FILM STUDY: WHO WILL MAKE PLAYS IN THE MINNESOTA PASSING GAME?
After dropping a tough opening-season matchup against No. 2 TCU, Minnesota ripped off three straight wins to enter Big Ten play with a 3-1 record. Now losers of three of their last four games and in the middle of a three-game stretch that will see the 4-4 Gophers play three consecutive games against top-25 teams, the unit desperately needs a win to keep their bowl eligibility hopes alive.
In spite of an inspired performance one week ago in honor of former head coach Jerry Kill, who resigned in the days prior to the game due to health issues, the Gophers ultimately lost to Michigan 29-26 when they failed to punch the ball in from the 18-inch line.
But as the Gophers now face the nation’s second-ranked pass defense in Ohio State, interim head coach Tracy Claeys must remain true to the squad’s offensive identity: a hybrid pro-style/spread offense designed to grind out yards on the ground while scheming open wide receivers and tight ends through play-action.
Even before the loss of star tight end Maxx Williams to the NFL, the Gopher offense has slowly evolved into a unit that runs spread concepts out of smash mouth football formations. Much like Penn State, the Minnesota offensive unit has married traditional pro-style alignments with progressive concepts like the zone blocking scheme (ZBS), Bubble/Now screens, and wide receiver jet motion. The Gophers will huddle and take the snap from under center one play, then move to a no-huddle, check–with-me pace the very next.
They often run their offense out of a variety of pro and spread formations throughout the game, rotating in and out of 11 (one back, one tight end), 12 (one back, two tight ends), and 21 personnel (2 backs, one tight end).
Although the tight end retains an important role in the Minnesota offense, the unit has moved away from a tight end-centric play-action game, relying on skills players at the outside positions to create chunk gains. Sophomore tight end Brandon Lingen currently leads all Minnesota tight ends in pass receptions with 15 on the season at 2.5 per game (good for fourth on the team), compared to leading wide receiver KJ Maye’s 39 receptions (4.9 per game). You will see the tight end targeted this Saturday, often in the red zone, but likely not the volume we have seen in past seasons.
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