School Sucks!!!!

I have not been able to write as consistently as I would have liked.  That is because I have been swamped with School kicking my ass along with being a caregiver and having a weekly podcast.  On Monday I will return, and you can expect articles every other day as I have a little bit more time.  Please stick with me I like to write and write articles that you not only enjoy reading, but they make you think of the status quo and if it is on the right track.  Those readers I do have thank you for being patient, but I will start writing more consistently.

Gopher Basketball Preview-Reserves

(by Travis Aune MSU Founder)

Isiah Washington  PG  Freshman

You can make the argument that he is the top recruit in the Pitino time with the Gophers.  He is very different than Mason in that Washington is a pass first PG and got the nickname Jelly from the teardrop finger roll.  He will come off the bench and have a spark off the bench.  The PG from the Bronx will make losing Tre Jones a little bit easier.  I am very excited to see what he can do.  I am sure he will have good days and bad days, but he is a phenomenal prospect and someone to keep an eye on for the Gophers.

Jamir Harris G  Freshman 

Harris will fill the role of Akeem Springs from last year.  Harris is an excellent three-point shooter.  He is not on the level of Washington on prospect lists.  However, the New Brunswick, New Jersey native he comes over to Minnesota.  He will play a lot I would think as his outside shot prowess will help the Gophers.  It will have to be figured out I would think probably in the Michael Hurt type role.  Maybe play a little early and then play more and more as the season goes on.

Davonte Fitzgerald  F  Senior*

Fitzgerald is a transfer from Texas A&M who spent his first two years at Texas A&M averaging 5.4 pts and 1.4 rebounds.  The 6'8 forward was ready to be a contributor in his final year but suffered an injury, so he redshirted.  The NCAA granted him a 5th year, and it will be interesting to see if he plays the 4th and 5th years with the Gophers and if the Gophers want him to.  With the bigs coming in for 2018-2019 that it will be interested to see what they want to do.  I view him performing the Eric Curry role.  He will play good defense, rebound and hit the mid-range shots.

Bakary Konate   C  Senior

He is a fine backup center.  He is not going to look to shoot much, but he will rebind and play defense at an elite level.  He will not be excused as someone that needs to be guarded heavy, but he is good defensively.

Michael Hurt  F  Sophmore

Michael Hurt was a bit of a disappoint his freshman year.  In that, he only played a little over five minutes a game.  He averaged 0.7 pts and 0.5 rebounds per game.  He is a reserve they are looking forward to being a contributor.  I would expect his numbers to double if not tripled this year.  I would view him as Amir Coffey's primary backup, and they need him to be able to handle that role.  I am hopeful that he will take that next step because the Gophers need him.

Gophers Basketball Preview-Starters

The Minnesota Golden Gophers Men's Basketball has loads of expectations this year.  Probably more expectations they have in years.  They have a right mix of shooting, defense, guards, forwards, centers  They have a right mix of veteran players and a couple of good recruits that will play a lot as well.  I am going to talk about the players and then at the end a prediction for regular season wins.

Nate Mason PG Senior

Nate Mason has been through it all as a Gopher as he was one of the guys that were suspended a couple of years ago, so he needed to gain back Coach Pitino's trust.  He did just that in 2017.  He averaged 15.2 points and five assists a game as a junior last year.  He played mainly PG previous year as that was the need, but with Isiah "jelly" Washington on the roster, you could see Mason play the off guard more often.  What makes him unique is he can play off the ball and go off picks and shoot 3's or have the ball and break down the defense.  He is excellent either way, and that is what makes him special.  He is the player on this Gopher team, and I can see him play professionally overseas. 

Dupree Mcbrayer  SG  JR

The flexible guard from Queens, NY is excellent defensively and has picked up his three-point shot.  Last year as a sixth man he averaged 11.1 points and 2.7 assists and 2.0 rebounds.  He does it all for the Gophers.  He picked it up from behind the three-point land going from 25% as a Freshman to 42% as a Sophomore.  He was by far the best three-point shooter on the Gophers last year and are going to need him to take another jump his Junior year,

Amir Coffey  SF  SO

Arguably the best player on the Gophers last year is back as a Sophmore.  Last year as a Freshmen from Hopkins, Minnesota Amir averaged 12.2 points and 3.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists.  He shot 33% from three-point range as well.  He is long ways away from that knee injury that had to have him questioning where his future was going.  He is such a fluid player that two dribbles and he can be from the three-point line to dunking it.  He has the most tools of any Gopher player in some time, and I don't think he spends all four years as a Gopher he has that kind of potential.  He has the work ethic, and they want to to be an NBA player sometime.  He reminds me of Tayshaun Prince not only in the build but how fluid he is and how his three-point shot is developing.

Jordan Murphy  PF  Junior

Murphy had some struggles finding his place on a much more talented team his Sophmore year.  However, the Junior from San Antonio eventually found his spot and finished with a flurry.  Murphy is only 6'6, so the rebound numbers he has put up as a Gopher have been phenomenal.  He averaged 11.6 points and 8.8 rebounds.  Almost nine rebounds from a guy 6'6 are all about heart and determination.  He plays a very good forward and is just very consistent.  This year he is expected to come back and just do what he does.

Reggie Lynch  C  Senior

The native of Edina, Minnesota came back to the state and was a monster defensively and with a nice touch offensively.  He averaged 8.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks per game.  The problem all year for Lynch is he got into foul trouble so much that he only averaged 23.1 minutes a game.  Coach Pitino has made it clear that is not acceptable.  When he is on the floor, he is dominant, but he is not on the field enough.  Most of the fouls were ticky-tack ones that were dumb to commit.  I am not going to blame the official he needs to avoid the contact.  Him playing 30 minutes a night compared to 23 is difference between the Gophers finishing 4th or 5th in the Big 10 and contending for a Big 10 championship.

That is the starting 5 I will be back later today with the reserves.

Is Miguel Sano being Fat Shamed?

(by Travis Aune MSU Founder)

There is a prominent columnist for the Star Tribune Jim Souhan that has been very critical of Miguel Sano in past columns.  He brought up the fact that Sano has put on weight during the season.  I am not discounting that at all.  What I am critical of is I consider that Fat Shaming.  Meaning there is no substantial reasoning that his weight has affected Miguel Sano's game.  I am going to describe how fat shaming in his articles is prevalent.  Miguel Sano is a big-time power hitter, and it needs to be characterized that without Sano where would the Twins be.

What kind of player is he?

Miguel Sano is genuinely a three outcome player.  He is either going to hit a home run, strikeout, or make an out.   However, he was off the best start of his career before getting a stress reaction in his leg after fouling the pitch off his leg.  Because of this, he missed most of the rest of the season.  In all Sano hit .264 with 28 home runs and 77 rbi's in 114 games.  To be fair and balanced this is not the whole story in 424 at bats he had 173 strikeouts one out of every at-bat.  This Star Tribune writer Jim Souhan says that he gained weight during the year and I can't claim to know otherwise.  Ricky Rubio was a victim of his hate too as Souhan attacked his play.  Souhan has lost his edge in my opinion and now does hot takes to be relevant.  

Is Sano fat shamed?

When he reported springing training at 265 lbs, and then there should substantially gain weight during the season.  Just it bugged me that that particular writer went on and on about how much weight he gained and maybe I am going to far but reading it felt like he was accusing him of being lazy.  I think the Twins owe it to him to try to help him with his eating habits.  They can afford to have the personal chef on duty and checking in on him quite a bit to make sure he is staying in shape.  The fat shaming is saying well it is his fault and he should suffer the consequences to me is fat shaming.  I think this is just as much on the Twins as it is on Miguel Sano.  It would be the same thing if he weighed 160 lbs they would make sure he was taking 4000 calorie meals to maintain or raise his weight.  I don't think it is as simple as this writer made it out and if that were me regardless if I was overweight, I would demand an apology.  Of course, those that know that writer know that he feels he is entitled to say whatever he wants without having to apologize.  There might be others that have written about this issue, not the weight issue, but the personal responsibility of writers to show some compassion.  I know some writers and fans think well he makes this much money so he should take everything I got.  I don't feel that way when you get personal an unnamed source is not good enough in my opinion.   This is an article I would not have written if I had been him as it goes too far.  Then when he took guff for it, Souhan blamed the bloggers.  I have big enough shoulders that if he wants to blame the bloggers for making him take personal responsibility I am fine taking the blame.  That article should never have been written, and it's not the first time fat shaming has been done towards Twins players.  We know the other guys that have been criticized for what they eat, and I would never write that article.  To me, that comes off in poor taste, and it is disrespectful and not something I feel comfortable writing.

What Now?

I think that Miguel Sano is not going to let this issue define him as a baseball player.  He will come into camp in good shape in the 265-270 range, and it is up to Sano and the Twins to keep him in that range throughout the season.  This is a big year for Sano as some say that the reason that he missed all those games was that of his weight and I think that is ludicrous.  The truth is this was a bad injury to the point that he might have to put screws in the leg this year.  This could mean more DH days with Eduardo Escobar getting more days at 3b.  I am going to be completely honest Miguel Sano is my favorite Twins player so this bugs me more than most stories.  I feel like he is owed an apology, but I know he will never get it he needs to just work hard and prove him wrong.

Minnesota at Iowa Preview

(by Travis Aune MSU Founder)

Today in Iowa City the Gophers and Hawkeyes renew their rivalry for The Floyd of Rosedale Trophy.   The trophy is currently held by Iowa after a 14-7 win in Minneapolis last year.  Minnesota and  Iowa have a long history going all the way back to 1891.  The Floyd of Rosedale became a thing in 1934 when the governor's of Minnesota and Iowa put a wager on the game.  The bet was a Pig the loser would have to give to the winner if I have my history correct.  Afterward, it was turned into a trophy, and that's what they play for every year.  Currently, the rivalry sits at 62-46-2 in favor of the Gophers, but the Hawkeyes have won seven of the last ten in the series.  This year the Hawkeyes are heavily favored in this game is the game is in Iowa City.  Both teams come into the play at 1-3 in the Big 10 and 4-3 overall.  With both sides out of Big 10 title contention this game is about tradition so it will be interesting.

Gophers at a Glance

The Gophers got their first Big Ten win last week 24-17 over Illinois in Minneapolis.  They are led by their three-headed monster at RB with Rodney Smith, Shannon Brooks, and Kobe Mccrary.  Injuries and poor quarterback play have been a hindrance for the Gophers.  Demry Croft gets the start again for the Gophers as he tries to improve on his 5-15 for 47 yards and an interception.  If they get a game like that they have no chance on Saturday night.  If he can play more as he did against Michigan State the week before the Gophers have a chance.

Iowa at a Glance

The Hawkeyes had high expectations with most of their offensive line returning and star running back Akrum Wadley leading the charge many thought Iowa would contend with Wisconsin for a division championship.  However, poor QB play by Nate Stanley and injuries on Defense have left the Hawkeyes in the middle of the pack.  Iowa is going to do what they do run the ball down the Gophers depleted throats.

Prediction

The Gophers and Hawkeyes are very similar to how they got to where they are.  The Gophers need to get two wins out of five to become bowl eligible and here is the schedule.
At Iowa
at Michigan
vs Nebraska
at Northwestern
vs Wisconsin
The Iowa game is winnable, and I think the Gophers are going to shock some people and head into Iowa City and bring the Floyd of Rosedale back where it belongs.

Minnesota 27  Iowa 24

Injuries Handcuffing Wild Through Slow Start

(by Jonathan Lewis MSU Contributor)

After a disappointing finish to the season last year the Minnesota Wild were hoping they would be able to hit the ground running this season. That has not been the case so far as the Wild are 7^th in the Central Division at 3-3-2. The Wild have had so many injuries to their roster that they have had to literally play short handed due to cap constraints. The biggest blow has been the loss of Zach Parise, who underwent back surgery and is expected to be out 8 to 10 weeks. Parise may not be the top line scorer he once was but is still a major contributor to this team, and his absence put the Wild in a bind from the start of the year. It is a little curious as to why Parise didn’t have surgery immediately, as until he was put on IR the Wild couldn’t even call up a player to take his roster spot due to salary cap constraints. With Parise now on IR the Wild filled the roster spot and now have started to get players like Mikael Granlund back into action and expect to get Nino Niederreiter back soon. The biggest reason that the Wild have struggled out of the gate has been the defense. They have struggled as a unit to keep lanes clean in front of Devan Dubnyk and Alex Stalock. The loss of Marco Scandella has certainly been felt, but this Wild team feels like one that just needs to get everyone healthy and then make a run. Also don’t overlook the fact that the Wild again are penalized by a sparse opening schedule. No NHL team should have 5 days in between any game and yet the Wild have had that for the second year in a row. They will have plenty of games down the stretch though, and the hope is that the Wild will be at full strength by that point. The offense has been very good, with Chris Stewart having been a revelation so far on the offensive end. This Wild team will be fine, they just need time to get healthy and start to gel. Once they do, they can skate with anyone in the Western Conference and I fully expect them to do so.

King Derek?

(by Travis Aune MSU Founder)

The Twins yesterday hired a new pitching coach.  After all the names out there you probably thought it was Mike Maddux, Chris Bosio, or even Carl Willis.  However, the Twins chose Garvin Alston of the Oakland Athletics where he served as bullpen coach this year.

Who is Garvin Alston?

Here is a quick Bio of Garvin Alston:

Drafted by the Rockies in the 10th round in 1992 draft
Made Debut for the Rockies in 1996
Coached in Oakland Organization from 2005-2015
Served as A's minor league rehab coordinator from 2009-2014.
Minor league pitching instructor in 2015
Moved on to the Arizona Diamondbacks and served as bullpen coach in 2016.
Returned to the Oakland organization this year as bullpen coach for the A's.


That is a substantial bio as he worked his way up to the majors and Sean Doolittle was very complimentary of him which goes long ways.  His bio is missing something that is important for me.  Not at any level has he served as a manager?  I like to see that even if it was at the lower levels.  By itself, it is not a big deal, but when you think of the guys that they passed on that is what is disappointing.

What is the real issue for me

Garvin Alston being the pitching coach is not the big story.  James Rowson ended up being a good hire, and he might be just fine.  However, I am not willing to give Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey a free pass that everything he does is going to turn to gold.  How many World Series has he won?  How many division titles has he been a head off?  The answer to that question is zero, yet many in the media and the known media are giving him a free pass that no matter what he does it was the right decision.  He comes off to me as a  bit arrogant like he knows something that nobody else does.  How about we win something before you get cocky.


Alston is someone that you look at his name, and you're like who is he, but of course, I was criticized for the question what King Derek did how dare you to question his decisions.  Alston may be beautiful hire, but the difference between this year and last year is there were not names available that would be homerun hired.  Chris Bosio three years ago was the guy that Paul Molitor wanted to be the Twins pitching coach, and I can't see a reason why he would not have been a great fit this year.  I would be willing to wager that if Terry Ryan were still GM, Chris Bosio would be the Twins pitching coach.  


I have never met Derek Falvey yet less spoken to him so that  I could be off on this take, and if I am, I apologize.  The point of this blog is holding peoples feet to the fire that are involved in Minnesota Sports.  The Twins have a lot of good young players, and I want their window to stay open as long as possible.  If Garvin Alston does as well as James Rowson did, then I will be proven wrong.  If that is the case, I have no problem admitting that I was wrong.  I just think the process is more about Derek Falvey than it does about the Team or even Garvin Alston.  This is a situation that I have been feeling uneasy about, so I felt the need to write about.  I have a good friend that has told me multiple times that I have strong opinions and when I have one I should write about it, and that is what I am doing right now.  I hope I am wrong and the Twins are playing in the World Series a year from now.

Vikings-Ravens Defensive Grades

(by Jonathan Lewis MSU Contributor)

Travis posted his offensive grades for the Vikings in their win against Baltimore. It’s time now for the defensive grades. Spoiler alert: there were a lot of very positive performances.

Everson Griffen- A+

Griffin continued an amazing start to the year with two sacks, 2.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble. About the only offensive lineman that would have been able to contain him was Browns LT Joe Thomas, who is out for the year so there is no reason to expect Griffen to slow down any time soon.

Linval Joseph-A

Joseph finished the game with 4 tackles, including a tackle for loss as part of a defensive line that harassed Joe Flacco all game long. While Joseph may not have had dominant final numbers, him and the rest of the Vikings defense held the Ravens rushing attack to 64 yards and sacked Flacco 5 times so he gets an A as part of the collaborative effort.

Tom Johnson-A

Johnson had one of the Vikings 5 sacks and chipped in to what overall was a dominant defensive effort. So as a result Johnson gets yet another A

Danielle Hunter-A

Hunter chipped in a sack and has looked very good after a slow start to the season. This defensive line as a whole has been excellent, and will look to continue that against Cleveland.

Anthony Barr-A+

Barr has completely turned a corner after getting called out for a rough season last year. Barr took away the only weapon the Ravens had in their arsenal; the screen pass by blowing up several short throws for no gain or a loss. Barr finished with 11 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack, and was everywhere on the field. Barr is yet another strong candidate for DPOY at almost the midpoint of the year.

Ben Gedeon-B-

Gedeon didn’t do anything that could be considered hurting the defense, but didn’t really stand out either. And while Gedeon didn’t stand out, the other two linebackers were tremendous so it didn’t end up hurting the Vikings at all.

Eric Kendricks-A+

Kendricks has been one of the most reliable defenders on the Vikings defense throughout the year. In a game where the Ravens were unable to run or complete deep passes, Kendricks helped bottle up the middle of the field with Barr, and finished with a team high 13 tackles and 3 tackles for loss. Kendricks is also playing some of the best football of his career, which has been overshadowed considering almost everyone on the defense is doing the same.

Xavier Rhodes-A

It was another week, and another job well done for Rhodes. The Ravens aren’t blessed with top-end receiver talent, and Mike Wallace left the game in the first half which left Rhodes without having to guard the only receiver capable of stretching the field. Rhodes still held up his end of the bargain, throwing the Ravens passing game out of whack almost singlehandedly.

Harrison Smith-A

Smith finished the game with 4 tackles and a tackle for loss. While maybe not as dominant of a game as we have come to expect from Smith, he still contributed to a very solid defensive effort and basically helps take one side of the field away from opposing offenses by teaming up with Xavier Rhodes.

Andrew Sendejo-B

Sendejo finished with 5 tackles and nearly forced a fumble early in the game. That fumble however was turned into a personal foul that ended up getting Sendejo suspended for the Vikings upcoming game against Cleveland. While I don’t view the hit as dirty, Sendejo was flagged on the play and that penalty ended up extending a drive for the Ravens that lead to a field goal so there is a little bit of a negative to pick at in what was a very solid game from the defense. Other than that Sendejo did a good job of keeping out of the headlines for the rest of the game.

Trae Waynes-B+

Waynes received his grade because of the touchdown the Ravens scored in the last moments of the game. Despite giving up the touchdown I thought Waynes played very well, and the Vikings secondary did a good job of shutting down a passing attack that really didn’t bring any sort of skill to the table. The Vikings went into prevent defense on the final drive and Flacco picked up several dink and dunk passes before finally getting into the endzone. Waynes has hopefully turned a corner, as his play in recent weeks has been noticeably better.

After a game like the Vikings had against Baltimore it’s hard to find many negatives on the defensive side of the ball. Hopefully they can keep that trend going in what should be a very winnable game against the Browns in London.

Ravens vs Vikings Grades

(by Travis Aune MSU Founder)

The Vikings had a rough and tumbled game on Sunday with the Ravens.  I am going to share my grades without writing an article about it.  The reason is as many of you know I am a college student, and I have my midterm on Friday, so I am going writing silently until Saturday.  I will host ep 41 of Minnesota Sports Weekly Wednesday night, but besides that, you're not going to hear much about me until Saturday.  Fear not as a new cite I will be replaced by my partner Jonathan Lewis who will bring original content every day.  So keep checking back for new Content every day.

QB- Case Keenum- C

He did alright but has to be feeling the footsteps of Teddy Bridgewater.

RB- Latavius Murray- B

Murray had a big game his best game as a Viking as he appears over the ankle injury.  He carried 18 times for 113 yards and a touchdown.

RB- Jerick Mckinnon-  C

Mckinnon continued to have some of the lowest yards after contact in this one.  Mckinnon had fourteen carries for 47 yards and added three catches for 10 yards.  A weak performance by Mckinnon if you ask me.

WR- Adam Thielen   C

There was nothing in this performance that stood out.  With Stefon Diggs out his lack of speed was exposed.  Thielen had five catches for 41 yards.  In a secondary without Stefon Diggs that is not going cut it.

WR- Laquon Treadwell   D

I was not impressed at all with Treadwell as he could not get any separation from the defender.  He had just three catches for 28 yards.

TE Kyle Rudolph  C


Another bad game by a Vikings pass catcher, but it was not all his fault as he was asked to block quite a bit with all the blitzes.  In this game, Rudolph had five for 43 which is excellent for a TE, but the Vikings rely on him for much more.

LT Riley Reiff I
Reiff went down with a knee injury they are calling it minor but wouldn't shock me to see him being out with the bye coming up.

LG-  Danny Isadora   A
He came in after Jerimiah Sirles was injured.  He was phenomenal and makes you think he can be the starting guard for the future.

C- Pat Elflein- A

Any time an offensive lineman doesn't get a penalty or a sack they deserve an A.  Elfein has continued his strong rookie year for the Vikings

RG Joe Berger  A

The old saying is true with Berger if you don't hear his name he much is doing a good job.

RT  Mike Remmers   A

Must be improving substantionally as he has not given up a sack in a few weeks, so nothing to complain about the whole offensive line.

An impressive stat and such an improvement from last year in 234 dropbacks the Vikings have only given up nine sacks

2018 Twins Offseason Blueprint

(by Travis Aune MSU Founder)

The Twins had such a successful 2017 that I think it is a shame to change too much.  With Detroit, Kansas City, and Chicago likely going to be rebuilding.  The key going forward is their pitching and making sure that the young players don't have step back's what they did in 2017.  I will start from what I would go through the 40 man roster, through trades and finally through free agency.

40 Man Roster

Remove from 40

Matt Belisle

Buddy Boshers

JT Chargois*

Bartolo Colon

Dillon Gee

Phil Hughes*

Trevor May*

Ryan O' Rourke*

Glen Perkins

Hector Santiago

Michael Tonkin

Nick Turley

Chris Gimenez

Niko Goodrum

Daniel Palka

*= taken off DL and put back on 40 man


added to 40 man roster

Jake Reed

Stephen Gonsalves

Kohl Stewart

Nick Burdi

Lamonte Wade

Lewis Thorpe

1.)  Sign Jake Mcghee to a three year 24 million dollar deal to be the Twins Closer.  Brings velocity and ability to miss bats which will help the stats


2).  Resign Matt Belisle to a one year contract worth 3.4 plus incentives


3).  Sign Brian Duensing to a one year 3 million dollar contract to finish his career back with the Twins.


4).  This is the biggy as the Twins need an ace if they are going to take it to the next level.  I trade Nick Gordon, Alex Kirrolloff, and Adalberto Mejia to the Pirates for Gerrit Cole 


5). Sign Brian Dozier to a five-year deal in which his 2018 salary is torn up.  Wages would go:
2018:  15.0
2019  16.0
2020:  17.0
2021: 19.0
2022: 20.00
That equals a five year 87 million deal


6). Sign Joe Mauer to a two year 24 million extension through 2020 which will equal three years 47 million at which Time Joe Mauer retires for the only team he has ever played for.


7).  Tender everyone except Ryan Pressly who has a great arm, but his pitches are flat and is not consistent enough.


8). Sign Mike Napoli to a one year 5 million deal plus incentives.  He is not the same guy he used to be, but he can still hit left-handed pitching efficiently and a bench bat against right-handers

Here is my roster

C- Jason Castro

1b- Joe Mauer

2b- Brian Dozier

SS- Jorge Polanco

3b- Sano

LF- Rosario

CF- Buxton

RF Kepler

DH- Escobar

Bench

Gimenez

Grossman

Napoli

Adrianza

Pitching

Cole

Santana

Berrios

Gibson

Phil Hughes

Bullpen

Mcghee

Hildenberger

Belisle

Rogers

Duffey

Busenitz

Duensing

Well, there it is I see this as a 90--95 win team and making the playoffs once again either as the division champion or as a wildcard.  Please let me know what you think in the comments below.

Murray Runs Past Ravens

(by Jonathan Lewis MSU Contributor)

The Vikings improved to 5-2 after a 24-16 win over the Baltimore Ravens at US Bank Stadium. The Vikings defense established the tone, holding the Ravens to just over 200 total yards of offense and despite struggles of the Vikings to establish any sort of rhythm with their offense, they were able to do enough to get the win.

The Good: In what quickly became a bruising game against the Ravens tough front 7, Latavius Murray became the focal point of the Vikings offense, and seems to finally be getting up to speed after being slowed early in the preseason by ankle surgery. Murray rushed 18 times for 113 yards and a touchdown, and the Vikings ran for 169 yards as a team on 33 carries. The Vikings defense was ferocious throughout the game, sacking Joe Flacco 5 times and holding the Ravens without a touchdown until the final drive of the game. The Vikings held one of the top rushing attacks in the league to 64 yards on 20 carries, and forced the Ravens into many third and long situations. The Vikings knew without many of Flacco’s top targets that he would have to settle for short to intermediate routes and Anthony Barr and Eric Kendricks in particular both did a fantastic job of disrupting slow developing pass plays all game long. Kai Forbath did a great job converting his opportunities, hitting 6 field goals from varying depths including a long of 52 yards. Forbath did miss an extra point, but convincingly hit all of his field goal attempts. In a game where yards were tough to come by, Forbath became a vital piece of the Vikings offense and he delivered.

The Bad: Really the only negative to take away from the game was Case Keenum and his only turnover was not even his fault. Keenum threw an interception on his first throw of the game on a ball that was tipped in the air by Laquon Treadwell and intercepted by Brandon Carr. Other than that Keenum was able to do just enough to keep the offense moving, but the Vikings did leave some points on the field. The Vikings will have to wait and see after injuries to Jeremiah Sirles and Riley Reiff. If those lineman are unable to play the Vikings will have to turn to Danny Isadora and Rashod Hill, who both played well in relief. The Vikings will head to London to take on the Cleveland Browns, who are still winless, which gives them a great chance to head into the bye week at 6-2, and firmly in first place in the NFC North after yet another Green Bay loss.

Vikings to dismantle Ravens

(by Travis Aune MSU Founder)

Today the Vikings have a big Interconference game as they welcome the Baltimore Ravens to Minneapolis at US Bank Stadium at noon.  The Vikings have won two games in a row to get to a tie for first place with the Packers at 4-2.  The Ravens come into this game 3-2.

Injury Report

OUT:  Sam Bradford, Stefon Diggs, Nick Easton

On Offense

With Sam Bradford out, Case Keenum will make another start for the Vikings.  He has been better than expected throwing for 1,134 yards along with five touchdowns and more importantly only one interception.  You can call him a game manager if you want, but he has been better than any of us could have expected out of Keenum.  

With no Stefon Diggs, the guys that will have to step up is TE Kyle Rudolph who needs to be that 2nd pass catcher along with Adam Thielen.  The other last week had his best game of his career, and that is Laquan Treadwell who had three catches for 51 yards.  If he can do that again, the Vikings will be ecstatic.  

They will continue to employ a running back by committee if the committee means that Jerick Mckinnon gets 2/3 of the touches.  Mckinnon is one yard short of having back to back games of over 100 yards from scrimmage.  I see no reason why he can't do that again today as these are not your Dad;s Ravens on defense.

On Defense

Look for a big game by the defense as Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is a statue back there and with a shoddy offensive line look for Everson Griffen, Danielle Hunter, and Brian Robison to have at least four sacks between them.  There is nothing the Ravens can do offensively that would scare me.  I assume that the Vikings will employ Xavier Rhodes on former Viking Mike Wallace and shut him down.

Prediction

I have studied, and I don't see what the Ravens can do to scare the Vikings on either end of the ball.  The Ravens just don't have the athletes to compete with this Vikings roster.  Maybe I am a bit overconfident, but if someone disagrees with me leave me a comment of someone that the Vikings should be concerned with.

Vikings  27   Ravens  10

Gophers get first Big 10 win

(by Travis Aune MSU Founder)

In what an optimist would call a defensive struggle and what a pessimist would call an ugly game the Gophers got their first Big 10 victory over Illinois yesterday at TCF Bank Stadium.

What happened?

Afte Kobe Mccrary four-yard run put the Gophers up 17-10 with 4:20 left in the game.  Nine seconds later LB John Celestin returned an interception 31 yards for the winning score as Illinois scored a touchdown with .23 seconds left to pull within the final of 24-17.  With the win, the Gophers improved to 4-3 overall and 1-3 in the Big Ten.  They will travel to Iowa City next Saturday to take on the Hawkeyes.  The Illini will welcome first-place Wisconsin to Champaign next Saturday.

On Offense

I am not going to lie the Gophers had absolutely no passing game in this one.  Demry Croft made his first start for the Gophers, and it was a struggle.  He went 5-15 for 47 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions along with 32 rushing yards.  The key to the win was the combination of Rodney Smith who had 19 carries for 103 which was good.  However, the star of the game was senior Kobe Mccrary who had 24 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown.  Mccrary got an opportunity because Shannon Brooks missed the game due to injury.  Star Wide Receiver had two catches for 27 yards and a TD.  This is a hot take, but if they still had  Mitch Leider with the running backs, wide receivers, and defense the Gophers could win 8-10 games in my opinion.  Therefore going forward the key is developing a QB, and many think it will be 2018 recruit Brennan Armstrong from Ohio.  We shall see, but the quarterback play this year has set the program back.

On Defense

I thought the defense played well in this one.  Holding the Illini to just 282 total yards.  Anytime you can keep an opponent under 300 yards you are doing a good job.  Carter Coughlin had a big game for the Gophers.  Coughlin the much-heralded recruit is making the change from linebacker to pass rushing defensive end.  Coughlin picked up two sacks in this one.  The Gophers forced two turnovers so that is big going forward.

Whats Next

The Gophers have a big rivalry game next Saturday against Iowa.  The Gophers are 4-3 and need to find a way to get two wins out of five.  With these games tell me where you see them getting two wins.

At Iowa
at Michigan
vs Nebraska
at Northwestern
vs Wisconsin
I see them stealing one with Nebraska and possibly Northwestern, but I don't see a bowl game in the Gophers future this year, and the fan base should not lose faith in PJ Fleck as it would not have mattered who the head coach was.  The Gophers had two things going against them that are hard to overcome.  Young as over half the roster is either Freshman or Sophmore and even less that have played.  The other honestly is they don't have a capable QB on their roster.  You're not going to win many games without competent QB play, and I believe eventually it will get better, but probably not this year.