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Rodent Bowl Pregame

By
angry
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240

Just one week away, it’s apt time to have the much anticipated Rodent Bowl pre-game thread.

Really this is an excuse to hear BeavGopher’s thoughts on the game. I know almost zero about Minnesota other than a few articles I read, saying they had a top 25 D last year but lost a handful of key players from the unit, good RB who is hurt and will likely miss this game, and that’s about all I know. The Beavers have an upgrade at QB, and the RB position should be much better this year. Those are the notable improvements.

The Beavs have some talent on D. Pritchard, Napolean (film), Willis, and Arnold stand out. The Landry brothers look really good on film, but haven’t heard much about them. Williams, Irvine, Ugwoegbu and other young guys stand out as interesting prospects. I expect growing pains with all these guys, but especially those younger players.

As for the game, this is what I think:

Lucas, Collins, and Nall are probably faster than any player on Minnesota. Big question for me is can Garrettson manage the game efficiently and get the playmakers the ball? If so, these guys are too fast…they will run by Minnesota (Big 10 is just always slow). Villamin has the size to dominate any CB in the Country. So, the combination of size and speed makes the offense intriguing here.

I’d pick the Beavs to win in a heartbeat if they had depth. But I can see them wearing down in the 2nd half. Minnesota game plan seems predictable: (a) on offense, try running all over the Beavs and (b) on defense box in/contain the Beav’s speed (c) use the home crowd to gang up on the young Beavers.

These teams are closer than people think, and barring a turnover barrage I don’t see what Vegas is thinking here. Watch for Seth Collins and the Beavers special teams return specialists to flip this game on its head. Speed kills.

Beavers 35, Minnesota 31

240 COMMENTS

  2. Coaching: Kill to Clayes.
    The obvious…….he is morbidly obese and needs to lose some serious weight.
    The not so obvious…. Clayes is an excellent coach. He was with Kill at every stop where they turned terrible teams into winners. The successes were predicated by the D that Clayes coordinated.
    The scheme that they have run will be familiar to Beav fans. The same basic one that Banker ran.
    A 4-3 base with wide splits with the DL trying to get upfield. Press coverage by the corners.
    The D last year took a step back due to injuries, but they still were outstanding at not giving up big plays. The Achilles heel was the lack of a pass rush. The talk this offseason was how to manufacture a pass rush. Probably will see some 3-4 on third downs. Clayes has a math degree and seems to be a pretty smart guy. His calling card has been making great halftime adjustments. You guys would like him as a DC. We will see how this translates as a HC.

    Reply

  4. Speed kills for sure, and the one more variable I don’t see mentioned often is that Garrettson is also mobile. That’s a lot of speed going in a lot of different directions. Versus a slow team, could make for a long day. Beavs win 45-24

    Reply

    • I’ll wholeheartedly agree IF Garrettson proves he can use his mobility to give his receivers time to get open AND hit them, plus scramble when needed. We’ve seen too many mobile young QBs rely on their legs to panic and run with their head down if their first option isn’t wide open.

      Reply

  5. Yanni D is gonna have a lot to do with the outcome in Mpls. Gina is up with her report on his progress (He’s starting to relax a little bit more)
    and her report on today’s practice (Gavin Andrews lining up as the second-team center after working almost exclusively at guard during camp as he continues to work his way back from injury. )

    If DG has to worry about corralling snaps this O could go south fast. OTOH, If Yanni does well snapping and commanding the O-line then the skill players will shine.

    BTW, I doubt the Gophers will score more than 28, don’t think they’ve got the big plays in them.

    Reply

    • Yanni already graduated from the U of M. Is he a grad transfer?

      In November 1972, Yanni moved from Greece to the United States to attend the University of Minnesota beginning in January 1973, majoring in psychology.[1] For a time he earned money by washing dishes at the student union.[34] Yanni later explained that learning English forced him to read each paragraph several times in what he called a slow and frustrating process, but which helped him memorize the material and do well on tests.[34] He received a B.A. degree in psychology in 1976.[14]
      During his time as a student, Yanni played in a local rock band and continued to study piano and other keyboard instruments.[1] Upon graduating, when he dedicated himself exclusively to music for one full year and found he was the happiest he had ever been, he said he decided music would be his life’s work.[34]

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  6. I’ve been checking out the comment sections from Minnesota fan blogs. They remind me a lot of the average Oregon State fan from sometime around maybe 2006. We had been bad to mediocre for years (referring to Riley & Co), we started to feel like things were going to turn around for us, but a lot of people were cautiously optimisitc and it was dependent on a few variable that had to fall our way. We had some good seasons back then, but couldn’t get over the hump and tumbled back down the hill.

    Minnesota sounds like they have a pretty decent QB that may get a shot at the NFL, decent to good O-line, mediocre running backs, mediocre to bad wide receivers, and a solid tight end.

    Their D-line doesn’t sound that good, particularly their defensive ends. Linebackers are okay, but their corners don’t have much experience.

    It’s kind of amusing that they are all writing this game off as a win for them. I didn’t see anyone put any thought into why they are going to be beat us, they just look at our record and the season from last year and write in the W. I remember when Beaver fans thought we had that luxury.

    Minn. is the team in danger in overlooking the opponent and trying to play conservatively.

    We have a lot of playmakers on offense.

    I think the Beavs put up at least 35. But for good measure to differentiate from Angry, I am going to say 42 – 20 good guys.

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  8. I, too, don’t know much about this year’s Minnesota team but historically, their offense has never stood out as weapon. They seem to be a more ‘grind it out’ type of team. This bodes well for OSU as they likely won’t get down 21-0 early, which would be very demoralizing to this young team. If they can win this, they’d gain some real confidence.

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    • Correct about the grind it out. Win special teams, control the clock, and play sound D was Kill’s method to climb out of the tar pit. Clayes seems to more inclined to take risks. The new OC has a good resume and anything will be an improvement over the last one.

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  9. Probeski might be out with a rolled ankle in practice. Next punter up has never punted in college game.
    Probeski also holds on FG.
    Special teams might be the difference in this match up ….

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  11. Special teams will be interesting on the Gopher side as well. The kicker for the last two years has become the punter. An interesting change as he was a very good FG kicker with a huge leg literally and figuratively. Kid is 6’6″ and weighs 250. Punted last year at the end of the Michigan game and shanked it.
    Cost us the game ultimately. Apprehensive about the switch. The new FG kicker looked good in the spring, but has never attempted one in a real game. Kicked a brutal onside kick against TCU.

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  14. I’m hoping for an epic buck-toothed battle but fear the Offensive and Defensive lines will do us in. If the OL can hold up we can put points on the board though, I do love the skill position talent this team has. Will also be interesting to see how the staff calls the game. Play calling and game management was all over the place last year so we’ll see if that was just an outlier given how shitty the available players were.

    28-24 Rodents

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    • I think it was an outlier based on the fact they were trying all season to figure out what worked, what didn’t work for the team and against what opponents. Also, based on the available players they had as well. Players make Plays means if you call a play, it should work perfectly every time, just depends upon if the defense picks the right play/players to defend the play that is being ran.

      This year I’m certain that DG will have complete command of the offense and as long as the OL can stay healthy all season will depict how we do this year.

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  15. I’m surprised so many of you expect such an offensive explosion in this game. I see it being something like 17-14 final score but can’t decide yet who wins. A website called oddsshark appears to aggregate the various betting lines sees it as 32-13 Minnesota.

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    • Agree, week 1 games usually have their fair share of teams struggling offensively, and neither of these teams are known for their smoothly operating offensive systems anyway.
      My guess is both teams stay down in the teens. Something like 17-14, and I think Minny pulls it out.

      Reply

  18. TIMBER!!!!

    Beavers are going to drop the Gophers in a 31 – 3 victory. You heard it here first!!! Can’t wait for game day!

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  19. Anybody here have the Big Ten Network on Comcast? I see that is it Channel 403, but how do I get it? Is it part of the “Sports Entertainment Package” or do I need to upgrade to Digital Premier?

    Reply

    • Several months back i read something along the lines of “west coast viewers are shit out of luck” unless you have an expensive cable package with Big10 network or you know some Ukranian friends with a bootleg link. In about 1 week, the fans will be bitching once they realize they wont be able to watch OSU in week 1.

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        • I’ve had people tell me the fire stick is worth checking out. Do you think $60 for one preloaded with Kodi is a good deal? Is there any risk involved?

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      • I’ll be getting it on Dish, which has the big 10 package (as well as Pac 12, SEC). Consider it. I finally left Direct because they wouldn’t provide PAC 12.

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  21. Head coach Gary Andersen on @750TheGame at 2 p.m. today and @1080TheFAN at 3:35 p.m. Get the latest pre the season opener Thursday. #GoBeavs

    Reply

  22. Any thoughts on Andersen cancelling practice today?
    Does it indicate:
    1) confidence in how “tough” these guys are?
    2) lack of confidence in how “tough” these guys are?
    3) recognition of the expected hot temps?
    4) acknowledgement of mental fatigue on the squad?
    5) Or ???

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  23. Gopher O-line:
    Last year was a parade of injuries that revealed a lack of depth and the failings of the 2014 recruiting class. Basically two local kids that seemed locks to sign here ended up getting poached by Bama and Arkansas. They will be the the starting centers at both schools this year. Only one good player from that class. What was supposed to be the strength of the team last season ended up being a weakness, with lineups cobbled together week to week. Four upperclassmen medically retired after the season, so they dipped into the JC ranks to plug some gaps.

    RT: Jonah Pirsig: 6’9″ 325 RS Senior. National recruit from a small town south of Minneapolis.
    Best lineman who is pretty athletic. Huge kid. Elementary Ed major!
    RG: Vincent Calhoun: 6’4″ 330 JC Jr. Here for spring ball and looked good.
    C: Tyler Moore: 6’4″ Soph. Thrown into the fire last year due to injuries. Played pretty well. Texas kid LG: Conner Mayes: 6’5″ 330 Jr. Another Texas kid. Older brother was one of the medical retirements.
    LT: Garrison Wright: 6’4″ 320 JC Jr. Was here for spring ball. Recruited for a guard spot, but they felt he
    had the foot speed to play LT. We shall see. HS tennis player.
    New OL coach is a former Wisky coach who has preached a more aggressive style. They changed their training and lifting regimens to implement his approach. Depth is still an issue, but this should be a pretty good starting group. The run blocking should be very good.

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  26. Gopher WR’s………the Achilles heel.
    This has been the major fail in the Kill/ Claeys era. WR group has not been developed.
    Three years ago they brought in a group that on paper seemed to be pretty impressive. Big and pretty fast. Look good running out the tunnel. Absolutely no production from the group so far.
    One transferred, one is now a backup DE(sound familiar), one can’t put on his socks without injuring himself, and the other has hands like a pinball flipper. They have been passed by a couple true freshmen. Probable starters.
    Drew Wolitarsky: 6’3″ Sr. Set Cal prep receiving records. Not very fast. Claim to fame, drops passes at critical moments, including the potential game winner in our bowl game two years ago. Brilliant former OC would run him on fly sweeps! The slowest guy on the offense.
    Rashard Still: 6’5″ Soph. This is the one guy that has the potential for big plays. Texas kid they found playing B ball. String bean that has bulked up to over 200 lbs.
    Eric Carter: 5’11” RS Jr. Had some good moments last year. Florida kid with decent wheels. Not on the initial depth chart so might be injured.
    They have been really praising a true freshman who was a one man team at QB for one of the city schools and a high level B-ball player on the AAU circuit. Tyler Johnson.6’2″. Gophers Seth?

    Beav’s have a huge advantage here until proven otherwise. Part of the ineptitude with the passing game was play calling related with telegraphed position groupings. Anxious to see how the new guy calls a game.

    Reply

    • It seems to me that the plan would be to run it until OSU showed that they could stop the run. Then, if I were the coach, I’d run it some more.

      Grind it out. Beat ’em up and wear them out. This is probably one contest where the Gophers won’t need a passing game.

      Reply

      • Yeah it sounds like MN’s one huge advantage is their Oline vs our Dline.

        Will that negate our speed advantage? Probably…the more I think about it….

        Take a LB like Bright…he is fast but so tiny. He will get destroyed by a large OL

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      • The offense must be able to sustain drives if for no other reason than to give the DL guys a break. Sounds like they’ll be running over the right side until the Beavs adjust, then run over the left side.

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  27. Read Phil Steele’s preview today. Says OSU only averaged around 19.4 pts a game last year. Lowest since Riley’s 97 team in his first year. Riley’s 2007 team averaged 34.8 pts and that went down to 26.2 pts in his final year. Steele thinks this year’s OSU squad would beat last year’s OSU squad by atleast 10 points a game on average. He believes they are good to average an additional 7 pts a game higher this year to be right around Riley’s last year in the 26 pts a game area. He thinks Garretson is a much more natural QB who should be much more capable of finding his targets assuming he is OK at alluding pressure. Also believes the rushing attack will be better this year. In general, he thinks they are good for 1-2 surprise efforts & 3-4 wins. He seemed to believe it just slightly more likely for OSU to achieve 4 wins but stated almost certainly short of a bowl.

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    • McGiven as OC over Baldwin alone is worth 5 extra points a game in my opinion. Most of the remaining two points would be most heavily weighted to Garretson and a better passing game.

      Players will make the plays but McGiven will put them in better positions. Some Nall Ball, interlaced with Collins, Bolden, Lucas, Villamin, Pierce & Cook sounds like it has some attack potential if managed well by Garretson & McGiven.

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  28. Pac-12 signed a deal with Fox Sports Australia to air Football and Basketball games. A good step for the Pac-12 Network. Should slowly keep increasing our leverage with DirecTv. If China starts to show a wide offering of Men’s Basketball, U couls see that making it seem almost unAmerican if DirecTv did not do the same. Especially as those bastards are based out of Los Angeles. They should be supporting their West Coast brethren and be better members of the community and this great region.

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    • Nothing official, but he just seems completely distracted by lady problems more than anything. And the reason for his absence was supossedly 1 credit that was needed for NCAA clearance.

      “It just doesn’t add up” -Vernon Adams

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  31. If the VFC roof was painted white would that cause a glare problem? Oh wait, in order to have glare you have to have sunshine. Never mind.

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  33. Last year at Michigan we quickly scored our td. Often times last year, the first scripted drive looked great, way above the rest of the game. I’m hoping to see us get the ball first and to score on that first possession. Set a nice tone to start. And then hopefully this season, the remaining possessions can look as productive as first possessions did last year. Get on top early and make Minney mouse panic and see if they try to catch up by getting away from their ground game, which would, make for more futility.

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  37. NFL.com seems to think that Minnesota has speed.
    http://www.nfl.com/photoessays/0ap3000000671265
    And Myrick isn’t the only speedster on that defense, the others are just younger speedsters. TCU, tOSU, and a host of other acclaimed passing teams have had their season lows passing against a Claeys and Sawvel’s defense. But it is a new year, and the first games are always a miscue-fest. In my opinion, this will either be a low scoring affair, or the Gophers will roll. But it’s preseason – and I’m in full homer mode, ha ha.

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    • Not so much. Not really a recognizable 10.1 100m. His 200m doesn’t back that up and further Notice his hs school records include a mere 18’9″ long jump not performed by him. Not much of an athlete if he couldn’t beat that. I bet we’ve got 4-5 guys that will blaze past him. Big stretch in this one.

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          • That article doesn’t do a whole lot for YourRick. My perception of a lack of general athleticism concept still remains engaged, mind you I’ve never seen any film on him. I’m more impressed with coach sawyer(?).

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          • Yeah, I like Sawvel. Great secondary coach. We’ll see how our plodders deal with your elite speed. =-) In all seriousness, Thursday will be a good test for both teams. I might occasionally talk smack, but I do hope my posts don’t come off too much like a troll. Here’s hoping for no injuries and a good game!

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          • Myrick has played a lot, so he is rock solid at one CB.
            We lost two great corners and a very good safety from last year. The most important player, Damarious Travis, was injured at the very end of the opener last year against TCU and missed the rest of the season. He has NFL size, 6’2, 215, and was used as a hybrid safety/ lb. Fl kid who is also a great special teams player. Getting him back is huge.
            The other safety will hopefully be a JC kid, Ace Rodgers, who missed most of last season with injury.
            His replacement was the weak point of the secondary and is now listed as the starter. Former walk on. The other CB’s will be Freshmen or RS Freshmen. Typically they play press coverage, but have hinted they may back off that till these guys get some game experience.

            Jay Sawvel is a great secondary coach and talent evaluator. He has had kids drafted three years in a row and Travis and Myrick should make it four years running. He has found very good athletes and coached em up. It has gotten to the point where no matter how a recruit is rated, if Sawvel wants him, we assume he will be a very good player. Hopefully GA has a guy like this on staff.
            The biggest secondary guestion is actually getting a pass rush from the edge.

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      • You can dismiss his speed and the Gophers speed as much as you like. Feel free to believe that the Beavers have better WRs and a better QB than TCU, Ohio State, and Michigan etc. We’ll see what the stats say come Thursday night. =-)

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  41. Another Gazette piece, this time on facilities expansion and how our projects compare to the money being spent by other programs. What really stands out is just how much money everybody is spending. (Except Stanford, go figure)
    It almost feels like all of these stadium upgrades at other schools are going to force OSU to renovate the west side sooner than later, and we just dont have the funds for that type of construction. It was hard enough to scratch together money for VTV. The west side project would need to be much more expensive (if done right) and how do yoy convince our tapped out donors it would be wise to keep the money flowing?

    http://m.gazettetimes.com/news/local/osu-part-of-pac–arms-race/article_88109f5f-e446-5809-aa02-7fa0a4c6a7bf.html

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  42. Andersen debuts pre-season Coaches Hotseat Poll at #15. Predecessor Mike Riley slightly ahead at #10. Remarkably Helfrich didn’t make the list of 25. Civil War win probably saved him?

    Too bad this poll wasn’t around when I was in the biz… would have been my only shot at #1. JB

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  44. For those coming out for the Rodent Bowl, a couple of suggestions.
    Try to be in the stadium 20 minutes before kickoff for the band’s pregame. It is the same routine that has been done since 1961 and you can hear our excellent school songs. B1G is big on traditions.
    They are having NFL style security, so that usually means heading in 40 minutes prior to kickoff.
    That gives time to hit the bathroom, grab a beer, get to your seats to take in the pregame.
    After the game, if you are driving, do not even think of getting in your car for an hour unless you like setting in traffic. Yes…beer is sold in all the concessions. Sales are cut off at the end of the third quarter. You cannot leave the stadium and come back in, unlike Reser. They are also having fireworks at halftime.Weather looks perfect. Go Rodents!

    Reply

    • He has stated before that he will attend both games. In Minneapolis he will be a Beaver fan, decked out in Orange and will act like he knows nothing about Minnesota. And then next year in Corvallis he will do the opposite. Sounds like an awesome strategy and I hope he sticks to it.

      Reply

        • Will be a good experiment to see if Beaver fans are as bad as some other fan bases like to claim. I’d be curious to hear from you after to see your opinion.

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          • It will be interesting. I can’t wait to try out the “you must have been really upset when Nebraska hired Mike Riley” and see the response I get.

            FWIW, the Gopher fan base is for the most part pretty good. We have vast experience in being good losers LOL. The overwhelming majority are alums, as the casual football fans flock to the Vikings.
            Everybody hates the ducks, so a good point of agreement with the fan bases. We appreciate gracious winners. Profess a dislike for Wisconsin and you are in like Flint.

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          • Yup. We have four season tickets at TCF. I had our guests for the game go buy an orange $4 Minnesota t shirt from Walgreens, so they will be decked out in the proper color.

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          • @ gopher: Wait a minute….. If you have season tickets then that must mean the folks around you more than likely recognize you as being a gopher fan. So I’m left wondering if this is a very good test of fan civility.

            Now as for the folks who are setting several rows away from your seats……….

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          • Last year they did a seating reshuffle and the seat neighbors that we had sat next to since the stadium opened gave up their seats. All new folks around us and I don’t think it was the same people for any of the games. So nobody will know my secret identity.

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  45. Don’t miss the Swedish Meatballs from the JAX Cafe concession in the open end of the stadium. To die for. Maybe even to kill for.

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  48. Is it Thursday yet? lol I’m rearing to get going! I just want the staff to be more fluid this season and the players to play all 4 quarters with some form of consistency(Good of course). I sense that with a stronger team as a whole, we’ll actually be able to get a push up front on both sides of the ball. WR’s should be able to sustain their blocks.

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  49. I don’t think anyone including the players have a good read on the team. This game will show a lot of what the season will become.

    Can the Beavs come out firing early? Huge confidence boost if they can move the ball on offense. Certainly have playmakers, now can Garretson get them the ball?

    Will the defense hold? They aren’t going to be good but they’ll need to hold on and not break.

    A hard fought win would be the best outcome in my opinion. Shows them they still have work to do but also shows them that if they play hard for 60 minutes, they’ll be in the game at the end. A blowout either way won’t help at all.

    All that said, opening on the road, I don’t see them pulling this one out.

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  52. Gina just tweeted that she spoke with Harlow who said it is, “pretty official” that he will redshirt.
    Just confirms what was expected.

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  55. Injury report is up, Hopkins, Porebsky, and D. Williams all questionable.
    I note that Hopkins is set to back up Blake Brandel at LT.
    If Porebsky can’t go then young Timmy Hernandez will be holding.
    Williams was set to start.
    Psychology or Luck ‘o da Beavs?

    https://twitter.com/ginamizell

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  57. For the folks at the game, check out the U of M Dance Line. They have won the National Championship at the collegiate competition seven years in a row and sixteen times overall.
    They are really quite awesome. If only our football team was half as good.

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  58. Eggers tweets, “OSU LB Bright Ugwoegbu, on pressuring Gopher Mitch Leidner: “We’re vicious. We’re relentless. We’re going to get at the QB at all costs.””

    Can ya spell bulletin board??

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    • Last I saw Bright he was a toothpick getting engulfed by mediocre o-lines. Beavers talked like this last year, too. GA is building their confidence up and telling them they’re this and that, and they believe it, which is good on one level, but go do it first. Talk is cheap and also good fodder as you mention. Bright wins this week’s award for most inappropriately named player.

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      • And yet, GA consistently emphasizes the need to prove it on the field, saying that talk at this point is just “lip smacking”. On one radio program recently he was told that Garrison was talking of 8 wins and responded that Garrison needs to think about ONE win, this week. Said he’d be talking with Garrison about that remark.

        Kids, it’s a balancing act.

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        • GA also said he hates these P5 OOC games!
          Maybe if people watched/listen to him say it, they’d believe it, since they just want to argue with me.

          Garrettson is a cool cat and seems confident. I don’t have an issue with a general statement like they’ll win 8 games. Something specific like getting to the MN QB the week of gameday is much worse.

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    • Meh, I think you need to talk down to other players for effective bulletin board material. Although saying you’re going to get the QB at all costs might piss the OLine off a bit.

      Worse would have been, “we’re going to dominate them up front and get to the QB all day”

      Just my 2¢

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  60. Depth Chart Starter Analysis (both teams released their charts for this game):
    I also added in information about what every first string listed player did last year:

    OREGON STATE
    QB Darrell Garretson – Trans LY.
    TB Ryan Nall – 2 st, 455 (6.2) LY.
    WR Jordan Villamin – 12 st, 660 (15.3) LY.
    WR Trevon Bradford – In for spring.
    WR Seth Collins – F/7 st QB, 936 (52%, 6-4), 580 rush (5.4) LY.
    TE Tuli Wily-Matagi
    C Yanni Demogerontas
    RG Gavin Andrews – MedRS LY.
    LG Fred Lauina – 10 sts LY.
    RT Dustin Stanton – 12 sts LY.
    LT Blake Brandel

    DE Baker Pritchard – 6 st, 30 tkl, 1.5 sk LY.
    NT Elu Aydon
    DE Kalani Vakameilalo – 1 st, 10 tkl, 3 tfl LY.
    BLB Titus Failauga – 6 st, 29 tkl, 1 sk, 2 tfl LY.
    MLB Caleb Saulo – 9 st, 69 tkl, 2 qbh LY.
    WLB Manase Hungalu – 4 st, 43 tkl, 2.5 tfl LY.
    NB Bright Ugwoegbu – 2 st, 17 tkl, 2 tfl LY.
    CB Treston Decoud – 9 st, 50 tkl, 4.5 tfl, 5 pbu LY.
    CB Dwayne Williams – 3 st, 17 tkl, 2.5 tfl, 2 pbu LY.
    SS Devin Chappell – 8 st, 43 tkl, 3 tfl LY.
    FS Brandon Arnold – 3 st, 36 tkl LY.

    K Garrett Owens – 11-15 fg’s, L/50, 23-23 PAT, 7 TB/46 KO LY.
    P Nick Porebski – 12 st, 72 punts, L/66 (41.1), 26 In20, HM P12 LY.
    KR Victor Bolden – 580 KR (25.2) LY.
    PR Victor Bolden – 78 PR (78.0), 1 TD LY.

    MINNESOTA

    QB Mitch Leidner – 13 st, 2701 (60%, 14-11), 270 rush (2.5) LY.
    TB Rodney Smith – 7 st, 670 (4.3) LY.
    WR Brian Smith
    WR Rashad Still – 12 gm, 194 (10.8) as true.
    WR Drew Wolitarsky – L/6 st, 524 (13.4) LY.
    TE Nate Wozniak – 12 st, 13 gm, 75 (9.4) LY.
    C Tyler Moore – L/8 st as true.
    RG Vincent Calhoun – In for spring.
    LG Connor Mayes – F/9 st at RG LY.
    RT Jonah Pirsig – 13 st (9RT, 4LT) LY.
    LT Garrison Wright – 1st Tm All-Conf JC LY. In for spring.

    DE Gaelin Elmore – 2 st, 12 tkl, 3.5 tfl LY.
    DT Andrew Stelter – 7 st, 26 tkl LY.
    DT Scott Epke – 5 st, 15 tkl, 2 tfl LY.
    DE Hendrick Ekpe – F/11 st, 11 tkl, 2.5 sk LY.
    OLB Jonathan Celestin – 3 st, 43 tkl, 4 tfl LY.
    MLB Cody Poock – 8 st, 99 tkl, 5.5 tfl LY.
    OLB Jack Lynn – 10 st, 76 tkl, 11 tfl LY.
    CB Ray Buford
    CB Jalen Myrick – 7 st, 27 tkl, 3.5 tfl, 3 pbu, 3 int LY.
    S Damarius Travis – 1 st, 10 tkl, MedRS OFY LY.
    S Adekunle Ayinde – 11 st, 43 tkl, 2.5 tfl, 5 pbu LY.

    K Emmit Carpenter
    P Ryan Santoso – 1 punt (29 yds), 27 TB/59 KO LY.
    KR Jalen Myrick 257 KR (21.4) LY.
    PR Jalen Myrick – Tm 3.5 avg LY.

    Reply

  61. Anybody else hear GAs comments about Jaylyn Bailey? Wonder how much he will be used and how? GA kinda lumped him in with the running backs….

    Reply

    • Watch ESPN/App are the online streaming options for ESPN’s multiple channels. Most of the time you need a login/password from your cable or sattelite account to view it. Occasionally certain ESPN streams are free. (My guess is this one will require a login)
      Go to ESPN360.COM to familiarize yourself with the computer version. If you want to use your smartphone, load the “WatchESPN” app.

      The good news is, you dont need the Big10 network it sounds like. Just a tv package that includes ESPN should get you online streaming of this game

      Reply

      • Thanks, I thought that was what Gina was talking about. Still, the listings for the multiple ESPN channels don’t show the Rodent Bowl at all.
        May have to wait till game time, my login has worked in the past for ESPN but not ESPN-U or III.

        Reply

        • Now Gina has backtracked and says it’s only on the Big10 network as well as the Big10 app/website.

          ESPN is not going to help you. Lots of Beaver fans are going to be pissed come game day, when they can’t find the game. (Which is why i ordered that amazon fire stick somebody else recomended. It sounds like the way to go for live sports)

          Reply

  65. This game is a loss for the beavers, unfortunately. Minnesota has a better quarterback, better defense, home field advantage. Beavers have too many questions on defense. Beavers have an intriguing offense, but it is not realistic to expect it to outscore a p5 school with a vetearn qb on the road early in the season.

    31-21 gophers

    Reply

  66. PHIL STEELE INSIDE THE PRESSBOX PREVIEW:

    The last meeting between these schls was in ’81. OSU hasn’t fared well when
    traveling to B10 country as the last 2 gms they’ve ply’d have resulted in losses
    by 28 & 35 pts, but HC Anderson was 2-0 vs MN while at UW. MN HC Claeys
    believes this is the best Gopher tm since he arrived on campus 6Y ago. This is
    an improved OSU team that will have a new QB under center in Darell
    Garretson, who st’d 11 gms for Utah St. While MN has a slight edge on OFF,
    they have a significant edge on D & are playing at home. I’ll follow my
    computers lead and call for the Gophers to win by 2 td’s.

    MINNESOTA 35 OREGON STATE 21

    PROJECTED BOX SCORE

    OREGON STATE
    Projected Rushing Yards: 153
    Projected Passing Yards: 172
    Projected Yardage Total: 325
    Projected Final Score: 22
    Experience Rankings: 75
    Team Schedule Strength: 20

    MINNESOTA
    Projected Rushing Yards: 247
    Projected Passing Yards: 240
    Projected Yardage Total: 488
    Projected Final Score: 35
    Experience Rankings: 76
    Team Schedule Strength: 23

    POSITION BY POSITION EDGES:

    WHEN OREGON STATE HAS THE BALL:
    Oregon State QB/WR vs Minnesota DB’s: ORST +0.46
    Oregon State RB’s vs Minnesota LB’s: MINN +0.44
    Oregon State OL vs Minnesota DL: MINN +0.17

    WHEN MINNESOTA HAS THE BALL:
    Oregon State DL vs Minnesota OL: MINN +1.22
    Oregon State LB’s vs Minnesota RB’s: MINN +0.79
    Oregon State DB’s vs Minnesota QB/WR: MINN +1.18

    MISCELLANEOUS:
    Special Teams: MINN +0.10
    Kicking: ORST +0.04
    Coaches: ORST +0.50

    Oregon State Total: 1.00
    Minnesota Total: 3.90
    Positional Edge Awared To Minnesota by 2.90 Points.

    Overall National Ranking Comparison:

    OREGON STATE:
    Offense: 105
    Defense: 115
    Special Teams: 44

    MINNESOTA:
    Offense: 78
    Defense: 65
    Special Teams: 41

    Reply

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