Guys with Strange Names from California Beat Our Humble Midwestern Gophers
Sorry to post this right on top of Jan's Vikes recap, this certainly deserves lower billing than that.
Anyway, I DVR'ed Saturday's tilt with Cal. Figured BG would post some Sleeping with The Enemy anecdotes re: watching same, but alas.
- Cosgrove can make some lockeroom adjustments, no? Three games in a row now his defense has been picked on in the first half only to basically dominate the second. If he could just gameplan the first half the way he makes adjustments for the second, they'd be in business.
- Jahvid Best - did he get tackled more than five yards past the line of scrimmage once?
- Decker - unbelievable catch for the first TD. May be my favorite Gopher footballer since Chip Lohmiller (wait, did I say that out loud? Darrell Thompson!! I meant Darrell Thompson, I swear!). Probably won't be able to pass Ricky Foggie, but that's a high, high standard, considering Foggie singlehandedly beat #2 Michigan in Ann Arbor when we were 11 years old.
- Gratified that they hung in there and actually had a chance in a big game like that. Justifies Brewster taking the chance on playing big name programs. If they'd lost 49-3 with USC coming next year, I'd be worried, but he just showed any recruiting target out there that Minnesota's on the rise, we can play with anyone, and maybe you noticed our new stadium? This does not look like a team capable of losing 55-0 to Iowa anymore. They have the ability to compete with anyone.
- That said, that 3rd and 15 on Cal's drive to make it 28-21, you've got to make the stop. In my mind, that was the game. By the time Weber threw the pick, we weren't going to win, anyway, 'cause Cal had recovered their confidence by withstanding the storm in the 3rd quarter and scoring to go ahead again. We make that stop, though? Anything's possible.
- Need to win two of the next three (NW, Purdue, Wisco) before the brutal part of the schedule kicks in, and with the confidence they probably gained from competing against a Top 10 team, it's very doable.
- BG, your Who Needs It Most? Fan Allegiance Formula (TM) will be put to a severe test this week. Your other purple team just lost to the Greg Pauluses and if they drop one to the Gophs, it's probably a lost season.
7 Comments:
Guys - sorry for the lack of "behind enemy lines" updates from the Bay Area. I was out of town in the north woods from Friday through Sunday noon, so I was completely cut off from the real and digital world. People out here are touting the win over the Gophers as a "Big" win, as Cal usually rolls over on the road, especially when they travel East of the Rocky mountains. Lots of kudos on the stadium, the atmosphere and the fans from the bloggers and media types out here. I agree with MCA that the Gophers' comeback says a lot about the team. The Glen Mason gophers would have gone on to lose that game 42-7.
The BG Trademarked Who Needs It More Fan Allegiance Formula gets thrown out the window when my algorithm determines that both teams need it equally and my head might explode. In these cases, I go with the school where I received 2 degrees and spent way too much money. This is a must-win for both teams...and I think it'll be a close game. NU put up 34 points at Syracuse, but lost. MN put up 20 points (I think) and won. Both results could have easily been reversed, based on late turnovers. NU definitely has the easier schedule going forward (no OSU or Michigan), so a loss would be tough, but potentially not as crippling. The Gophers have a very tough schedule, so a loss here could start the annual tailspin (although I don't see it happening with this team).
Don't look now, but the Twins are only 2.5 games out. I'm just sayin'
Also, I will check in with updates from 49er-land later in the week.
September 22, 2009 at 1:36 PM
I only saw the final couple of plays live plus the highlights. You guys were right in your predictions about the Gophers hanging in there. They certainly gave a good showing against a top ten team. They have made huge strides from the Mason era. Under Mason Cal Poly would have been on the schedule instead of Cal.
Not only can Decker catch, he can take a shot. I am not sure if the highlight I saw was the TD MCA referred to or just a pass down at the goal line, but he got popped.
They could win the next 3. Anything less than 2-1 would be very disappointing.
Favorite Gophers:
1. Ricky Foogie for all the aforementioned reasons over the last week. I think he had a pretty long CFL career too.
2. DT. I think I have some extra lifesize posters left over from the Blake Spring Festival. Just send me $5 shipping and handeling and one can be yours.
3 4 way tie- Tyrone Carter, Ron Johnson, Marion Barber and Laurence Maroney. FOB ER had season tickets to the gophers in the 17th row on the visitors sidelines. For the 4 football seasons I was back in MPLS we went to nearly every game when these guys were the stars.
September 22, 2009 at 1:44 PM
I want to hear who BG is rooting for and why.
September 22, 2009 at 1:45 PM
When the algorithm is too close to call, I cheer for Northwestern. Too much money, memories, blood, sweat and tears associated with 6 years in Evanston. As a result, I will be pulling for the Wildcats this weekend. Should MN win, I won't be devastated, though, as it'll be a nice win for the Gophers. Call it the ultimate emotional hedge.
September 22, 2009 at 2:05 PM
While I am an idiot I am not as big of an idiot as I just made my self look asking for BG reasoning when it was clearly posted 9 mins before my post. I write between orders and when I started there were no other posts, so that is where I lay the blame. Also I spelled Foggie wrong, but if we get into all my grammatical errors we may need to start another blog.
September 22, 2009 at 2:50 PM
Moral victories are for losers and guys named Phil Mickleson. I'm tired of them.
We did hang in there against Cal and MCA was right, the 3rd and 15 was the momentum killer. However, why the F Weber doesn't throw that ball 10 rows into the stands instead of into traffic is beyond me. A brutal/game-changing mistake in it's own right.
Decker is tough. I may have said this before so I apologize in advance but in the Gopher locker room above every locker is a tribute: the players in the previous years with that number that are either All-Americans or well known will have their pictures and names above your locker. Above Decker's locker? Yeah, Decker himself.
RTS - what, you hate Chip Lohmiller?
Still, how sweet was it to watch another outdoor college football game in Minnesota!
September 22, 2009 at 8:34 PM
I disagree Jan,
While I understand that just hearing the phrase "moral victory" creates disdain in your mind as it takes you back to your childhood and memories of the annual "Peterson Decathlon", where your parents would pit you against your sister in a series of 10 physical and mental challenges, in this case, I believe the Gophers did acheive a moral victory against Cal on Saturday, and thus, it should be viewed as a positive step for the program.
One only has to look at the recent ineptitude against strong teams in the recent past to see why. The Gophers finally, finally, god bless it, finally have some athletes on their team. While Cal is perenially one of the fastest teams in the country- with the exception of Best, the Gophers did not look outclassed..and this is with an offense that doesn't have a RB who grades out better than a C.... and considering that, I think Weber played a very good game.
September 23, 2009 at 10:57 AM
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