I didn't have access to watch this game so my thoughts are based on listening to the last 3:00 on the radio and whatever I can glean from the boxscore and PJS's live blogging.
- 7 Turnovers - you just can't win a game regardless of your opponent when you have 7 giveaways to nill takeaways. PJS says the first INT was a poor pass behind Wheelwright, but I don't know who to accurately blame for Weber's other 3. Jay Thomas' fumble killed a promising drive and Pinnix's fumble on the goal line is inexcusable.
- Another 21 point half time hole - The pessimist says that we suck in the first half and we can't win Big Ten game (or MAC or SunBelt games for that matter) when you spot teams a 21 point half time. The optimist might say, well I'm an optimist and it's hard to see the full half of this glass. Brewster has made nice 1/2 time adjustments, his D has done better in the 2nd half and his offense has done a nice job getting us back into games. But it has to start earlier than the 3rd quarter or this will be a 2-10 season.
- 3rd Down Conversions - Defense has to get some 3 and outs. I don't know how many we had (if any) but FAU was 13/21 on 3rd down and the WCCO announcers said that many of them were 3rd and long.
- Defensive Talent - Here is where I don't put all of the blame on Brewster. I don't care who is coaching this team there is so little talent on defense that it would be hard for anybody to stop offenses that are fast and spread the field. We just need to recruit some talent.
- Recruiting Implications - There has been talk all week about the Gophers getting the table scraps left over from Florida, FSU and Miami (and FAU of course). What does this game mean for the recruits who were in attendance. This could have been a big win, but did an exciting 2nd half help? Do they see the potential of the offense and the need for speedy kids on defense? I hope so.
4 comments:
When you talk of recruiting, I think that is where you still needed to get Lane Kiffin from USC not Tim Brewster.
Time will tell. Brewster was given a lot of credit for raising the talent level at North Carolina and getting the cream of the crop at Texas. Getting a guy like Julius Peppers to UNC is impressive and let's hope we can get a big time recruit like that to MN.
The knock is that people say anybody can recruit to Texas, but the same could be said about Kiffin and USC.
Time will tell
At least there's some fight in this (rather small) dog. I feel a lot better now than I would if we were 2-1 but one of those had been a Mason-esque come-from-ahead snatch-defeat-from-the-jaws-of-victory ballcrusher.
I remain frustrated but encouraged.
Rather, if that one loss had been xxxxxxxxxx ballcrusher.
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