Barry Mayer admires the University of Minnesota’s 2021 offensive line. Mayer emailed a certain scribe and suggested the O-line is so effective I could run behind it for more than 100 yards per game.
Then during last Saturday’s game against Northwestern, Minnesota quarterback Tanner Morgan ran 18 yards for a touchdown. The redshirt senior seldom carries the ball and he is not known for his speed, elusiveness or power.
“I rest my case,” Mayer wrote after Morgan’s score.
Mayer, the Fargo Flash, led the Gophers in rushing during the 1968 and 1969 seasons. This season he’s seen injuries sideline three of Minnesota’s top tailbacks, including All-American Mo Ibrahim who was lost in the opening game. Ibrahim, Trey Potts and Bryce Williams are all out for the remaining schedule of four games but the run-offense continues to roll with Ky Thomas and Mar’Keise Irving. Both rushed for more than 100 yards in the Northwestern win.
The running backs roster is talented, but success starts up front with one of the best Gopher offensive lines in 50 years. Minnesota, with its total of 1,178 rushing yards, ranks second in the Big Ten to Michigan and No. 15 nationally. After five conference games the 4-1 Gophers are alone in first place in the Big Ten West Division.
“I’ve told our football team some of our best players are our offensive linemen. You’ve got to build around your best players,” head coach P.J. Fleck said Monday, while wondering what things might look like with a full roster of running backs.
Gopher historians will remember the names of these O-linemen because they have played a lot of winning football at the U. Starters Sam Schlueter, left tackle; Connor Olson, left guard; John Michael Schmitz, center; Blaise Andries, right guard; and Daniel Faalele, right tackle. All are redshirt seniors, except redshirt junior Faalele.
Behind those five are other valued contributors who give the Gophers depth and extra muscle when Minnesota chooses to use more than five offensive linemen on selected plays. That’s a formidable scheme using seven or eight experienced heavyweights, weighing 300 or more pounds.
With over 190 combined career starts, Minnesota’s line is the most experienced among FBS teams in the nation. Overall, the Gophers have one of the deepest offensive lines in the country with 13 players having appeared in at least one college game and 10 starting one game or more.
Nowhere are the Gophers bigger than on the right side with the 6-6, 325 pound Andries and the 6-9, 380-pound Faalele. They, along with Schmitz, figure to be three Gopher linemen receiving a lot of attention leading up to the 2022 NFL Draft.
Minnesota hasn’t had an offensive lineman drafted in 15 years. “That’s all going to change this year,” Fleck said.
The coach frequently refers to Minnesota as a developmental program. Fleck and the staff take players (mostly three-star recruits, not four and five) through stages of progress. “He’s a great teacher,” former Indiana coach Gerry DiNardo said on the Big Ten Network.
Fleck’s enthusiasm is evident when he talks about redshirt backup offensive lineman Axel Ruschmeyer, referring to him as “maybe one of the most improved football players on our entire team.” The coach describes Ruschmeyer as a “gym rat,” a self-made player who is one of the strongest Gophers.
With the intricacies of playing in the offensive line, things don’t work when guys dislike one another. Fleck’s group doesn’t have that issue. They have been through challenges and experiences together including the pandemic, injuries, and close wins and losses on the field. Their chemistry with one another is authentic.
“They’re incredibly close (to one another),” Fleck said. “They hang out with each other off the field, and I think they’re setting an example and a precedent of what it means to be an offensive lineman here at the University of Minnesota.”
In Fleck’s first spring of 2017 he had only four healthy offensive linemen for him and his staff to work with. He’s watched the numbers grow and the level of play trend to new heights. His admiration for the 2021 edition is evident and it goes beyond football.
“They’re incredible people,” Fleck said. “They’re going to be doctors. They’re going to be actuaries. There are going to be lawyers, teachers. They’re going to be incredible husbands and fathers. It’s a really fun group.”
A talented and experienced offensive line allows Fleck, and his offensive coaches including much praised O-line coach and run-game coordinator Brian Callahan, to play what some observers call “Tressel Ball.” When Jim Tressel was head coach at Ohio State he won six Big Ten championships and the 2002 national championship with a conservative approach that emphasized running the football, along with strong defense, special teams and field position.
Fleck was a grad assistant for Tressel at Ohio State during the national title season. He described Tressel as one of the most influential people in his life. Much of Fleck’s philosophy about how to run a program and how to command a game on Saturday comes from his mentor, now president of Youngstown State.
The two remain close and Fleck is grateful for the relationship. “I get a text from him after every game,” Fleck said.
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