Some stuff to pass along from today's open practice for the Gophers...

- Kaliakmanis went through individual drills, but didn't throw the ball. Fleck noted that it was "nothing big" and he's expected to be a full go on Wednesday.

- Tyler Nubin was dressed, but had the day off and didn't participate. Coleman Bryson got a lot of reps in his place.

- Jameson Geers has a leg in an air cast, so that's not a good sign. Fleck mentioned that "it's nothing down the road serious" afterwards. Regardless, tough blow considering he's elevated himself to be the No. 2 option behind Brevyn Spann-Ford.

- Devon Williams got a lot of first-team reps with Lindenberg. Sounds like that could your starting duo at LB. Fleck said Williams has "really matured in a very short amount of time." Says he has developed into a really good linebacker and football player.

- DL Anthony Smith continues to impress. Expect him to see the field this season - some how, some way. Fleck said he's going to play "an awful lot."

- Autman-Bell caught a TD pass from Drew Viotto over the middle of the field. A positive sign for the WR corps.

MORE FROM FLECK:

- Fleck noted that the RB position will likely be by committee. May not see someone with 30-40 carries. Noted they have good depth and guys that do a lot of things differently.

- Praised DC Joe Rossi and said he's well on his way to being a head coach

- Said they might have the hardest schedule in the country now since the AP Poll came out. They are embracing that.

- Says this year's OL is faster and more athletic than last year's and the DL is the exact same way.

- Says Coach Winston (DeLattiboudere) has been a breathe of fresh air on how hard he coaches the DL

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Birthday #25 for the former Gopher

The University of Minnesota football team has updated its practice schedule for Tuesday, Aug. 15, which is an open practice for fans and members of the media. Practice, which was originally slated to start at 3:30 p.m., will now start at 10:45 a.m.

The practice will still be held at the team's training facility at Athletes Village and fans and the media are still welcome to attend.

Fans attending practice are encouraged to park in the daily-fee 4th Street Ramp or find street parking in the surrounding area.

The Gophers open the season on Thursday, August 31 when they host Nebraska. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. kick and will air on FOX and the Gopher Radio Network.

Today the Gophers put a lot more on the field offensively than was seen at Saturday's practice. Some key insights include:

- OL battle saw Tyler Cooper (LG) & JJ Guedet (RG) playing a healthy amount of snaps with the 1s
- Gophers experimented with Martes Lewis playing RG and kicking Quinn Carroll back out to RT as well
- Cade McConnell & Greg Johnson both impressing on the OL, though mainly with 2s
- WR rotations were very intermingled today. Saw Brockington in the slot at times. Jackson in the slot at times. Crooms outside. Sean Tyler motioned out in spread formation. Lots of unique pairings to keep defenses on their heels
- Athan looked a lot sharper and was slinging that ball around. Had 2 long TDs including a 50 ish yard TD pass to Brockington with very large separation on Justin Walley.
- The Brevyn Spann-Ford and Athan Kaliakmanis connection is REALLY syncing up. Brevyn looks like a force right now, no lie.
- Some miscommunications on offense today and a lack of urgency by players at times and PJ Fleck was not having it.
- Seeing Chris Collins work in with the DEs was really nice to see and he brings quick twitch on the end. Was in rotation with the 1s.

I will be covering on tomorrow's Locked On Golden Gophers in depth, but y'all get it first!

Football is almost back!

- David Shama spoke with Derek Burns, president and co-founder of DA
- Burns said their NIL is "maybe in the middle" compared to other Big Ten programs
- They have a great relationship with the compliance office at the U
- DA has a relationship with Gopher Sports Properties, which has Learfield radio rights
- Partnerships with an adult beverage company is coming soon

Via Saturday Tradition, if you're into that sort of thing. Phil Parker of Iowa is No. 2 and Glenn Schumann at Georgia takes the top spot.

Minnesota not in the Top 25. Grabbed 16 votes alongside Miami, which would put them 40th.

READ: Minnesota's top 10 returning players according to PFF
https://minnesota.rivals.com/news/minnesota-s-top-10-returning-players-according-to-pff
https://minnesota.rivals.com/news/minnesota-s-top-10-returning-players-according-to-pff

Went down with a non-contact injury during practice

Hoping someone will post, I could not make it.

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PAC-12 is in trouble, might as well build a Big Ten West

I think this year will be he’s best offense ever.

@Clint Cosgrove and I give our take on the Gophers upcoming season win total...

Cosgrove's take: FICTION. This is a hard one for me because the Minnesotaprogram is absolutely trending in the right direction under PJ Fleck, and the Gophers have won nine or more games three of the past four seasons. The only season they did not was during the 2020 COVID season, which is totally a wash in my opinion.

I see a potential path to nine or more wins this season and this program continues to overachieve under Fleck, but losing the majority of your production and three big-time players in John Michael Schmitz, Mo Ibrahim and Tanner Morgan hurts. Add in the fact that the schedule is far from favorable and I see nine wins as being a stretch. I see seven or eight wins as being more likely, but that has been said the past few years, so you never know what will happen.

Williams' take: FICTION. Take away the 2020 COVID year and Minnesota has won nine-plus games the last three complete seasons under Fleck. The pinnacle of that stretch was in 2019, when the Gophers went 11-2 and finished with an Outback Bowl victory over Auburn. Program momentum is definitely trending upward for Minnesota, but I don't see the Gophers eclipsing the nine-win mark this upcoming season. The Gophers have to replace some key departures along the offensive line, and Western Michigan running back transfer Sean Tyler will try to replicate the success of Ibrahim, the former All-Big Ten performer. The Gophers also struggled to create any pressure along the defensive line a season ago, so that definitely needs to improve to get to the nine-win plateau. The Gophers' schedule is also considered the second-toughest in the country. A non-conference road trip to North Carolina will be an early test for the defense. Big Ten juggernauts Michigan and Ohio Stateare also on the slate, along with a road tilt with Iowa, where Fleck is hoping to break the curse against the Hawkeyes.

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Zavier Betts has left the Huskers program. No disciplinary reason. He intents to remain enrolled at the school and earn his degree.

Betts redshirted last season, so he's not a big loss for Nebraska

READ: Big Ten analyst calls Breyvyn Spann-Ford the best TE in the Big Ten​

https://minnesota.rivals.com/news/b...breyvyn-spann-ford-the-best-te-in-the-big-ten
https://minnesota.rivals.com/news/b...breyvyn-spann-ford-the-best-te-in-the-big-ten

On today's show of the Locked On Golden Gophers podcast, we discuss the different pathways for the Minnesota Gophers when it comes to obtaining Top 25 recognition. We then cover the first official Locked On Preseason Top 25 Poll and how it highlights the Gophers difficult schedule. Finally we discuss the bulletin board material that was given to QB1 Athan Kaliakmanis by an absurdly low ranking of the Power 5 Quarterbacks.

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Missouri and Minnesota have agreed to a two-year series, starting this fall. Minnesota will host the Tigers on Nov. 16, then Mizzou will host in 2024—also likely to be in November.

11-7 SEC and 25-10 last season and one win in the NCAA tourney.

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The former Minnesota LB is making waves with the Titans on year two

READ: Minnesota Summer Reading - Opponent Preview: Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns

Next up in our preseason previews of Minnesota's 2023 schedule is the Lousiana-Lafayette Rajin' Cajuns. The Ragin' Cajuns are entering year two under head coach Michael Desormeaux after previous head coach Billy Napier left for Florida.

Lousiana-Lafayette has been one of the more consistent Group of Five teams over the last five years and remains a quality Sun Belt program. Compared to our first few previews, this one will be on the shorter side.



This was a Lousiana-Lafayette offense that last year was solid but not great. They averaged 26.2 points and 364.5 yards per game. They do return six starters on the offensive side of the ball but will have to replace quarterback Ben Woolridge, running back Chris Smith, and wide receiver Michael Jefferson. The three talents were the program's leading passer, rusher, and receiver last season.

The offense still has a quality bit of talent, but question marks remain throughout. Quarterback Chandler Fields should be solid but doesn't have a tremendous upside, which is a good way to describe the offense as a whole. For most of their schedule, their offense will be fine enough, but this is ultimately a team that just won't have the talent to compete for four quarters with a program like Minnesota.



Last year, this was a very good defense for Lousiana-Lafayette, but they lost eight of their 11 starters last fall, putting defensive coordinator LaMar Morgan in a pretty tough place entering this season. They targeted the transfer portal this fall as a way to help alleviate the needs on the defensive side of the ball as well.

The defense should be quite strong in the second and third levels, but there will be a lot of questions in the trenches for the Ragin' Cajuns. This should be a defense that will provide some challenges for the Golden Gophers but one that quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis and the offense should be able to move the ball well against.

Overall:​

After seeing Billy Napier leave for Florida, the Ragin' Cajuns took a step back in 2022, going 6-7 after going 34-5 in the three seasons prior. While they're still a quality program, the Ragin' Cajuns just are not as dangerous as they were a few seasons ago. They should be good enough to hang with the Golden Gophers for most of the first half, but as the game goes on, the Gophers should pull away.

We continue our Minnesota position previews today by taking a look at the Gophers' running back room. Like the quarterback room, the running back room lost their starter from last year, Mohamed Ibrahim; the room also saw the departure of Trey Potts, who transferred to Penn State this offseason.

Despite the two departures, the Gophers enter fall with one of the best running back rooms in the Big Ten.

PROJECTED STARTER: Sean Tyler (SR)​

The Western Michigan transfer entered fall camp as the Gophers' likely starting running back following the departure of Trey Potts. Tyler, before committing to finish his career with the Gophers, originally committed to play at Oklahoma State this fall before flipping his commitment.

Prior to entering the transfer portal, Tyler had a heavy role in Western Michigan's offense each of the last two years, with 387 carries for 2,177 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also had 26 receptions for 125 yards and three touchdowns with the Broncos. Tyler has arguably the best speed of any running back in the room for the Gophers and will be a tailback who could bring quite a bit of versatility to the Gophers' offense.

SECOND-STRING: Bryce Williams (RS SR) OR Zach Evans (RS FR)​

Last season, Williams put together a quality season, rushing for 249 yards and three touchdowns over 51 carries. Over his career, he's totaled 974 yards and 11 touchdowns across 39 games and 227 carries. He also has proven quality receiving skills, with 19 receptions for 197 yards.

READ: 2023 BREAKOUT CANDIDATES: RB ZACH EVANS

Evans is entering his redshirt freshman season for the Gophers, playing in one game as a true freshman last fall against Northwestern. Against the Wildcats, Evans totaled six rushes for 29 yards and one touchdown. He also had a big spring game this offseason, which definitely raised some eyebrows heading into this fall. Overall, both running backs are high-quality options for the Gophers as depth pieces, and seeing either work their way up the depth chart this fall wouldn't be surprising.

THIRD STRING/DEPTH: OR Darius Taylor (FR)​

I believe in the idea that a player is too talented to keep off the field. I think Darius Taylor fits that bill very well. He's an elite running back prospect who has a great combination of size and speed. He may not see a ton of the field early on, but his opportunities should absolutely grow as the season goes on.