The second week of the 2024 Gopher football season brought the Rhode Island Rams to Huntington Bank Stadium, where they would be thoroughly stomped by a score of 48-0. Week one’s matchup with UNC saw only four players receive the hypothetical “Helmet Stickers” for their standout performances. Aside from the slow start in the loss, Minnesota responded strongly against the unranked FCS opponent and there were plenty of performances that led to the win and will receive their 1st or 2nd sticker on the young season.
In a perfect world, Rhode Island would have been the week 1 “warm-up” matchup before facing a Power-4 opponent in UNC, but that was not the case. Still, Minnesota came out and performed nearly perfect in a game where mistakes could have been had without changing the outcome. The Rams had 18 rushing yards on the day, forcing them into passing situations where neither of their two QBs could find any rhythm. Minnesota did not turn the ball over, forcing the Rams to need to string full drives together if they wanted to score. The tackling improved significantly from the UNC game, but it becomes quite a bit easier when it is not Omarion Hampton that you need to take down. The stellar defensive play was topped off by 4 turnovers, including a pick-six by Jack Henderson. As for the offense, it was the passing attack that led to the Gophers pouring on the points against the Ram’s D. Max Brosmer did not quite match the numbers he put up against them last year (430 yards and 2 TDs), but his 270 yards and highly efficient short-passing attack left fans with a lot of hope for the rest of the season. The concern for the offense was the O-Line not dominating the line of scrimmage and the running game not having the success it should have against this level of opponent. Darius Taylor returned and looked solid, but the lack of push left a lot on the table. Going forward the offense will need to continue to utilize the quick passing plays and running back checkdowns when the rushing attack is not effective, as they did against Rhode Island. All in all, the Gophers executed the game plan very well on both sides of the ball and showed what people were expecting going into the season.
Helmet Sticker Performances
For those of you who do not know what a Helmet Sticker is; it is the tradition of giving small decals to put on their helmet the week after a game for good individual plays or performances. Ohio State is most known for this practice, as their blank gray helmets are filled out continuously over the course of a season. Although Minnesota does not actually give out decals for good performances, I will just use it as a way to point out positive performances that happened during the course of a game. Just about every player that took the field in maroon and gold could point to something they did that would be deserving of a sticker, but since it was an unranked FCS school I will be a little more strict on whose performances really stood out.
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- I think it is safe to say when a team dominates the way Corey Hetherman’s group did last Saturday, it needed stellar play across all three levels. There were plenty of options, but let’s look at the specific plays that stood out.The Gopher D-Line lived in the backfield during this game, but namely Deven Eastern and Anthony Smith had their best games in a Gopher uniform. Eastern forced a huge strip-sack right before halftime that left the offense with a chance to close out the half with even more points. Besides this, the Defensive Tackle clogged up rushing holes all day, as again the Rams had only 18 yards on the day. With Eastern, Anthony Smith also had a great game. Smith forced over 7 QB pressures, with the big one being the play where he beat the Rams RT around the edge and forced pressure that led to a defensive touchdown. Jack Henderson, Aiden Gousby, and true freshman phenom Koi Perich all recorded interceptions during the game, but all with the help from the Gophers playing great on all three levels. As stated before, Anthony Smith’s pressure led to Henderson’s interception. Cody Lindenberg’s tip across the middle led to a fluttering ball landing right in Perich’s lap and Justin Walley’s tight coverage led to Gousby being able to rip the ball away at the last second. It was a complete effort put out by the Minnesota D and the scoreboard reflected that after the game.
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- The offense was able to build drives with an effective passing game that took what the defense gave them but also took shots when they were available. Max Brosmer was poised and looked significantly less nervous than his first game for Minnesota. He consistently hit his timing routes to perfection and went through progressions well, all the way down to RB or TE check-downs when nothing was available. He got nearly the entire wide receiver room involved, but it was Elijah Spencer who had a really solid game for the receivers. I only chose one receiver for this game to receive a coveted Helmet Sticker, as the room had such success across the board that no one player’s play stood out much amongst the rest. Le’Meke Brockington was nearly the choice after his great over-the-shoulder TD catch, but the dropped deep ball down the middle can’t happen. The rushing attack and offensive line play did not affect the outcome in this matchup but could be detrimental against future opponents, especially when they face much more talented D-Lines. They will have one more week against Nevada to tighten things up before taking on Iowa and Michigan, both of which have some of the best lines in the country.
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- No special teams players will be receiving any stickers this week. I have “BIG10 kicker of the year” level expectations for Dragan Kesich, and while it was great to see him get back on track, I would like to see perfection on the day. As for Mark Crawford, it is a win for the team when he stands on the sideline for nearly the whole game, as he can blame an effective offense for his lack of chances. Lastly, the return game, namely Koi Perich’s 28-yard return, sparked the smallest bit of light toward an effective return game, but not nearly enough to earn a sticker.
As I mentioned earlier, when it is such a group effort to dominate a team, really anyone’s performance is worthy of a helmet sticker. Therefore I leaned toward the players who made the big turnover or touchdown, while also having a great all-around game. Minnesota will have another chance next week at home against their last non-conference opponent, the Nevada Wolfpack.
Season Leaderboard
- Justin Walley (2)
- Ethan Robinson, Za’Quan Bryan, Marcus Major, Deven Eastern, Anthony Smith, Jack Henderson, Aiden Gousby, Koi Perich, Cody Lindenberg Max Brosmer, Elijah Spencer (All with 1)
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