What did Rutgers coach Greg Schiano say about the Gophers ahead of Minnesota's matchup against Scarlet Knights?
Rutgers coach Greg Schiano met with the media on Monday in Piscataway to discuss the Scarlet Knights’ upcoming matchup against the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
Here’s everything that Schiano had to say about the Gophers on Monday.
Schiano discusses Minnesota in opening statement
“All attention is focused on Minnesota. Really well-coached football team, PJ does a great job. Very proud of what he does there and you can see that he’s put together a great staff. They’re doing a really, really good job. He’s evolved on offense, some that makes it a big challenge.
Defensively, the number one defense in the country right now. So we go from playing one of the top five to the top two weeks in a row. And special teams very well coached.
Bob Ligashesky does a great job with their special teams. So gonna be a great challenge going on the road for the first time. I enjoy that, getting your team together. It’s gonna make for a very, very competitive week of practice.”
What has Schiano seen in quarterback Drake Lindsey?
“Yeah, I mean, we know about him, right? He redshirted, he’s been in their system, he knows the system well. Now it’s his turn, very good quarterback. You can see why they’re so high on him.
He’s got all the skills, he’s got a big, big arm, he’s a big man. He’s 230 pounds, 6’5″, he’s not easy to get down. He’s able to move in the pocket and he’s a pro-style quarterback, but he really is a strong kid.
He’s got a strong arm, seems to really understand what they’re doing. It’s very much an NFL style offense. They’re under center more now.”
On the Gophers’ offense as a whole
“It reminds me a lot of the NFL teams that we study for different things. And certainly well coached, the offensive line is really well coached. The receivers, PJ’s a receiver coach by trade, and their receivers always play very well.
Not only catching the football, but doing all the little things. So it’s gonna be a challenge, certainly, for us in every way. And then the running back who was injured, Taylor, they have a stable of running backs, you can see.
Because he went down, and another guy come in, and another guy goes down. And they’ve done a very good job of recruiting at the running back position, cuz they do run the football, and much like we do. And it’s gonna be a challenge, they got all the pieces.
They got it at the skill, the tight end is a national player. He had, I think, eight catches against us last year. So certainly, we didn’t do a good job defending him, and he’s a really good player.
I think his name is Gears, so 86, I think. So yeah, they got good players in all three phases. And it’s gonna be a huge challenge, and going on the road at their place.
And they’re coming off a bye week, so we certainly have our hands full. But one that we’re excited about, attacking. Guys couldn’t wait to get back to work yesterday, and great attitude. It is what it is. We didn’t like the outcome, but we got to move forward now. We got to learn from it, and we got to move forward.”
On Koi Perich
“Yeah, he’s quite a player. I know they were very excited about him when they landed him as a recruit. And I think what PJ’s trying to do is get the most out of him that he can.
So he is in all three phases. He’s a returner. He’s playing outside of wide out in the offense.
And he’s certainly playing a huge role in their defense, right? I mean, he’s a big reason why they have a number one defense in the country. So, yeah, we know about him. Just cuz you know doesn’t mean you can stop him.
But we’re gonna be aware of where he is. And he’s quite a ball hawk. And if you’re not careful, he’ll go rip it out of the sky.
So we gotta make sure. The ball is so critical in the success of each and every week. So we put a huge premium on it.”
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