When BTN.com writer Tom Dienhart ranked the Gophers offensive line the best in the Big Ten Conference’s West Division for the coming season it didn’t surprise Zac Epping. “Not at all,” Epping told Sports Headliners. “The group that they have there right now is an awesome group.”
“The Golden Gophers have a deep and talented collection of blockers that is better than even Wisconsin, which has been the measuring stick for offensive lines in the Big Ten for years,” Dienhart wrote earlier this month.
Epping and Tommy Olson are the two offensive line starters from last year’s group the Gophers must replace in 2015 but this looks like the best line coach Jerry Kill and staff have produced in almost five years in Minneapolis. Dienhart wrote that Minnesota has eight linemen who have a combined 88 starts.
Dienhart ranked Michigan State the No. 1 offensive line in the East Division but Epping believes Minnesota will have the best unit in the Big Ten next fall. “I think so,” Epping said. “There’s a lot of potential in that group. Coach (Eric) Klein does a great job in the offseason getting all the o-linemen healthy, stronger and ready for the season. If they stay healthy then that’s going to be a great group and the running backs are going to have a good year running behind them.”
Epping said the quality of Minnesota’s offensive lines has been evolving, and he not only mentioned Klein, the team’s strength and conditioning coach, but also offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Matt Limegrover. “Coach Limegrover has done a great job of getting the o-line ready for the game days and all that,” Epping said. “He’s definitely helped us improve that group.”
The Gophers ranked No. 28 nationally in rushing last season. Among Big Ten teams they were sixth with 2,801 rushing yards, the program’s best total since 3,277 yards in 2005.
Guard Josh Campion, 24, is receiving preseason publicity as a potential All Big Ten offensive lineman. A 6-5, 310-pound senior from Little Falls, he made All-Big Ten Honorable mention last season on teams selected by the media and coaches. He started 13 consecutive games at left tackle but is expected to play guard this year. Epping said Campion’s “great work ethic” and age have contributed to the native Minnesotan’s success and improvement each year.
Former Gophers wide receiver Isaac Fruechte, who is trying out for the Vikings, has lived with Campion. “Sometimes he’s kind of hard to read,” Fruechte told Sports Headliners. “He likes to sleep so we try not to bother him too much. He’s a little bit older than all of us but when he gets out there and wants to play he’ll get after it.”
Fruechte, too, is optimistic about the Gophers 2015 offensive line. “That’s a unit that they should be very confident with over there (on campus) because it’s got a lot of veteran guys, a lot of kids with some experience that really know how to play, and play against big time teams.”
Worth Noting
Collegefootballnews.com recently listed “the 15 best redshirt freshmen going into the season” and the Gophers Jeff Jones was ranked No. 5 in the country. “Academics shelved Jones last year, but he got (out) of the gate quickly this offseason, impressing the staff with his ability as a playmaker and his dedication to the game,” Collegefootballnews.com wrote. The website predicted Jones is most likely to see playing time at slot receiver, not running back.
A source said 6-foot-5-plus wide receiver Sean Engel, who will be a senior at Chaska High School this fall, has added 30 pounds, now weighs 203, is running a sub 4.5 40-yard dash and is receiving increased interest from the Gophers after excelling this month at a football camp on the Minnesota campus. Engel, the brother of former Gophers wide receiver Derrick Engel, has offers from several colleges including North Dakota State and Northern Iowa.
Former Gophers and Vikings defensive back Tyrone Carter held another of his football camps in Minnesota last weekend. He will also assist friend and former Viking Randy Moss at a camp in North Carolina.
Safety Harrison Smith, who will be in his fourth season with the Vikings this fall, wants to be named All-Pro for 2015. “Yeah, that’s my goal every year. Whether I make it or not, I don’t know. But there’s no reason not to shoot for the highest (goal).”
Although the Vikings have several weeks off until training camp starts in Mankato, players like Smith know they have to continue work outs and conditioning. Back home in Tennessee, Smith will run, lift weights and punch a boxing bag several days of the week.
“As long as you’re in good shape and you’re not going to pull anything in training camp (like a hamstring or groin muscle), that’s the goal,” said Smith who has been told on game days NFL players run close to nine miles including pre-game activity.
While at home, Smith also plans to play golf, a sport he acknowledges he could improve at. “In the 90s is my best day if I am playing by the rules. I just like to play in the scrambles because I don’t feel so bad about myself.”
The early guess is the MIAC football race for the title will involve Bethel, Saint John’s and St. Thomas.
The June 22 issue of Sports Illustrated predicts the Timberwolves will use the No. 1 overall selection in tomorrow night’s NBA Draft to choose ex-Kentucky center Karl-Anthony Towns. Four of S.I.’s top 14 projected picks are former Wildcats.
S.I. has guards and Minnesota natives Tyus Jones and Rashad Vaughn being No. 21 and 25 choices of the Mavericks and Grizzlies. The magazine said Jones isn’t “big or athletic” but the Mavericks would welcome his “high IQ as a playmaker.” S.I. described Vaughn as a “multifaceted scorer.”
Former Gophers and Twins pitcher Cole DeVries is out of professional baseball and working for Edina Realty.