2006 Minnesota football preview

2005 Record: 7-5 (4-4 Big Ten)
Head Coach: Glen Mason

Players Drafted:
Laurence Maroney RB - Round 1 - New England
Anthony Montgomery DT - Round 5 - Washington
Greg Eslinger OC - Round 6 - Denver
Mark Setterstrom OG - Round 7 - St. Louis

Top Recruits:
Sean McWhirter DE - 6'4" 245 Long Lake, MN
Jamar Howard WR - 6'5" 185 Cincinnati, OH
Adam Weber QB - 6'2" 205 Arden Hills, MN
Terrence Sherrer RB - 5'10" 190 Cincinnati, OH

Key Players Returning:
Amir Pinnix RB
Bryan Cupito QB
Ernie Wheelwright WR
Steve Davis DE
Matt Spaeth TE
Tony Brinkhaus OL
Joe Ainsile OL
Dominic Jones SS
John Shelvin LB

Minnesota Offensive Outlook

Minnesota returns 6 starters from and offense that scored 35.8 points per game in 2005. Senior QB Bryan Cupito is back as the starter. Cupito is overshadowed by bigger-name QBs in the Big Ten, but cannot be overlooked by opposing defenses. He has a great target in Ernie Wheelwright, and Logan Payne will be a reliable target on the other side of the field. While TE Matt Speath is known more for his blocking ability, he can also come up with key catches to move the chains. The offense shouldn’t be much different from 2005 if Amir Pinnix can handle the load of being the number one back all season. While it may look like running the ball will be difficult, the offensive line is always solid and there’s no reason to think it will be weak this year. OT Joe Ainsile returns along with Tony Brinkhaus to lead the offensive front, and Spaeth is a monster who can seal off the corner for Pinnix to utilize his speed outside.

Minnesota Defensive Outlook

The Minnesota defense returns 7 starters from a defense that allowed 29.0 points per game in 2005. Sophomore DE Steve Davis is capable of getting in the backfield to disrupt opponents. He’s quick off the end, and he can get by big offensive tackles. As a unit they’ll make plays throughout each game, but the consistency for shutting down teams is missing. Sophomore SS Dominic Jones is another young player to keep an eye on along with junior LB John Shelvin.

Minnesota Special Teams

Sophomore Jason Giannini connected on 13 of 19 FG attempts in 2005 with a long kick of 49 yards. Justin Kucek, another sophomore, returns with one year of punting under his belt. He’s not a bad punter and averaged nearly 40 yards per punt as a freshman. Dominic Jones will be the return specialist, but WR Logan Payne can be used to provide a spark returning punts.

2006 Keys to Success: Amir Pinnix will have his shot at being the next starter in the backfield for the Gophers. This isn’t necessarily a weakness, it just a question mark and definitely a key to the Gophers' success in 2006. Pinnix has a load of talent and showed his ability by running for over 200 yards against Michigan State in his only start last season.

The defense will be challenged by some high-powered offenses this year, but they really don’t seem to have the ability to withstand the barrage of skilled players they will see practically each week. Aside from a few players, the rest of the defense is average and will need to produce some turnovers to stop drives. They will need to win the turnover battle to compensate for not being able to stop teams from moving the chains.

2006 Overview: Once again, Glen Mason will have a competitive team that is capable of playing with anyone on the schedule. Unfortunately, the Gophers won’t see Northwestern or Illinois this season. It looks like their only sure win in the Big Ten on paper is against Indiana. The non-conference schedule features three very winnable games, then a difficult test against California. The Gophers have a chance at heading to another bowl game this year, but it will be rough road all season based on their schedule of seeing the Big Ten’s best.

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