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Gophers offer 2019 JUCO OT (California) Corey Luciano. He has offers from Minnesota, Fresno State, Marshall, and Syracuse. He was originally a 2017 2* recruit out of high school.

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@Matt Jessen-Howard @Connor Stevens

PITINO PICKS UP 100TH CAREER VICTORY



Nov. 27, 2017

With Saturday’s victory over Alabama in the Barclays Center Classic, Minnesota head coach Richard Pitinoearned his 100th career victory. Pitino, who earned all but 18 of those wins with the Gophers after arriving in 2013, has accomplished the feat in just over five seasons as a college head coach.

At 35, Pitino is the second-youngest Power Five head basketball coach, and has a career record of 100-75, translating to a winning percentage of .571. His Gopher record stands at 82-61, a mark of .573. Only five head coaches in the history of the program have a higher win-loss percentage at Minnesota.

Pitino is one of five active Division I head coaches who have reached the 100 career victory mark in their sixth season or sooner, joining Kevin Ollie (UConn), Brad Underwood (Stephen F. Austin/Oklahoma State/Illinois), Dan Muller (Illinois State) and Pat Kelsey (Winthrop).

Hear from Coach Pitino after Saturday’s win.

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Pitino and the 12th-ranked Gophers return to action on Wednesday at home, hosting No. 10 Miami in a battle of top-15 teams in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. on ESPN2.

Link: Behind Enemy Lines: Miami

Miami's No. 10 and coming to the Barn on Wednesday. Should be fun.

The Canes are a good basketball program and when searching for pictures of their coach on AP Images, there are six pictures of him at Miami in his seven years at the school. There are probably 400 of Richard Pitino at Minnesota if that tells you anything about how much more basketball matters here than in the south.

The Gophers average margin of victory/defeat was 13 points worse in 2017 than in 2016 among common Big 10 opponents. For instance, in 2016, the Gophers beat Maryland by 23, but lost to Maryland by 7, which means there was a negative 30 point swing. For Iowa, the Gophers lost by 7 both years, so there is no change in margin. For Nebraska, the Gophers lost by 13 in 2016, but won 33 in 2017, making it a 46 point positive swing. Performing almost 2 touchdowns worse signals that there was more than just deterioration in the quality of the roster in play this last season. Hopefully, both the remaining players and the staff learned a lot from this year.

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Not sure, maybe this is old news but he just posted about his departure today.

MN had its two best years, winning eight games each season, under Jerry Kill in 2013 and 2014. Those years were followed by recruiting classes of 22 players in 2014 and 23 players in 2015. As of today, 20 of those 43 players ended up leaving the program early for one reason or another:
Those who left the class of 2014--Jeff Jones, Isaiah Gentry, D. McKinzy, C. Mayes, J. Kafo, C. Elmore, C. Krizancic, L. Rassmussen, R. Croney and D. Gant.
Those who left the class of 2015--Dior Johnson, J. Johannesson, K. Hardin, Mose Hall, N. Connelly, R. Bufford, Ted Stieber, T. Moore, D. Croft and R. Still.
Those of any stature left from class of 2014: R. Smith, Wyler, Gibson, Moore.
Those of any stature left from class of 2015: Brooks, Huff twins, Shenault, Femi-Cole, Dovich, Oseland, Beebe, Witham, Register, Devers, Dlttbdr (DE), Register and Waters.
I may have missed a name or two (and I didn't include JUCOs recruited later) from those left on the team out of these two classes but you should be able to see the big picture from those listed as having left early versus those who stayed.

KUEHN'S REALLY BIG SIGNS



Nov. 27, 2017

Noah Kuehn was hard to miss on the home sidelines this past season.

“I’m the one who holds up those big, annoying signs,” Kuehn said with a laugh.

Kuehn didn’t have as much to laugh about a year ago. At that time, he wasn’t sure he was still going to be a part of Gopher football.

As a freshman he was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease. Kuehn said it is common not to get a diagnosis until turning 18 or 19 and he knew he had a chance of having it since his dad has the disease.

“It ended up being a situation where the trainers said they really needed to know,” Kuehn said. “I figured out I had it, but team doctor’s and specific kidney doctors said it was fine to play football. We just needed to take a couple of extra precautions and I didn’t really have any issues for a whole year.”

Kuehn redshirted that first season and made it through without a hitch.

“Then spring ball came and it happened. I had a cyst burst and I woke up with pain in my kidney and I was bleeding so I knew what happened,” Kuehn said. “I’ve seen my dad go through it so it wasn’t alarming.”

Kuehn had to sit for six weeks. Not just from football but lifting and conditioning was off the table as well. Kuehn attempted to come back but at the end of camp had another cyst burst, and was out another six weeks. He tried coming back one more time before having a cyst burst just two weeks later.

“Most people won’t even have a cyst burst in their whole lifetime,” Kuehn said.

Yet he had dealt with three bursts in a just a few months.

“The doctor’s and I sat down and they told me it wasn’t working,” he said. “It was one of those things where I wanted to keep playing, but I knew I couldn’t keep playing.”

Kuehn had been playing football since he was six or seven and wasn’t ready for it to be out of his life. He wanted to stay around the program but there was one glaring problem.

“Right when I was told that I couldn’t play anymore was right when the coaching change happened,” Kuehn explained. “It was a very stressful time because I knew they didn’t know me and I didn’t know them.”

Kuehn sat down with offensive line coach Ed Warinner and discussed the possibility of staying on and helping. Weeks later he met with head coach P.J. Fleck and was told he could stay around the team and help out with the offensive line.

“It was a big relief. Football has always been something that I was around and something that I did,” Kuehn said. “It’s hard enough to lose being able to play, but if I would have been completely out of contact with football in general, I think that would have been much harder.”

The whole experience has the mechanical engineering major pondering his future career path. He never saw himself becoming a football coach but now sees it as a possibility.

“I love to see people get better,” Kuehn said. “When you are a player you are more focused on your own development. Now I’ve been able to focus on how other people are doing and that’s cool to see.”

While Kuehn’s playing career ended early, he has fallen in love with his new role and plans to be back on the sideline holding up those really big signs again next season.

“The ball’s always taken away eventually,” Kuehn said. “So it’s a way for me to still compete and I just love it.”

At least things are out-in-the-open now. We all openly admit the news is fake now. And Democrats are finally admitting that as long as you're advancing left-wing politics, they couldn't give a rat's backside about your treatment of women.

@Alex Carlson and @Mark Schofield are the elite football minds, not me, but I thought I'd post my thoughts on his film anyway. Alex will gives his thoughts on Vic on the board shortly, and Mark will write something up probably later this week. I'm looking forward to reading their work.

• He ran an electronic 4.71 in high school. That's fast for a quarterback. At the NFL Combine, Deshaun Watson ran a 4.66, DeShone Kizer ran a 4.83, and Mitch Leidner ran a 4.93.
• He's elusive and sidesteps defenders really well. Tacklers have a hard time really getting a body on him. He has good instincts running the ball and makes cuts at the right time. You know how Demry Croft would sometimes look awkward running the ball even though he's a decent athlete? That's not Viramontes. He's a natural running the ball.
• He sometimes doesn't run with the ball high and tight, so I'm not surprised he had six fumbles this year.
• Seems to have good touch with how much arc he puts on his throws.
• Throws well on the run.
• Feels pressure well and can extend plays with his feet.
• Sometimes might be a bit too quick to run instead of going through more reads.
• Has a tendency to throw off his back foot under pressure.
• I'd be interested in seeing his interceptions. He places the ball really well but I could see him being too aggressive trying to split zones or throwing a pick because he stares a receiver down.

I'd love to hear all of your guys' thoughts on his film too.

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Probably about time or overdue for a war room. Here we go:

Right now the plan is to take three more: a QB, lineman, and then the best available. At this point, everything is fluid. With only a few spots left, official visit season approaching, and all teams going through their first early signing period, things can and probably will change. When more coaches start to get fired across the country, I’d expect Minnesota to be aggressive poaching as well.

There’s one commit right now who likely won’t be an academic qualifier but Minnesota has known about that for a long time and has had plenty of time to take action accordingly.

Next week and the following week, things will start to heat up since the coaches will be on the road recruiting. And remember, the big recruiting weekend is the weekend of December 8. Minnesota believes that it will be the biggest official weekend in NCAA history from a visitors standpoint. Fleck likes to have all the recruits at one time visit and bond together.

At QB, the Gophers are taking their time in some ways because they want to nail the right guy. It’s possible that Minnesota takes a JUCO as well as a high school QB. Names we’ve mentioned before include include Riverside CC’s Vic Viramontes, Boise State commit Zachary Wilson, three-star Colorado State commit Matthew Baldwin, three-star East Carolina commit Holton Ahlers, four-star Princeton commit Brevin White, and Arkansas three-star Gerry Bohanon.

Vic Viramontes: Michigan and Cal commit coming out of high school that enrolled at Cal briefly then opted to go the JUCO route after Sonny Dykes left. He has offers right now Coastal Carolina, Eastern Kentucky, Kansas, New Mexico, and UNLV. He’s planning to take an official to Kansas in three weeks and nothing is set yet with Minnesota but I’d expect him to visit. This year for Riverside, he’s completed 74 of 112 passes (66.1%) for 1116 yards, 16 touchdowns, and five interceptions. He’s also the team’s leading rusher by far with 112 carries for 999 yards (8.9 ypc) and 13 touchdowns.

Zachary Wilson: Wilson a 5.5 three-star quarterback from Utah committed to Boise State. The Gophers have talked to him quite a bit and he’s reciprocated interest. He’s a December grad and early enrollee.

Matthew Baldwin: Baldwin is a 5.7 three-star from Texas committed to Colorado State. He’s received offers from Minnesota, Kentucky, and Ohio State recently. I’m told that Ohio State will get him if they want him but he’s not a take at the moment for the Buckeyes. His situation with OSU depends on them being able to keep Emory Jones and some of their other QB targets are enrolling early so Baldwin would probably take an official visit to Columbus late in the recruiting game. With Emory Jones’ status unknown, we’re still a few weeks away from knowing Baldwin’s status with OSU. Nick Krueger recently posted here that Baldwin’s a big fan of Fleck and that it will be tough for CSU to keep his commitment, which we at TGR agree with.

Holton Ahlers: Ahlers is a 5.7 three-star from North Carolina committed to East Carolina. Due to his family connections and long-time fandom, Ahlers could be tough to pull away from the Pirates. He has said that ECU is his dream school and it is important to him that he is playing only six miles away from his home. I still wouldn’t count Minnesota out, though. With playing time potentially available, the start of a new culture under the hot new coach, and lots of young receivers, I think the Gophers will have success with QBs that visit.

Brevin White: White is a 5.8-rated four-star who committed to Princeton over offers from a handful of Power 5 programs. He has yet to get a Gopher offer but there’s certainly interest. Minnesota would have to convince him why going Power 5 is a better option than Princeton, which is something that Arizona State, Oregon State, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, and Washington State couldn’t do. He’s a little bit smaller, has an accurate arm, and has a good feel/understanding of the game which in some ways makes him more college ready than most high school prospects, although I don’t think he has elite arm strength or athleticism. White may be sticking with Princeton due to an injury to his brother that makes him want to focus on his career after football.

Gerry Bohanon: Bohanon is a 5.7 three-star who has listed Arkansas, Baylor, Louisville, and Mississippi as his top schools and has recent strong interest from LSU, where he recently visited. Minnesota would be playing from behind a little bit but has made some calls. Bohanon will be an early enrollee and is a big, strong, mobile quarterback. I wouldn’t necessarily expect a ton to happen with he and Minnesota moving forward.

On the offensive line, four-star Florida commit and IMG four-star guard Curtis Dunlap, Tyler J.C. tackle Randon Haynes, Arizona Western CC tackle Jahmir Johnson, and Ventura CC tackle Trevor Elbert.

Dunlap is currently committed to Florida, and the Gators of course just fired McElwain. Dunlap will be visiting Minnesota on the big recruiting weekend of December 8. He attends IMG Academy where his roommate is PWO commit Zack Annexstad. ICYMI, Zack has started the last five or so games for IMG’s top team. Dunlap is willing to hear Minnesota out and of course would be a really big get.

Haynes was committed to UL-Lafayette out of high school and went the JUCO route. He has a handful of FBS offers right now but his only one from a Power 5 school is Minnesota. The Gophers are in a good spot.

Johnson holds a dozen Power 5 offers, including one from Minnesota. He’s from Philadelphia started his college career at Rhode Island before leaving for Arizona Western. Arkansas has been after him a long time and he visited Fayetteville this weekend. USC is also in the hunt. He plans on making a decision in January and signs in February. Minnesota’s in a competitive spot.

Elbert is a former Army All-American that went to Texas A&M in their 2015 class. Kevin Sumlin announced that he had a career ending injury as a sophomore, but now he’s obviously in a junior college and playing again. He’s a Texas native and his only offer is from SMU. Ed Warinner’s known him since high school, since Warinner recruited him when he was at Ohio State.

Jason Dickson is a 5.6 three-star JUCO lineman at Diablo Valley CC in the Bay Area. He’s a recent UCLA decommit and holds 12 other Power 5 offers.

Cardavian Myers is a three-star cornerback from Alabama with no offer but is a name to know. He’s been talking to Mo Linguist for about a month and Myers says the two have talked about a potential visit.

Craig Williams is committed to Baylor, but the Gophers are still involved. The Gophers like him as an athlete and scatback and he’s been a long-time target. Baylor is currently 1-10. I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes a late visit.

Kyle Wright is a three-star running back that’s recently heard from Minnesota and could fill a similar role as Williams. He holds offers from Colorado, Purdue, and lots of Group of 5 schools.

All in all, there's a lot to like. Minnesota has plenty of options at QB and OL that they're both very much in the mix for, as well as several options for a third. There may be some more names that pop up once the coaches are on the road next week. With only a few spots left, things are fluid and Minnesota can be selective.

Credit @Connor Stevens for much of this information.

In the Star Tribune front page today:

It's been proven that one of Roy Moore's accusers was lying. So the Strib reports it as her being a media-discrediter....her attacking the media like those filthy Republicans. She lied to the media....so she's a media-hater like those dastardly Republicans.

Elizabeth Warren, Democrat Senator, lied. She listed herself as a Native American, and she put herself in the Association Of Minority Lawyers....even though she is 100% Caucasion. While in her state, honoring Native Americans....Trump made a joke, calling Warren "Pocahontas". And the Strib headline and story is all about Trump being a racist.

To summarize....there is no such thing as news anymore. It's all lies and propaganda.

Up two spots to 12th in the new poll released this morning.

Right to start.

A lot of comments about who coach Fleck has promised will start next year, and obviously he wii have his depth chart, but to promise any QB they are the one who will be starting is not likely. More likely he will tell them they really want them, but it is a privelege they need to earn, not an entitlement or a potentially dishonest statement

non-con opponent next two years...Former Cal coach Jeff Tedford has turned team around in his first year from 1-11 last year (3-9 in 2015, 6-8 in 2014) to 8-3 with nice win over Wyoming yesterday...he had non-con losses to Bama and Washington, both top 6 teams. Offensive coordinator is Milbank, SD native Kalen DeBoer, who had a nice run as coach at University of Sioux Falls. Hope they look less impressive vs Boise State or in Bowl game.

that there will be a new QB under center next year... and it's a loud whisper...

Press release:



For the third straight week, Minnesota junior forward Jordan Murphy has been selected the Big Ten Player of the Week, the conference announced Monday.



Murphy is the first player since Evan Turner of Ohio State to earn the award in three consecutive weeks. Turner did so in 2009, also in the first three weeks of the season. He is just the second Gopher to ever win the award three times in a single season, joining Quincy Lewis in the 1998-99 season.



Murphy continued his streak of double-doubles in three victories last week, extending it to seven. The San Antonio, Texas native is tied with Duke’s Marvin Bagley III for the nation’s lead in double-doubles.



On Tuesday against Alabama A&M, Murphy connected for 20 points and 10 rebounds on 9-of-10 field goal shooting, adding four steals, two assists and a block in 22 minutes of action against the Bulldogs. In Brooklyn, N.Y., in the opening game of the Barclays Center Classic, Murphy contributed 16 points, 11 rebounds, one block, one steal and one assist in a 69-51 victory over UMass. The next day, he followed it up with a first-half double-double en route to 19 points, 14 rebounds, three blocks and two steals in the 89-84 win over 25th-ranked Alabama.



For his efforts in Brooklyn, Murphy was selected as the Barclays Center Classic tournament most valuable player.



Murphy averaged 18.3 points, 11.7 rebounds, 2.3 steals, 1.7 blocks and one assist per game in the Gophers’ three wins last week, helping power Minnesota into a 7-0 start. He currently ranks fifth nationally with 12 rebounds per game and 22nd in scoring and atop the Big Ten averaging 22.5 points per game.



The 12th-ranked Gophers return to action on Wednesday at home, hosting No. 10 Miami in a battle of top-15 teams in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. on ESPN2.

Link: Okonji ready to take Minnesota to the next level

Any chance they think Armstrong is the guy?

They will probably pick up two qb's now. We think we know the first one, who would be the second one?

"A handful of Tennessee politicians, including at least three state representatives and four Republican gubernatorial candidates, issued statements on Twitter, criticizing the potential hiring of Schiano.

Some of them might have had legitimate concerns about Schiano's behavior at Penn State, but others likely didn't want him coaching the Volunteers. Tennessee's administration had planned on announcing Schiano's hiring on Sunday night. Instead, it backed out of a memorandum of understanding it had reached with Schiano in Columbus, Ohio, earlier in the day.

If we've learned anything in the first couple of weeks of the coaching carousel, it's that many schools and their fans have unrealistic expectations of how good their football programs are and should be. A large percentage of Florida fans probably weren't happy that the Gators settled on Mullen, who is considered a safe hire, but is far less sexy than Chip Kelly and UCF's Scott Frost, who were the Gators' top choices. Ole Miss fans probably aren't thrilled that the Rebels promoted interim coach Matt Luke, who guided his team to a 6-6 record this past season after former coach Hugh Freeze abruptly resigned in July. But with more NCAA sanctions possibly looming, Ole Miss officials decided to reward their homegrown interim coach, who always wanted to coach the Rebels and is very popular with his players.

As for the Volunteers, for weeks, many fans had grand (and false) illusions of hiring another former Buccaneers coach: current ESPN analyst Jon Gruden. Of course, Gruden was never coming, and he sure as hell isn't going to Rocky Top now...

The Volunteers aren't the only FBS program with an inflated ego. Arizona State fired coach Todd Graham on Sunday morning, one day after the Sun Devils beat rival Arizona 42-30 to finish 7-5. Graham went 46-31 in six seasons...

"Everybody thinks making a change is the best thing, and now with this early signing period, everybody wants to get rid of their guy early," Alabama's Nick Saban said. "They feel like it won't affect them in recruiting as much. The players should be able to finish the year with the coaches they have and not go through all these changes during the season. I think that's hard on the players, but I think it's going to stay that way."...

"My question about all this stuff is: Who do you hire?" Saban said. "You basically start all over. You keep starting all over."

http://www.espn.com/college-footbal...ch-takes-bizarre-turn-backs-away-greg-schiano

Link: Ahanotu is ready to be elite

Animal!! Per twitter

Isn't Zack Annexstad going to be a POW? Did not see his name on the Eligibility Tracker. I watched his film, looks like there is some ability. He plays at IMG, must be some decent competition.