Link: Early look: Washington State by the numbers

Multiple sites saying we are heading to Nashville on Dec. 30 to play in the Music City Bowl. Would love SD, but Nashville is a really fun town. One projection had us playing Tennessee, thinking the stadium would be a little orange.

Claeys opened up that he had no idea which game the Gophers were going to be picked for, but that he thought it would be a game in California. It depends how many Big Ten teams they select for the New Years Day bowl games.

Claeys also noted that he hasn’t signed a new contract yet, because he’s been busy out and recruiting. He said that these two weeks are very important for recruiting before the bowl practices start, since there’s a dead period for a month that starts at the end of this week.

He also noted that he believes all of the coaches will be coming back, however in December is when most of the coaching jobs open up, so whenever somebody gets a chance to better themselves, that it is good for them to advance in their career.

We will be in the low 20’s for recruits for this year, around 22, Claeys thinks. He also said that they will be rewarding walk-on’s with some scholarships this year, but didn’t name any specifics.

He has not had time to meet with kids who have eligibility, but may not be coming back. He intends next week to meet with those kids when he gets back from recruiting. Claeys said that every year there are a few kids that may take that route, due to academics, not playing enough, etc.

Claeys also said that he is open to recruiting a JUCO quarterback or a graduate transfer to come in, but that he feels good with who they have right now. However, Claeys said he wants to meet with them face to face to get a feel for their culture and who they are, to see if it is a good fit. He mentions Russell Wilson as a situation that worked very well for Wisconsin, however you don’t want to bring a graduate transfer in and make them unhappy if they do not play.

Kiondre Thomas, Sam Schlueter, Connor Olson, Seth Green, Mark Williams, Demry Croft are players that Tracy specifically named that were redshirted that he believes will help the team next year. He had really good things to say about every one of them, and specifically with Mark Williams he will let him compete for the quarterback position, but believes that with his athleticism he can play another position as well.

Brandon Lingen will be out for the bowl game; they want to be smart with his recovery and not rush it. Cody Poock will be out as well. Jared Weyler should be able to play again for the bowl game.

Claeys said they are recruiting a quarterback, maybe two as well. If we do recruit two, he wants a guy that could possibly play another position. Claeys said that you have to recruit a quarterback and a running back every year for stability within the program.

PS gets a bunch of scholarships taken away, loses it's coach, loses his replacement, and now is the BIG champion. And we're sitting here what ifing we had won this game or that game. TC did you watch the game? JJ did you watch what an offense should look like?

let the thread begin.

We are now 8 games into the season and are starting to get a sense of what this team is capable of. At this point I think most of the pre-season predictions are pretty accurate with 7-9 B1G wins, which is what I see from this team. If we run the table in the rest of the non-con and are sitting at 12-1, what's the magic number to make the tourney? Could 20 wins and 8-10 record do it? I have a feeling B1G play is going to drive the fans nuts, there's going to be some real clunkers on the road, but I feel like this team behind an energetic home crowd will give us a couple nice home victories as well.

I'm going with 8 w's at this point. Hope they can continue to develop and trend upward as the season goes, like last year.

Saw this quote regarding a NON MN football game I attended years ago:

"It was an intelligent crowd," said the 37-year-old Klosterman, who now works in real estate in Austin, Texas. "When we were on offense, it was silent. When we were on defense, it was deafening."

Could not agree more. Sadly I am not sure MN Gopher football fan base understands this strategic need for the offense. But then again many don't like to get too excited when MN is on defense. Not sure, even Viking fan base understands this difference, as they would rather yell and scream during a vikes possession. Hell even the MN BAND (which I LOVE) and the TCF music blaster don't seem to understand it. they have a script and they stick to it. regardless of who has the ball, and where the ball is marked. Peyton Manning would have punched them in the nose after the game.

just a little venting on a topic that had me stewing each week. By the way, for those that don't make it to away games, most of our opponents truly get it, even bend the rules in their favor.

as an aside, listening to many fans, I am not sure how much general football knowledge many of them even have, so I should not be surprised, frustrated by this lost advantage.

it is what it is.

1

Day 1 is underway today at the very tough Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas, and we've had a pretty good start. Still alive in the Championship round are McKee, Short, Kingsley, Wanzek, Pfarr and Kroells. McKee is looking very strong and is already in the Quarterfinals!! Short and Kingsley looking better so far this week.

Still alive in the Consolations are Petry, Stroker, and Steveson. Gannon Volk is the only Gopher that's been eliminated.

The non-starters are at The UNI Open this weekend.

There's a lot of great, high-level wrestling going on...more updates to follow. Here's an article on the Cliff Keen from Gophersports.com:


Gophers Roll into Vegas this Weekend

Minnesota will take a brief break from its dual season to compete in the Cliff Keen Invitational on Friday and Saturday in Las Vegas



Gophersports.com
Nov. 30, 2016

Match Notes Cliff Keen Invite

After firing up the dual meet season with a pair of home matches in the past two weeks, Minnesota will head west and take a quick respite from dual action to compete in the 35th annual Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas. Minnesota has been a frequent participant in the event over the years, a run that includes a pair of team titles (2002, 2014). Most recently, the Gophers placed third last December.

When, Where and How

The tournament’s opening session will get going at 11 a.m. Central on Friday morning from the floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center. That window will include championship bouts through the round of 16 and both sets of consolation rounds of 16. Starting at 8 p.m. Central that night, the second session will include quarterfinal and Round of 12 consolation matches. Action resumes at 11 a.m. Central on Saturday with consolation round of eight, followed immediately by semifinals on both the championship and consolation side, as well as fifth- and seventh-place matches. At 5 p.m. Central, the tournament’s final session will include championship and third-place bouts.

Fans will be able to stream the action live on Flowrestling.org (live stream requires a FloPRO subscription) or keep tabs on the latest updates involving Minnesota’s wrestlers by following Gopher Wrestling on Twitter (@GopherWrestling).

Dinkytown to the Desert

A mixture of the lineups that have taken the mat at the Sports Pavilion for the team’s two opening duals will don the Maroon singlets this weekend: Skyler Petry (125), Mitch McKee (133), Gannon Volk (141), Fredy Stroker (149), Jake Short (157), Brandon Kingsley (165), No. 14 Nick Wanzek (174), Bobby Steveson (184), No. 2 Brett Pfarr (197) and No. 8 Michael Kroells (285).

So Far This Season

This weekend’s competition will be the third tournament for Minnesota’s starters so far this season but the first to keep a team score.

The team kicked off the 2016-17 campaign at the Daktronics Open, where Ethan Lizak captured the 125-pound title. The lineup Minnesota will wrestle this weekend includes three finalists from that tournament and two third-place finishers. McKee, Short and Kroells were runners-up at their weights, while Petry and Wanzek finished third. Pfarr did not compete in the event, as he was in Cleveland for the NWCA All-Star Classic. Also worth noting that 184-pound starter Steveson wrestled at 197, where he took fourth.

In a less-conventional tournament format, Minnesota competed at the Journeymen/Asics Collegiate Classic in Troy, N.Y. earlier this month. In that pool-based, round-robin event, four Gophers won titles. The two who will wrestle this weekend are McKee and Pfarr.

A Nationally Elite Field

The field in Las Vegas will provide the opportunity for a collection of key matches. Brackets will not be available until closer to the event but, based on the participating teams, they will be jam-packed with outstanding wrestlers at every weight. Including No. 18 Minnesota, nine top-20 teams (based on the latest NWCA poll) will be in the event: No. 4 Ohio State, No. 6 Virginia Tech, No. 8 Cornell, No. 10 Michigan, No. 14 Central Michigan, No. 15 Stanford, No. 17 Wisconsin and No. 19 Arizona State. Coincidentally, the same number of top-20 teams were in last year’s field. Beyond that collection, familiar foes for Minnesota including Iowa State and Purdue will be in Vegas.

What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas… Except Tournament Records

Three Gophers will return to the event after reaching the finals last season. Pfarr finished as the runner-up at 197 last year and will likely be the top seed at that weight this weekend. Kroells finished as the runner-up at 285. His opponent in his semifinal victory and championship defeat, Tanner Hall (Arizona State) and Ty Walz (Virginia Tech), respectively, are both expected to wrestle this weekend. Short reached the finals at 149 pounds last year and will look to replicate that feat at 157.

Five Gophers will be wrestling in the tournament for the first time: McKee, Volk, Stroker, Wanzek and Steveson.

As a team, Minnesota has twice won the event, first claiming the crown in 2002 and then again in 2014. Last year, the team finished third in the team standings behind only Missouri and Cornell.

Parting Shot

In addition to a strong run of bonus-point wins up and down the lineup (16 such wins out of 32 total match victories by Gophers), Short helped fuel Minnesota’s third-place finish in last year’s Cliff Keen Invitational by finishing second at 149 pounds despite entering the event unranked. Seven Gopher wrestlers will try to replicate that feat this weekend, including Short, who enters the event unranked at 157.

Login to view embedded media
I'll ask about this but I don't see a reason to be worried about a Cincinnati offer right now.

Hornibrook reportedly will not play, so if Houston has to come out for injury (or lost helmet), pure frosh 3rd stringer may have to burn his RS. If it's very short term, I guess a wildcat formation could suffice. BURN, BABY BURN.

Sadly, we may have no choice but to recruit 2 or 3 junior college defensive tackles. The Gophers have one dt verbal for the 2017 class, Joshua Croslen. If he becomes a Gopher, he will be the only dt on the roster in 2018 other than playing true freshmen from the 2018 recruiting class. Junior college kids do not sign with 4-year schools because a) they lack mental ability (poor grades or ACT score) or b) they lack physical ability or both a) and b). Plus, when they do join your program, they use their first year to become adjusted to a new system, new techniqes, new coaches, new surroundings, new friends, and then after that, they have one more year to produce for you. Sadly, I see no choice for the Gophers but to recruit some junior college defensive tackles. They only have their past recruiting classes to blame for this.

is awesome. And PSU is playing very well in the 2nd half.

Just interviewed. Said his choice was easy due to coaches Miller and Claeys.

Login to view embedded media
Qadir White of the Bronx picked up an offer from the Gophers last night. He holds other offers from UConn, Iowa State, Pitt, and Rutgers.

Login to view embedded media

Preview here and Behind Enemy Lines here.

Tipoff shortly.

Two of our suspended starters won titles at the UNI Open, a very strong tournament with some major wrestling schools participating. Ethan Lizak and Tommy Thorn are getting in top form so they are ready to get started again on January 1st. They will really help us during the last half of the season!!

It's early, but we are almost ready-to-go!!!


Gophers Win Two Titles at UNI Open

Ethan Lizak and Tommy Thorn won the 125- and 141-pound titles, respectively, leading a group of 10 Gopher placewinners in Cedar Falls



Gophersports.com
Dec. 3, 2016

Redshirt sophomores Ethan Lizak and Tommy Thorn led the way for a group of 17 Gophers who competed in the UNI Open in Cedar Falls, Iowa, on Saturday, winning titles at 125 and 141 pounds, respectively. In all, 10 Gophers placed in the event, including a runner-up finish from Rylee Strefiel at heavyweight and a third-place performance from Brandon Krone at 174.

Lizak’s second consecutive UNI Open title was his second open title so far this season, adding to his Daktronics Open championship from earlier this season. His run to the top of the podium was built on nothing but bonus point wins – a pair of major decisions and a pair of tech falls. In his four victories, Lizak overwhelmed his opponents by a total score of 58-4. Lizak has reached the finals in all three opens in which he’s participated this season.

Thorn made his season debut on Saturday and looked strong throughout, not allowing any of his five opponents to score more than three points in any match. Thorn scored two major decisions on his way to the title and had only one match, the championship bout, decided by fewer than five points. Today’s title was the fifth open tournament Thorn has won in his collegiate career, adding to three he won while redshirting his freshman season and a Daktronics Open title last year.

The other finalist for Minnesota, Streifel, put together a 3-1 day. After one-sided wins in his first two contests, he endured two sets of tiebreakers to outlast Carter Isley (Northern Iowa) with a rideout, 4-3. In the finals, Streifel fell to sixth-ranked Brooks Black (Illinois).

The third-place finish for Krone at 174 was the other top-three finish for Minnesota. Chris Pfarr also reached the third-place match at 184, but dropped a narrow decision, 6-4. Five other Gophers fought in fifth-place matches, with 149-pounder Hunter Marko and 157-pounder Carson Brolsma winning those matches while Sam Brancale (133), Larry Early III (165) and Darius Wright (184) fell and finished sixth. In the cases of Brancale and Early, those matches were medical forfeits.

In all, 17 Gophers made the three-hour trip south to the UNI Dome. As a collective, they posted a 42-27 record for the day.

Full match-by-match results are listed below.

GopherSports.com is your home for all Gopher Wrestling news throughout the 2016-17. Whether you’re looking for open tournament recaps, team stats or previews of the next competition, we will have it all for you right here. Be sure to follow Gopher Wrestling on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the latest updates.

Match-by-Match Results

125

Ethan Lizak (4-0, 1st Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Bye
Champ Rnd 2: Ethan Lizak tech fall Brenden Baker (Iowa State), 18-2
Quarters: Ethan Lizak maj dec Nicholas Brennan (Missouri), 14-1
Semis: Ethan Lizak maj dec Kyle Larson (Iowa State), 10-1
Finals: Ethan Lizak tech fall Travis Piotrowski (Illinois), 16-0

133

Sam Brancale (2-1, 6th Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Sam Brancale dec Jarred Oftedahl (St. Cloud State), 4-2
Quarters: Sam Brancale fall (5:53) Jack Wagner (Iowa)
Semis: No. 10 Jaydin Eierman (Missouri) dec Sam Brancale, 15-10
Cons Semis: John Erneste (Missouri) med. for. Sam Brancale
5th Place: Eduardo Penha (St. Cloud State) med. for. Sam Brancale

Gresh Jones (2-2)
Champ Rnd 1: Shiquan Hall (unattached) dec (SV-1) Gresh Jones, 3-1
Cons Rnd 1: Gresh Jones fall (0:44) Devon Berry (St. Cloud State)
Round of 12: Gresh Jones dec Francis Edelen (Illinois), 8-2
Cons Rnd of 4: Eduardo Penha (St. Cloud State) maj dec Gresh Jones, 11-0

141

Tommy Thorn (5-0, 1st Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Tommy Thorn maj dec Paul Glynn (Iowa), 12-3
Champ Rnd 2: Tommy Thorn dec Dylan Thurston (Illinois), 7-2
Quarters: Tommy Thorn maj dec Alex Hrisopoulos (Michigan State), 11-0
Semis: Tommy Thorn dec Carter Happel (Iowa), 9-3
Finals: Tommy Thorn dec Kanen Storr (Iowa State), 4-1

Ben Brancale (1-2)
Champ Rnd 1: Zach Synon (Missouri) dec Ben Brancale, 8-4
Cons Rnd 1: Ben Brancale dec (TB-1) Mousa Jodeh (Illinois), 3-2
Cons Rnd 2: Gabe Moreno (Iowa State) fall (4:40) Ben Brancale

149

Hunter Marko (4-2, 5th Place)
Champ Rnd 1: No. 17 Max Thomsen (Northern Iowa) maj dec Hunter Marko, 12-4
Cons Rnd 1: Hunter Marko fall (2:14) Cole Race (Unattached)
Round of 12: Hunter Marko maj dec Hunter Washburn (Northern Iowa), 12-2
Cons Rnd of 4: Hunter Mark dec Jake Barzowski (St. Cloud State), 6-0
Cons Semis: Gabriel Grahek (Wisconsin) dec Hunter Marko, 7-3
5th Place: Hunter Marko inj. (0:18) Bryce Briceno (Iowa State)

James Berg (1-2)
Champ Rnd 1: Zander Wick (Wisconsin) dec James Berg, 12-5
Cons Rnd 1: James Berg dec Keegan Shaw (Iowa), 6-4
Round of 12: Bryce Briceno (Iowa State) dec James Berg, 5-3

157

Carson Brolsma (4-2, 5th Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Carson Brolsma dec Cameron Lopez (Northern Iowa), 11-4
Champ Rnd 2: Carson Brolsma dec Colten Carlson (South Dakota State), 6-4
Quarters: Carson Brolsma dec Phyllip DeLoach (Missouri), 4-2
Semis: No. 9 Joey Lavallee (Missouri) dec Carson Brolsma, 6-4
Cons Semis: Paden Moore (Northern Iowa) dec Carson Brolsma, 5-4
5th Place: Carson Brolsma tech fall Colten Carlson (South Dakota State), 16-1

165

Larry Early III (3-1, 6th Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Larry Early III maj dec Lucas Schmit (Purdue), 16-2
Champ Rnd 2: Larry Early III fall (6:29) Devin Fitzpatrick (St. Cloud State)
Quarters: Larry Early III dec Logan Ryan (Iowa), 3-1
Semis: No. 3 Daniel Lewis (Missouri) maj dec Larry Early III, 12-0
Cons Semis: Kaleb Young (Iowa) med. for. Larry Early III
5th Place: Gabe Fogarty (St. Cloud State) med. for. Larry Early III

174

Brandon Krone (4-1, 3rd Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Bye
Champ Rnd 2: Brandon Krone dec Canten Marriott (Missouri), 9-2
Quarters: Brandon Krone tech fall Tanner Schaefer (St. Cloud State), 17-0
Semis: No. 9 Zac Brunson (Illinois) maj dec Brandon Krone, 8-0
Cons Semis: Brandon Krone maj dec Clayton Jennissen (St. Cloud State), 9-0
3rd Place: Brandon Krone dec Canten Marriott (Missouri), 2-0

Colin Carr (1-2)
Champ Rnd 1: Bye
Champ Rnd 2: Colin Carr maj dec Santonio Cathery (Wisconsin), 13-2
Quarters: No. 9 Zac Brunson (Illinois) fall (3:32) Colin Carr
Round of 12: Canten Marriott (Missouri) maj dec Colin Carr, 13-5

Tijani Karaborni (0-2)
Champ Rnd 1: Bye
Champ Rnd 2: Tanner Schaefer (St. Cloud State) dec Tijani Karaborni, 8-6
Cons Rnd 2: Bye
Cons Rnd 3: Canten Marriott (Missouri) maj dec Tijani Karaborni, 10-1

184

Chris Pfarr (3-2, 4th Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Chris Pfarr maj dec Cory Flaata (St. Cloud State), 9-1
Quarters: Chris Pfarr fall (4:01) Chase Shedenhelm (Northern Iowa)
Semis: No. 12 Drew Foster (Northern Iowa) dec Chris Pfarr, 4-2
Cons Semis: Chris Pfarr dec (SV-2) Brady Ayers (South Dakota State), 4-2
3rd Place: Jacob Holschlag (Northern Iowa) dec Chris Pfarr, 6-4

Darius Wright (3-3, 6th Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Bradley Banks dec Darius Wright, 3-2
Cons Rnd 1: Darius Wright fall (2:19) Justin Guilliams (Northern Iowa)
Round of 12: Darius Wright tech fall Chase Shedenhelm (Northern Iowa), 16-1
Cons Round of 4: Darius Wright dec Dylan Anderson, 9-4
Cons Semis: Jacob Holschlag (Northern Iowa) fall (4:05) Darius Wright
5th Place: Brady Ayers (South Dakota State) dec Darius Wright, 5-3

Dylan Anderson (2-2)
Champ Rnd 1: Dylan Anderson tech fall Cade Brownlee (Iowa), 18-3
Quarters: No. 12 Drew Foster (Northern Iowa) dec Dylan Anderson, 7-5
Round of 12: Dylan Anderson maj dec Jayden Bears (Missouri), 17-4
Cons Round of 4: Darius Wright dec Dylan Anderson, 9-4

Faris Karaborni (0-2)
Champ Rnd 1: Brady Ayers (South Dakota State) maj dec Faris Karaborni, 15-5
Quarters: Jayden Bears (Missouri) maj dec Faris Karaborni, 12-4

285

Rylee Streifel (3-1, 2nd Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Bye
Champ Rnd 2: Rylee Streifel dec Christian Rebottaro (Michigan State), 9-2
Quarters: Rylee Streifel dec Jacob Aven (Purdue), 5-2
Semis: Rylee Streifel dec (TB-2) Carter Isley (Northern Iowa), 4-3
Finals: No. 6 Brooks Black (Illinois) dec Rylee Streifel, 6-1

Curious how long ago he took over that dumpster fire in Colorado ???

Have heard whispers that Richardson and Rodney will both explore their options for the NFL draft. Can't blame them for looking, but I don't think either leave early. Rodney isn't big enough for the NFL and should put some good weight on. Not sure their is much Richardson can improve on, but NFL scouts will downgrade him because of his height. IMO he needs to show more pass rush pressure to get noticed at the next level

wow is Bama good! After watching them today, I really can't see anyone coming within 2 scores of them in the playoffs. There DL is unreal, best OL in college football and the best bunch of RBs in college ball

THought is would be him or Taggert.

Link: Behind Enemy Lines: Vanderbilt

http://www.twincities.com/2016/05/16/gophers-tracy-claeys-sees-8-to-10-wins-in-2016/


And with a bowl game left....they COULD still get 9 wins. I'd say that is somewhat close...