Minnesota Football: 2017 game-by-game predictions

Big questions for Minnesota football as to how the Golden Gophers will look under new head coach P.J. Fleck.

Minnesota will be starting anew again this season with head coach P.J. Fleck of “Row the Boat” fame at Western Michigan. The Gophers won 9 games last year including a win in the Holiday Bowl. It will be tough to top that win total this year, but the schedule is favorable in the first half of the season to build momentum.

With quarterback Mitch Leidner gone, there has been a competition in fall camp for the spot. Neither Conor Rhoda and Demry Croft have separated themselves yet and there is a good chance both will get playing time early in the season.

With the quarterback situation unsettled, the Gophers will rely on the backfield tandem of Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks. Last season, Smith rushed for 1158 yards and 16 touchdowns while Brooks pitched in another 650 yards and 5 touchdowns. Whoever is the starting quarterback, they should lean heavy on these guys to lead the offense.

There are only four starters returning, but three of them are the linebackers, giving the Gophers an advantage there. Look for defensive tackle Steven Richardson to continue wrecking the interior of opposing offensive lines. The secondary is young, but led by emerging star safety Antoine Winfield Jr.

There is talent on this team and Fleck is a good coach. The future is bright at Minnesota, but it’s difficult to see if they will taste immediate success with a Big Ten title run. Let’s take a look at the Gophers schedule.