| I don't think anybody thought Colorado or Michigan State were good wins, even at the time, but they were still blowout wins, on the road, against Power 5 teams. So we were ready to buy in to Rowing the Boat. Wisconsin and Iowa were down. Northwestern wasn't having a random Northwestern year. The Gophers dodged Michigan and Ohio State. They had a 6th year starting quarterback. Arguably the best running back in the conference decided to return to college, rather than go pro. If Minnesota was ever going to win the West, this was going to be the year. I guess they are never going to win the West. At this point failing to reach bowl eligibility is more realistic than winning the division. That's not going to happen...I don't think. They still have home games against Rutgers and Northwestern. But it's not ideal. The running game has to get going. Tanner Morgan, unless he's facing the Michigan State secondary, has zero prayer without a run game, and the run game has been largely absent. That, mroe than Morgan's injury was the problem against Penn State. Mo Ibrahim was held to 3.4 ypc, on 30 carries. Yes, Ohio State ran all over Rutgers, but the Scarlet Knights have otherwise been pretty stout against the run. They held Iowa to 3.4 ypc, Nebraska to 2.5 ypc, and Indiana to 3.3 ypc. Over those past two games combined, the longest carry they've allowed is 10 yards. But Rutgers' offense is still not doing anything either. The return of Noah Vedral hasn't helped anything. He actually has career lows (and it's a six year career) in passer rating and completion percentage. I don't think this will be fun for anyone, Minnesota fans, Rutgers fans(?), or any casual observer who accidentally turns on BTN, and then loses their remote. But as disappointing as this month has been for the Gophers, all three losses are understandable. The teams they should handle easily, they have. |