Behind Enemy Lines - Minnesota Edition

P.J. Fleck and the Minnesota football team sit at 2-1 on the season and more importantly, they still possess Floyd of Rosedale after beating Iowa last season in Iowa City. The game moves to Minneapolis this Saturday for the continuation of the series. We go Behind Enemy Lines with Daniel House from GopherGuru.com to get the latest on the Minnesota football team.

Q: What are your general thoughts on Minnesota so far this season?

HOUSE: They have brought in transfer quarterback Max Brosmer. After their first game they really tried to add in quick game passing concepts that seemed to fit him better. He found zone windows and it really started to keep the offense on schedule.

If you look at the first game against North Carolina, they threw out a lot of exotic packages and blitzes and the Gophers didn’t respond well to it. But, in the second game they responded to it in the second game and really use their pass game as an extension of the run game and they are now on schedule more on offense.

Defensively, Corey Heatherman has taken over as coordinator, it’s a lot of the same as far as what they do, but it’s a bit more multiple in their defensive packages. They now have six defensive backs on the field a lot and change up who is out there. On the defensive line they are moving guys in and out. P.J. Fleck has preached being multiple on defense and three games in they have done just that.

Q: Running Darius Taylor didn’t play in the opener. He obviously makes a huge impact when he is out there.

HOUSE: He does make a huge difference. Not just as a rusher, but as a receiver. He was a receiver at the high school so he has that in his background. He has caught at good amount of check downs this year and that has allowed them to be better on first and second down.

Last week Nevada was loading up in the box and Minnesota kept chipping away and adjusted. Eventually, Taylor pops off an 80 yard touchdown run and breaking a few tackles along the way. I think he’s really become a complete back.

Q: Tell us more about Brosmer at quarterback and his development and then his main targets in the passing game, Daniel Jackson and Elijah Spencer.

HOUSE: Brosmer was an early portal target for Minnesota. Processing is a huge deal for him and he has done well on that area. He is accurate and good at processing. He’s done well at reading his progressions and then checking down to take what is there for him in the passing game. He is good at finding the soft spots in the zones and Spencer has been good finding the open spots and sitting down in those areas. Jackson has been someone who they move around to get the right matchup on him. They have been using much more pre-snap motion this year. Tight end Jameson Geers has been a little more involved in the passing game. He is a big target that can make a play so keep an eye on him. Le’Meke Brockington is a wide receiver with good blocking skills and they use him in those situations.

Q: Talking to some of the Iowa players they commented on the aggressive nature of the Minnesota defense. They have given up nine points this year. The other number that jumps out is seven interceptions in three games. What have they done with the defense?

HOUSE: A lot of it is the same, but they have been more aggressive with pressure. Jack Henderson has been a really key player so far this season. He’s a transfer from SE Louisiana. He has linebacker size and the skills of a defensive back, but they have been able to use him in coverage and as a blitzer.

The other thing that they have been doing is using creeper type pressure where they drop a rusher to get another level of defender. Last week the game play was to try to keep their opposing quarterback from scrambling and running with the football. They did well with that. There is more pressure for sure, but each week it seems to be different. One week it might be nickel pressure and then the next week its creeper type pressure. In those situation it looked like a blitz, but they are really just exchanging a defender and still rushing four.

Q: I kind of expect this one to be sort of a low scoring rock fight. Last few years have been like that. It could come down to a field position game with the punters being key or a late field goal.  How is Minnesota in those areas?

HOUSE: They have a veteran special teams group. Mark Crawford is at punter and he is someone who I think has gotten better every single year. He has been good at directional and coffin type punting in his career. They are pretty strategic about what they do in the punt game.

You mentioned Dragan Kesich. He missed the game winning field goal against North Carolina. The next week he has bounced back, but he still missed a couple more kicks this year. I think part of that is due to a new long snapper and adjusting to it. They have a freshman now and they are working through that situation.

Q: What are a couple of keys if Minnesota is going to get a win on Saturday?

HOUSE: I really pinpointed stopping the run game of Iowa. Kaleb Johnson has been so impressive. He is smooth and has great contact balance and he is breaking tackle this year.  I love their stretch zone and he finds cutback lanes. The game comes down to can they play the run at a high level?  In week one the tackling wasn’t up to standard. Can they improve that?

Then I think early down efficiency is going to be very important. This team is not as effective when they are climbing up hill on second or third and long. The line of scrimmage it the x factor in this game. The Minnesota offensive line is still navigating through some things on the right side at guard and tackle. They have struggled at times against stunts and twists up front from other teams on defense and they are going to have to communicate better. I think Iowa will throw some things at them to challenge their protections. I am impressed with Iowa’s defensive line. I think they have a lot of interchangeable skill sets up front.

Q: Do you have a prediction as to where Floyd of Rosedale will be headed later on Saturday night?

HOUSE: I think it will be a very close game, but I think Iowa’s defensive line could be the difference in this one. I could see it being 50/50 where turnovers will be a factor.