Maryland, with a mediocre team plus a rookie QB, looks way more formidable than the gophers. (Based upon watching the BTN 60-minute replays that I love, of Minnesota vs bottom-dweller Purdue. Hell. If you put them on record you FF through breaks and get done even faster.)
On O, Minnie’s QB is immobile, and a barely average passer. Most of their borderline chunk plays result from 10-ish yard completions against the zone. Maybe Purdue has superior DBs, but against man Minnie sucked. Lots of play action. Their #1, the RB, is good catching short throws out of the backfield. And is a decent runner. But their OL on both runs and passes looks almost as bad as ours.
The D? Mediocre throughout. #17 has some ints, so that’s worth keeping in mind. No standouts in any other phase of the game. Fwiw, Purdue’s somewhat mobile QB gave them headaches. Against us that shouldn’t be a concern.
On STs, their Ausie style punter does not look terribly adept at anything. I’m betting Ekeler has something dialed up for him. Kicker made kicks he should make.
Imho, this is another game we should dominate. Kinda what I thought going into Cinci and Maryland. No. 21 should have another huge game. DR should too—as long as Minnie DBs are not catching his passes.
We SHOULD win this one going away. So, obviously, it’ll likely go down to the wire.
On O, Minnie’s QB is immobile, and a barely average passer. Most of their borderline chunk plays result from 10-ish yard completions against the zone. Maybe Purdue has superior DBs, but against man Minnie sucked. Lots of play action. Their #1, the RB, is good catching short throws out of the backfield. And is a decent runner. But their OL on both runs and passes looks almost as bad as ours.
The D? Mediocre throughout. #17 has some ints, so that’s worth keeping in mind. No standouts in any other phase of the game. Fwiw, Purdue’s somewhat mobile QB gave them headaches. Against us that shouldn’t be a concern.
On STs, their Ausie style punter does not look terribly adept at anything. I’m betting Ekeler has something dialed up for him. Kicker made kicks he should make.
Imho, this is another game we should dominate. Kinda what I thought going into Cinci and Maryland. No. 21 should have another huge game. DR should too—as long as Minnie DBs are not catching his passes.
We SHOULD win this one going away. So, obviously, it’ll likely go down to the wire.