to handle McCarthy. Maybe they'll try it vs MN on Sat.
 
It's an inflection point game for Franklin and this program. Covid this and extenuating circumstances that, the last few years have not been good. Franklin has received his big extension(clearly not based on merit), commitments to improve facilities, the most expensive coordinators money can buy....it's time to stop the mid-season swoons. There are 2 themes that have been consistent since JF took over...poor play and motivation after bye weeks(and with time in between like Bowl games) and poor play and motivation after emotional losses. I heard some things before Michigan that had me encouraged about how Franklin and staff were adjusting how they handle the bye week...it fooled me into believing they would win or be competitive against Michigan, we know how that worked out. Now we get to see how Franklin reacts this year to a loss with a physical team coming it. He is a very emotional coach, so the whiteout I think helps more than a typical 12:00 noon game would after a loss. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. I'm picking Minnesota, but I wouldn't be shocked by a clean victory for PSU either.
Yep...we are going to see what kind of plums this team has. Are they going to fold up, like last year? Or are they going to buckle up their big boy pants and beat the snot out of a physically less gifted team?

olga-brykina-plumemoji-animation.gif
 
The match up between their offensive line/running back vs our defensive line/LB is not a favorable one. We will need to score some points to win.
How good really is their O-Line? They lost to Purdue who is a less physical team than we are.

I think we win carried by the White Out and a much better defensive effort. Clifford has a decent day but we run for 150 yards.
 
T

Morgan and Ibriham were 3* recruits. One of their OL was unrated but made the BiG preseason team.

If Minny beats PSU they are getting more from less.

P.S. We better not open up by having Singleton running between the tackles.
From what I've seen this season this is pretty much what the majority of PSU's running plays look like. Very little to the outside.
 
Was thinking during the Michigan game that Manny should/would try a jumbo package that VT used to beat Ohio State in the 'Shoe a few years back...five man front with 3 DT's and two DE's, two LB's and 4 DB's. Get more beef up front to better control UM's run game, and depend on the heralded DB's to handle McCarthy. Maybe they'll try it vs MN on Sat.

When have we pulled that out recently though? Didn't do anything like that vs Illinois, the last time somebody ran over our defense.

It was one thing in '16 when Michigan stomped us. We were down to our #3, #6, and #7 LBs. Jason Cabinda and Brandon Bell aren't hurt. They aren't stepping on the field this year.

Franklin is on the record: Jacobs isn't a Mike. (Which says to me, he isn't a Will) Carter might be a Mike, but he's not ready. (Which says to me, they have zero plan of getting both on the field)
 
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Hard to know the mental state of the players. Hopefully the captains are able to rally them for renewed effort. As you said, there is still much to play for. Will be interesting viewing.
If players are of the wrong mental state and are lacking effort we are recruiting the wrong kind of football players.
 
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When have we pulled that out recently though? Didn't do anything like that vs Illinois, the last time somebody ran over our defense.

It was one thing in '16 when Michigan stomped us. We were down to our #3, #6, and #7 LBs. Jason Cabinda and Brandon Bell aren't hurt. They aren't stepping on the field this year.

Franklin is on the record: Jacobs isn't a Mike. (Which says to me, he isn't a Will) Carter might be a Mike, but he's not ready. (Which says to me, they have zero plan of getting both on the field)
Jacobs is more like a safety
 
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We can debate Michigan...and Franklin...and Clifford...until the cows come home, but hopefully the team has got its head back on straight and is focusing on Minnesota because that's shaping up to be a pretty huge game. The fact is, this season is salvageable. As things stand, we'll be favored in every game except Ohio State. This is not the time to lose poise and do the familiar swoon after a loss.

The Gophers have a decent defense, but their offense has recently looked mediocre. In fact, after losses to Purdue and Illinois, their emotional state can't be much better than ours at this point.

They do have an excellent back (Mo Ibrahim) and a fairly good O-line, but after the shots their QB, Tanner Morgan, took against Illinois before leaving the game late with an injury, I have a hard time seeing how he'll be ready this Saturday. Naturally, their coach is playing it coy and suggesting he could be OK to play. We'll see.

The receivers aren't great, and their passing attack has struggled in the losses, so their plan on offense is no great secret: the power game a la Michigan with Ibrahim carrying the load. Shut that down, and you shut down their offense.

Minnesota seems to be a fashionable betting pick, but I'm not buying it. I think we show up with something to prove and score a solid win in the whiteout. Then again, I thought we'd beat Michigan, so there's that.
imo, it seems to me that a lot og B1G teams have restructured themselves to compete with Ohio State with small, fast players as opposed to the road grader types that michigan has. A lot, if not most, of the B1G teams will have a hard time with michigan this year.
Manny Diaz is not a B1G person. This may have been the first time he encountered an offense geared to B1G play. It showed.
Frankiln persists in his quest for chunck plays when from all appearances we don't have the personnel to execute those kinds of plays. We are not tennessee! we need to restructure ourselves, again imo, into more of a possession team moving the ball 5-8 yards a play rather than trying for home runs.
 
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As we presumed he will play. Good. Go out and beat them head up or lose, no excuses.

The fact that he's traveled with the team doesn't necessarily mean he'll play. In fact, Fleck no doubt wants to keep Penn State guessing almost to the opening kick.

Meanwhile, ESPN is reporting this morning that Morgan's status is "somewhere between questionable and doubtful."

Also, Herbstreit is assuming Morgan will NOT play and had this to say: "Now that you've got Tanner Morgan out, if I'm Penn State, I put 11 at the line of scrimmage and I make Minnesota throw the football to win."

Officially, this is a game-time decision, but I'd be surprised to see Morgan start. We'll see.
 
The fact that he's traveled with the team doesn't necessarily mean he'll play. In fact, Fleck no doubt wants to keep Penn State guessing almost to the opening kick.

Meanwhile, ESPN is reporting this morning that Morgan's status is "somewhere between questionable and doubtful."

Also, Herbstreit is assuming Morgan will NOT play and had this to say: "Now that you've got Tanner Morgan out, if I'm Penn State, I put 11 at the line of scrimmage and I make Minnesota throw the football to win."

Officially, this is a game-time decision, but I'd be surprised to see Morgan start. We'll see.
I would stack 11 guys in the box and dare them to throw whether Morgan is in there or not. Guy had a great year 3 seasons ago and has been average to lousy ever since.
 
I think Manny loads up to stop the run and forces either their dinged-up starter or 2nd-string guy to throw the ball against a pretty good secondary. I mean, these guys have scored all of 24 points combined in two consecutive losses to Purdue and Illinois.

I feel very confident about this game. Playing at home...the atmosphere will be electric. If we can't beat a wounded 2-loss Minnesota team in these circumstances, we're in a lot worse shape than I thought.
Illinois is better on both sides of the ball than we are. Purdue is better than they were in week 1. We are the same.
 
Illinois is better on both sides of the ball than we are. Purdue is better than they were in week 1. We are the same.
Purdue beat Minny with a less than 100% O'Connell. Really questionable that Illinois is better than us on both sides of the ball.
 
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