Gopher Football Preview
7/9/2003 | | Consistent play from Asad Abdul-Khaliq will be one off the important factors in helping the Gophers move up in the Big Ten (photo courtesy of U of M athletics) |
Editor's note: This preview was written before the season began. Updates at the end of each section were written following the Gophers' win over Penn State in late September.
Offense
An offense with multiple threats at all the skill positions and a solid starting line should put up some points again this year.
Quarterback: Senior Asad Abdul-Khaliq of Elizabeth, New Jersey, has started most of the past three years. Coach Glen Mason says his performance this year will have a lot to do with how good the Gophers become. Abdul-Khaliq has been inconsistent, although played through an injury last year to lead the Gophers to an 8-5 record. Despite that, he threw for the second-most touchdowns and the sixth-most yards in school history in 2002 and is a running threat as well.
Junior Benji Kamrath of Mayville, Wisconsin, started one game last year and likely would step in if Abdul-Khaliq is injured. He's more of a traditional drop-back passer than the multi-talented Abdul-Khaliq.
Update: Abdul-Khaliq has thrown effectively but infrequently. Although running has carried the Gophers through the first month of the season, at some point Abdul-Khaliq's arm and leadership may still make or break this season.
Running Back: Riches aplenty sit in the Gopher backfield. Senior Thomas Tapeh of St. Paul, Minnesota, is a big, bruising blocker and short-yardage fullback, but is also capable of handling the ball many times, as evidenced by four 100-yard games in 2002. Junior Terry Jackson II of Saginaw, MI, ran for 1,319 yards last year, fifth-most in Gopher history. Sophomore Marion Barber III of Wayzata, Minnesota, ran for 742 yards and an average of better than six yards per carry in 2001. He redshirted due to injury last year.
Update: Freshman Laurence Maroney of St. Louis, Missouri, has emerged as a fourth running back and saw more and more time as the season went on. Jackson has been the odd man out so far, and it will be interesting to see if he stays at fourth on the depth chart after his breakout 2002 season.
Wide Receiver: Senior Aaron Hosack of Ontario, California, is a big target at 6-5 and can outleap defenders. He averaged more than 22 yards per catch and had a team-high 649 yards in 2002. Junior college transfer Paris Hamilton of Katy, Texas, a first-team junior college all-American in some publications, will complement Hosack with outstanding speed. Senior Tony Patterson of Belleville, IL, and junior Keith Matthews of Akron, Ohio, should compete for the third receiver spot, although coaches are also high on redshirt freshman Mark Jundt of Woodbury, Minnesota and sophomore Jakari Wallace of Lauderdale Lakes, Florida.
Update: Knee surgery ended Hamilton's season before it started, but sophomore Jared Ellerson of Copley, Ohio, has leaped all the way up to the other starting spot after showing a more serious and mature attitude to go along with his unquestionable talent.
Tight End: Senior Ben Utecht of Hastings, Minnesota, was arguably the best tight end in the Big Ten last year despite being hampered with injuries  | | Ben Utecht rumbles for a touchdown in the Music City Bowl (photo courtesy of U of M athletics) |
much of the season. He's a great pass-catching tight end who has improved his blocking. Redshirt freshman Matt Speath of Albertville, Minnesota, is a big blocking end listed second on the depth charts.
No changes in this area.
Offensive line: While the Gopher return only three regulars, they have tow others who slide neatly into place to form as strong a first-unit as they have had in Mason's tenure. Sophomore center Greg Eslinger of Bismark, North Dakota, and sophomore guard Mark Setterstrom of Northfield, Minnesota, surprised everyone by not only becoming starters last year as true freshmen, but by each landing on the Big Te;'s all-freshman team. Senior Joe Quinn of Downing, Wisconsin, is the veteran of the group, having started every game last year. Junior Rian Melander of Shoreview, Minnesota, took over the right tackle spot late last year and provides solid play there, while sophomore Mike Nicholson of River Falls, Wisconsin, moves from backing up several spots to his natural position at the opposite tackle. Behind them, however, the Gophers are thin on experience, with no other returnees having participated in more than 100 plays last year.
Update: This unit has been as good as advertised, clearing the way for an extremely effective rushing attack.
Defense
The defense played an inspired game in the Music City Bowl and will bring much more size and experience to the game this year.
Defensive Line:Starters like seniors Dan Kwapinski of Fort Ranson, North Dakota, and Paul Nixon of Columbus, Ohio; junior Darrell Reid of Farmingdale, New Jersey; and sophomore Mark Losli of Spring Lake Park, Minnesota; return to the defensive line. But they will not automatically be handed their jobs back. Sophomore Anthony Montgomery of Cleveland, Ohio, and Scott Stephenson of St. Paul, Minnesota, also started a game last year and rank highly on the depth chart. This will be a solid unit with both depth and size (Kwapinski is 6-5, 270; Losli is 6-6, 275; Stephenson is 6-3, 285, and Montgomery is 6-5, 315).
Update: Montgomery has become a mainstay in the middle of the defensive line, while Reid leads the team with three sacks.
Linebackers: Another unit with experience and depth: Senior Ben West of Appleton, Wisconsin, is a full-time starter returning. Sophomores Terrance Campbell of Atlanta, Georgia, and Kyle McKenzie of Detriot, Michigan, earned the other starting spots by the end of last year. Also returning is part-time starter Phil Archer, a senior from St. Paul, Minnesota. Adding to the depth are junior college transfer Brian Smith of Rancho Palos Verdes, California, and junior Dominque Sims of Minneapolis, who moves from safety. Both played with the first unit in the spring game. Redshirt freshman Pat McCarthy of Neenah, Wisconsin, may have worked himself into the mix as well with 11 tackles in the spring game.
Update: Campbell and West lead the team in tackles and have each recorded four tackles for loss. McKenzie is also playing well.
Secondary: Senior Eli Ward of Akron, Ohio, led the team in tackles last year  | | Glen Mason hopes ot lead the Gophers to their fourth bowl game in five seasons (photo courtesy of U of M athletics). |
and is the leading contender at free safety. Senior Justin Isom of Huber Heights, Ohio, started every game at strong safety last year. Junior Ukee Dozier of Bradenton, Florida, and sophomore Ken Williams of Oakwood Village, Ohio, started games at cornerback in 2002, but redshirt freshman Trumaine Banks of Columbus, Ohio, earned a starting spot over Dozier for the spring game. Other safety candidates include converted linebacker Justin Fraley, a junior from Cleveland, Ohio, and sophomore Quentin White of Gahanna, Ohio.
Update: Dozier reclaimed his starting spot in fall (with Banks taking the other spot) and has made the most of it, record four pass breakups and ranking just behind Ward in tackles. Fraley has emerged recently as part of the secondary rotation and had a key late-game interception against Penn State.
Special Teams: Mason says the specialists are still entirely undecided, other than long snapper Pete Prudden, a senior from Wayzata, Minnesota. Junior Ryan Duffy of Mequon, Wisconsin, has the first chance to earn the starting placekicker spot, but didn't do so in spring. The same goes for redshirt freshman punter Pete Ross of Owatonna, Minnesota. If the Gophers have an Achilles heel, it is at the kicking spots. Fortunately, the supporting special teams players bring experience, speed, and size.
Update: The biggest update of the season finds junior college transfer Rhys Lloyd doing both the kicking and punting. Lloyd, a Doveer, England, native lived in the Twin Cities suburbs and attended Rochester Technical College for a year before having his transfer eligibility cleared just days before the season opener. So far he has been perfect on both field goals (6-6) and PATs (25-25)
Coaches: Glen Mason returns for his seventh season and has led his team to a bowl game three of the last four years. His coaching staff is essentially the same except that Greg Hudson was elevated to defensive coordinator before the Music City Bowl and got the unit to respond beautifully. Moe Ankeny has been shifted to assistant head coach, while Tony Petersen and Mitch Browning remain offensive co-coordinators.
Schedule: The schedule looks favorable for piling up some wins and becoming bowl eligible again. While Ohio State drops off the slate, a visit to Penn State opens the Big Ten schedule. That game might be one of the key points in the season, as the four nonconference foes preceding it are not up to Big Ten standards. The Gophers have a favorable home schedule, but the Minnesota Twins' possible playoff games could create problems for the Michigan and Michigan State games in mid-October.
Update: So far so good. The 5-0 Gophers passed the Penn State test, but it is looking like almost every Big Ten game should be a test, with the possible exception of the November 1 Indiana game. Northwestern at Evanston looks ike an improved team and Michigan State and Iowa are in the Top 25, with Wisconsin knocking at the door. But Minnesota has risen to 21st in the AP and 16th in the ESPN polls, third best in the Big Ten behind only Ohio State and Michigan.
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