Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck took part in Tuesday’s Big Ten coaches teleconference. He provided some updates on his football team and then looked ahead a bit to Saturday’s game at Ohio State. The Gophers are 3-2 this season and looking for their first win in Big Ten play. The Buckeyes, meanwhile, are ranked third in the nation and looking to remain unbeaten this season. Here are the highlights from Fleck.
+ OSU linebacker Pete Werner is very active and tough. A great tackler and good in space. He is incredibly instinctual, which is the best quality you can have as a linebacker. “He’s a really talented football player.”
+ The running backs have worked hard and run hard in Rodney Smith’s absence.
+ The Minnesota defense isn’t outstanding like Urban Meyer said, but the front seven is playing very well. They are young in the secondary, especially now with the loss of Antoine Winfield, Jr. It all needs to come together. “We’re getting there.” The scoreboard is the end result, but they held Iowa to three yards per carry and contained the tight ends.
+ The Ohio State running game is very talented. “Just because you don’t see the stats don’t mean they aren’t very good at it.” When you’re throwing the ball that well and can complete 72% of your passes, that is sometimes the better choice over pounding the running game for three or four yards a crack. “That quarterback is really, really talented.”
+ Running back Shannon Brooks has been practicing during his recovery from injury. They don’t want to rush him back at 98%. They are waiting for 100%. He’s not there yet.
+ Fleck wants to make sure his team is prepared to play in Ohio Stadium. They will do a walk-through on Friday because it will be the biggest stadium that their freshmen have played in. He also wants them to understand the tradition at Ohio State and in the Big Ten, where they are privileged to play.
+ “The biggest challenges [against Ohio State] are everywhere.” They’re big and strong and fast. They have incredible discipline. They know their schemes. Teams beat themselves and that is why OSU is so aggressive. They are very good on all sides of the ball, tremendously coached, and very good players. They must limit explosive plays and create their own explosive plays on offense.