Press release:


The University of Minnesota football team will hold its 2018 spring game at 12 p.m. on April 14. The contest will once again be free to the public and will be played at Minnesota’s pristine TCF Bank Stadium.

A spring practice schedule and events surrounding the April 14 game will be announced in the future.

Minnesota signed the No. 23 ranked recruiting class in the nation last December and welcomed nine early enrollees in January who will participate in spring practices.

Minnesota will play 12 regular-season games in 2018 against teams who combined to post an 87-67 record in 2017. Minnesota will also face seven teams who went to a bowl game last season and all seven of those schools were victorious.

The Gophers open the regular season – their tenth at TCF Bank Stadium – on Thursday, Aug. 30 against New Mexico State. Season ticket information is now available.

...

Ruining college basketball. Let the kids go straight to the NBA.

Maybe I am getting old, but I miss the days of teams playing with players that have been together for 2-3 years.

Duke will have all 5 starters go to the NBA once this year is done and 4 new freshmen will start and play next year, rinse and repeat.

I like the new "no redshirt burned" rule for college football. I hope college hoops changes the one and done rule next.

We have a tough home match on Sunday at 1pm with Michigan at the Maturi Pavilion, and it looks to me like we should win 3 matches (Lizak, Thorn and Bleise), and lose the other 7 matches for a 23-12 team loss.

If we come out super-inspired and get upsets in 2 matches we aren't supposed to win...that would flip the team score to an 18-17 win. This is probably not likely, but it's possible.

Come on down to support our guys if you can!

Here's the article from Gophersports.com:


Gophers Welcome Wolverines in B1G Matchup

The No. 12 University of Minnesota Gophers will be taking on No. 8 Michigan on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. in Maturi Pavilion.



Gophersports.com
Jan. 18, 2018

No. 12 Minnesota vs No. 8 Michigan
Date/Time Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018 | 1:00 p.m. CT
Location Maturi Pavilion
Live Video BTN Plus // FloWrestling
Tickets Buy Now
Parking Information
Live Updates Click Here
Match Notes vs Michigan
Social Media @GopherWrestling | Facebook | Instagram

Highlights: OSU/Illinois // Coach's Corner with Brandon Eggum // Through the Lens - Athletes Village

The No. 12 University of Minnesota Gophers will be taking on No. 8 Michigan on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. in Maturi Pavilion. The Gophers have defeated the Wolverines the last two times the two teams have faced, including last season when the Gophers downed the No. 10 Wolverines on the road.

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP:

125: No. 4 Ethan Lizak (18-2) tech fall over No. 13 Drew Mattin (14-6)
(MN 5 - MI 0)
133: No. 12 Mitch McKee (9-3) loses to No. 5 Stevan Micic (11-2)
(5-3)
141: No. 10 Tommy Thorn (16-6) major decision over Sal Profaci (9-7)
(9-3)
149: No. 16 Steve Bleise (15-4) beats Malik Amine (10-7) or Ben Lamantia (10-3)
(12-3)
157: No. 19 Jake Short (9-6) loses to No. 5 Alec Pantaleo (9-3)
(12-6)
165: No. 10 Nick Wanzek (17-3) loses to No. 5 Logan Massa (9-2) or Reece Hughes (2-2)
(12-9)
174: Chris Pfarr (12-6) loses by major to No. 6 Myles Amine (12-5)
(12-13)
184: Dylan Anderson (21-8) or Brandon Krone (5-2) loses to No. 5 Domenic Abounader (11-3)
(12-16)
197: Dalton Lunde (1-2) loses to Jackson Striggow (13-7)
(12-19)
HWT: Rylee Streifel (8-7) loses by major to No. 2 Adam Coon (16-0)
(12-23)

LAST TIME OUT - ILLINOIS
The University of Minnesota Gophers completed a seven point comeback against Illinois this past Sunday. Rylee Streifel helped the crowd to their feet with a last second victory, giving Minnesota momentum that they would ride to the 17-14 dual victory over the previously No. 12 team in the nation. The Gophers picked up victories at 174, 125, 141, 149 and 157 on top of Streifel's victory at heavyweight.

"It was great today. I thought the fight was there from our guys today," head coach Brandon Eggum said after the dual. "It was a tough weekend of travel for us, and it could have been an excuse for some, but the guys were upbeat and they worked hard to earn this victory."

GOPHERS MATCH DUAL VICTORIES
With their victory on Sunday, the University of Minnesota matched the dual victory total from a year ago. The Gophers finished last season with a 7-5 record, this season the Gophers have a 7-4 record with 7 more Big Ten dual remaining.

THORN NAMED WRESTLER OF THE WEEK.
After his 2-0 record last weekend, junior 141-pounder Tommy Thorn was named The Open Mat's wrestler of the week. He took down previously sixth-ranked Joey McKenna of Ohio State on Friday by major decision, 13-3. Then he finished the weekend with a 11-6 decision over Mike Carr of Illinois, who has defeated Chad Red of Nebraska earlier this season.

Login to view embedded media
Steve Bleise MAKES MINNESOTA DEBUT
After wrestling 18 matches unattached, the University of Minnesota finally got to see Steve Bleise in action officially. The junior transfer from Northern Illinois came into Sunday with a 14-4 record, including a ranked victory at the Midlands Championships the week prior. Bleise was a round of 12 finisher at the 2017 NCAA Championships. Bleise was able to picked up a victory in his debut, a 4-1 decision over Eric Barone of Illinois, who was an NCAA Qualifier in 2017.

Login to view embedded media
MATCHES TO WATCH - MICHIGAN
The match that will likely be most notable will come at 165-pounds. No. 10 Nick Wanzek will take on No. 5 Logan Massa. The two have not met before in college, with Wanzek wrestling at 174 last season when Massa won his match against the Gophers. At 125 and 133 the Gophers will also have some big matchups. No. 4 Ethan Lizak will take on No. 13 Drew Mattin, a freshman who was a three-time state champion in the state of Ohio. No. 13 Mitch McKee will be faced with a tough opponent, No. 5 Stevan Micic, who was an All-American last season.

NCAA ANNOUNCES FIRST COACHES PANEL RANKINGS
The NCAA began releasing their coaches panel rankings on Thursday. Eight Gophers appeared on the rankings. These rankings are used as part of the selection process to determine the qualifiers for the 2018 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in March. Ethan Lizak being the highest individual at No. 4. Others included Nick Wanzek (10), Tommy Thorn (11), Mitch McKee (12), Steve Bleise (15), Jake Short (20), Owen Webster (22) and Chris Pfarr (28).

HOME SWEET HOME
The Gophers have posted a 4-0 home record thus far in 2017-18. After a 2016-17 campaign when the Gophers were undefeated on the road, the Gophers look to do the same at home this season, their biggest test being Michigan on Sunday. The last time the Gophers finished a season with an undefeated dual home record was 2013-14. The Gophers finished 2nd in the NCAA Championships that season.

on Fox tonight

https://minnesota.rivals.com/news/the-film-room-northwestern

Minnesota will try to avenge a 23 point loss to Northwestern with the addition of Amir Coffey. We discuss inside the story how it won by that margin and how the Gophers can counter what the Wildcats do.

town and State over. Do it!!!!!!!

I don't care about being the number 1 rated offense or defense in the NFL.... All I care about is being the NUMBER 1 TEAM after the Super Bowl...Minnesota totally dominated by the Eagles..

There have been NFC championships that have pissed me off before... Minnesota losing to Atlanta in '97 and the loss to New Orleans with Favre at QB.. Vikes should have won both of those games.. Thought we could have beaten the Redskins the one year when Anthony Carter and Ted Brown or Darrin Nelson were in the same area where the ball was thrown at the end of the game.. Of course, the pass inference call that should have happened to Drew Pearson was another situation where the Vikings should have won the game...

Minnesota crapped the bed in EVERY SUPER BOWL they were ever in... Even though Pittsburgh only beat the Vikes 16-6 in the Super Bowl one year, it might as well been 116-6 as bad as Pittsburgh was dominating us in that game. Against Oakland in that Super Bowl, we blocked a Ray Guy punt in the first quarter and I thought we were in business but then, in true Viking form, Brent McClanahan fumbled the ball going in for the score. It has been a frustrating playoff ride, all-time, for the Vikings and I wonder if we will ever get over the hump.. What do you think???

Commits to New Mexico State.

Gophers offer 3* Georgia OT Junior Uzebu. Also holds an offer from Maryland.

Login to view embedded media Login to view embedded media

Starting center for Tulane is transferring.
We can always use a center.

I have attended the last two Gopher Basketball games - Maryland and Ohio State - and, after watching the Gophers' performances, have wondered about what I would do to attempt to change the trajectory of the team. I do not pretend to be a master basketball tactician, but I have some understanding of what occurs during basketball games.

My recommendation is that Coach Pitino just stop playing Konate and Diedhiou. After deciding that the two will not play, Coach Pitino and his staff should fIgure out who the starters should be and the rotation, as well as how the team will best compete on offense and defense.

I am serious. If I were coach, I would try it. Before explaining my rationale, I ask that posters and mods respond with alternatives, comments and criticisms.

Now my rationale: After watching the Penn State game on television and attending the Maryland and Ohio State games, I have concluded that (i) Konate and Diedhiou are worse for our offense than if we played four players and (ii) they barely contribute on defense and contribute less than other players on the team would. So let's play five players other than them and see how that works.

Before my simple-minded critique of their play, let me describe what I saw happening in each game:

Gophers on Offense: All three opposing coaches entered his respective game knowing that Konate and Diedhiou are not threats on offense. The difference is that two of the coaches - Maryland's and Ohio State's - realized after watching a bit of their games that Konate and Diedhiou are so weak on offense that they can and should literally be ignored. Thus each of Maryland and Ohio State, after a portion of the game, switched to a defense where they put pressure on the other four Gopher players at all times - thus the Gophers' poor shooting - and in effect played zone with its center - thus all the Gophers' drives to the basket were contested. They both just ignored Konate and Diedhiou. They did not even bother blocking them out to prevent them from getting rebounds. So, once the change was made, the Gophers, in effect, played four on five on offense; but it was worse than that, as Konate and Diedhiou got in the way of the Gophers running their offense. I think Murphy would be double teamed far less. Here is how jarring the play was when the two coaches made the change: Ohio State went on a 24-2 run after trailing by 20-10. The Maryland game went from a tight game to one where Maryland went on a big run and then maintained a 10 to 15 point margin the rest of the way. The Penn State coach probably realized the same thing about Konate and Diedhiou, but did not act drastically enough.

We would be better if it was five on five when the Gophers are on offense. Sit Konate and Diedhiou.

Gophers on Defense: I realize that it may seem the Gophers might be weakened on defense by not having the taller players, and on some plays they might be. However, I think the Gophers' defense will improve without Konate and Diedhiou if they have five players who are coordinated, can guard their opponents, and can rebound, traits which Konate and Diedhiou do not have. Look at the scoring of the men Konate and Diedhiou supposedly guarded; more important, look at the number of blocks and rebounds they had - not very many. In my view, neither Konate nor Diedhiou contribute much defensively and will not be missed.

Critique of Konate's and Diedhiou's play: Neither participates in the offense except to set meaningless high screens, and they set them poorly and are often moving. Their teammates rarely pass to them, and when they do, neither Konate nor Diedhiou catches the ball, generally. Neither scores nor rebounds on either offense or defense. When Konate happens to get the ball in his possession, he promptly loses it if challenged. If either is fouled and shoots free throws, he misses. On defense, neither is able to guard his man adequately. They do periodically block shots, but not enough to outweigh their liabilities. And, most important, they do not rebound.

The best things that will happen if Konate and Diedhiou do not play is that the Gophers' offense will open up and be much improved. Our opponents will have to guard all five players. The middle will open up. We will have more open shots and be able to drive to the basket easier. Perhaps most important, the other players, who are basketball players, will have more fun and get more joy from playing offense, as they will score more and be able to play a team offense. If Konate and Diedhiou continue to play, Coach Pitino will lose the team even more than he has, in my view.

Plus, sitting Konate and Diedhiou would give playing time to players who will be on the team next year.

If nothing else, it's worth a try.

A little skol wakeup call for the office today. Vikes are only special exception for mustache bling.

Login to view embedded media

Travis is still on the Patriots practice roster. Another weekly paycheck (or two)? Maybe a piece of playoff bonus money?

Did Myrick play more than special teams for Jags?

Nice 3 and out

Don't see @Littlefinger anywhere not sure if he is really there...

was an NDSU player, coach...long time buddy with former Jags head coach Gus Bradley of Zumbrota.

Several of our redshirt freshmen were undefeated yesterday, winning titles at the Worthington Open. While this isn't the strongest of open tournaments, it's still a very good showing!

Here's the article from Gophersports.com:


Three Freshmen Pick Up Worthington Open Titles

Five freshmen traveled to Worthington, Minn. and three came back champions of the Worthington Open. Brent Jones, Jakob Bergeland and Alex Crowe each finished the day undefeated for the University of Minnesota.



Gophersports.com
Jan. 20, 2018

Tickets to Michigan on Jan. 21

Five freshmen traveled to Worthington, Minn. and three came back champions of the Worthington Open. Brent Jones, Jakob Bergeland and Alex Crowe eached finished the day undefeated for the University of Minnesota.

Between the three champions, they combined for four pins and outscored their opponents 113-25. Between all five Worthington Open participants, they had eight pins and outscored their opponents 182-54.

It was a consistent day from freshman Brent Jones at 141-pounds. The Shakopee, Minn. native opened the day with a 15-0 dominating performance. He followed that up with another big offensive showcase, a 16-3 major decision.

Jones final two matches would become tighter, but the composed freshman wrapped up the day with two decisions to earn him his first open title.

Login to view embedded media
Jakob Bergeland also was able to garner Worthington Open honors. The Hugo, Minn. product made his time in Worthington a business trip with three pins and a tech fall on the way to a 4-0 record at 149-pounds and a first place finish. Bergeland's fastest pin came in the quarterfinals, at 1:30.

Login to view embedded media
Minnesota's third title came at 157-pounds. Crowe wrestled four matched, and had a tough final against Hunter Shelton of South Dakota State to earn his title. Crowe's offense was on full display, outscoring his four opponents 45-7, not including his pin in his first match of the day at 3:31.

Login to view embedded media
Two other Gophers also participated in the tournament. Spearfish, S.D. native Tyler Waterson wrestled his way to the 149 (B-bracket) finals. Waterson had a pin in the opening round, followed by a major decision and decision in the quarterfinals and semifinals. Waterson finished with a 3-1 record on the day after he dropped his final match, an 8-4 decision.

The final Gopher participating was Bailee O'Reilly. The freshman that hails from Goodhue, Minn. started the day off with a pair of pins at 4:47 and 1:34 before falling in the quarterfinals in a tight 6-3 decision. O'Reilly didn't waste much time bouncing back. He went on to outscore his next two opponents 39-8 in a pair of tech fall victories before pinning his opponent in the fifth place match at 1:28.

The five Worthington Open wrestlers will return to the Twin Cities and be at Maturi Pavilion tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. as the Gophers will take on No. 8 Michigan.

Whether it is open tournaments, dual meets or anything Gopher Wrestling related, GopherSports.com is your place for everything Gophers. Be sure to also follow the Gophers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram so you do not miss any content the rest of the 2017-18 season.

Match-By-Match Results:

141:

Brent Jones (4-0, 1st Place)
Rnd 1: Bye
Rnd 2: Brent Jones tech fall Tanner Pasvogel (St. Cloud State), 15-0
Quarters: Brent Jones maj dec Joe Eads (William Penn), 16-3
Semis: Brent Jones dec Travis Swanson (St. Cloud State), 8-5
Finals: Brent Jones dec Austin Anderly (North Iowa), 5-1

149:

Jakob Bergeland (4-0, 1st Place)
Rnd 1: Jakob Bergeland fall (1:44) Sean Mendlik (Morningside)
Rnd 2: Jakob Bergeland tech fall Matthew Shuka (Northwestern Co), 24-9
Quarters: Jakob Bergeland fall (1:30) A-Darius Pruitt (Iowa Lakes)
Semis: Jakob Bergeland fall (3:59) Alexander Skaare (Concordia College)
Finals: Jakob Bergeland med Riley Palmer (Iowa Central)

Tyler Waterson (3-1, 2nd Place)
Rnd 1: Bye
Rnd 2: Tyler Waterson fall (2:18) Kionte Crocker (William Penn)
Quarters: Tyler Waterson maj dec Robert Rodriguez (North Iowa Area), 16-5
Semis: Tyler Waterson dec Tanner Day (Augsburg Unattached), 7-2
Finals: Mark Voss dec Tyler Waterson, 8-4

157:

Alex Crowe (4-0, 1st Place)
Rnd 1: Bye
Rnd 2: Alex Crowe fall (3:31) Josh Verbeten (Augsburg)
Quarters: Alex Crowe tech fall Tyson Dowler (Iowa Central), 19-2
Semis: Alex Crowe tech fall Alfred Daniel (Rocheseter CC), 16-0
Finals: Alex Crowe dec Hunter Shelton (SDSU), 10-5

174:

Bailee O'Reilly (5-1, 5th Place)
Rnd 1: Bailee O'Reilly fall (4:47) Tyler Helfrich-Meyers (Iowa Central)
Rnd 2: Bailee O'Reilly fall (1:34) Tucker Bassinger (Morningside)
Quarters: Tone Fuenffinger (Augsburg) dec Bailee O'Reilly, 6-3
Cons Quarters: Bailee O'Reilly tech fall Eric Vigo (Iowa Lakes), 18-2
Cons Semis: Bailee O'Reilly tech fall Tanner Smith (Jamestown), 21-6
5th Place: Bailee O'Reilly fall (1:28) Alexander Thompson (Morningside)

Today’s show would be an excellent opportunity for Coach Fleck to articulate his revised vision of his coaching staff.

The 2 QBs playing in the NFC Championship Game are from Texas ...

The Vikings Skol chant with the drum has really caught on. The Gophers need something like this to get the crowd into it. Any ideas?

Maybe this has been discussed before but I have been thinking about this.... The most "franchise stable" team in the NFL in the last 50 years has been the Pittsburgh Steelers... All their head coaches during that time, Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher, and Mike Tomlin, have been defensive guys....Bill Belechick was a defensive coach as an assistant before becoming the Patriots head coach... In college, Nick Saban is the dominant coach and he was a defensive assistant.. Over the years, lots of defensive guys were head coaches of dominant teams. Kirby Smart of Georgia was a defensive guy this year. Mike Zimmer is a defensive guru.

Though there can be many head coaches that were great offensive coaches as well like Bill Walsh in the pros and Urban Meyer that have been at the top of their profession... Certainly, Scott Frost is going to be a real good one. Steve Spurrier was a great one at the college level as an offensive guru.. Brian Billick was considered an offensive genius yet the Ravens won the Super Bowl because of their defense. Sean Payton is a heck of a mind Tony Dungy was a QB at Minnesota yet played DB in pros and coached defense throughout his coaching career before his head coaching gig. Chuck Noll was an offensive guard for the Browns though he played both sides of the ball at University of Dayton(he was also a linebacker)..

Just interested to see what you think????

Login to view embedded media Login to view embedded media Login to view embedded media
Enjoy guys!!!

Do we lose anyone off the O-Line as a result of Warinner departure?

Sean Payton’s ‘Skol’ chant went from troll to self-own in 25 seconds thanks to the ‘Minneapolis Miracle’

Amir Coffey participated in shootaround and it is confirmed that he is healthy and active today.

Minnesota starters:

G Nate Mason
G Dupree McBrayer
F Amir Coffey
F Jordan Murphy
C Bakary Konate

Ohio State starters:

G C.J. Jackson
G Kam Williams
F Jae'Sean Tate
F Keita Bates-Diop
C Kaleb Wesson