Ibrahim will look to take feature role in Gopher backfield

It was August 11th when the Big Ten Conference decided it would postpone it's 2020 fall football season.

On September 16th, the league announced it was reinstating football this fall with a nine-game season that will start on October 24th.

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With football officially back this fall for Minnesota, expect big things from a Gopher offense that returns nine starters.

While 2019 leading rusher Rodney Smith is gone, second leading rusher redshirt junior Mohamed Ibrahim is set to head the backfield for the Gophers this season.

With Smith gone, Ibrahim will have to replace over 200 carries and more than 1,100 yards on the ground. This Minnesota offense averaged just under 179 yards rushing per game a season ago.

The first sign that an offense is in good hands at the running back position is when the starting quarterback does nothing but praise the back going into the season. Redshirt junior quarterback Tanner Morgan has nothing but confidence in his backfield mate.

"Mo is a superstar. Every single day you know what you're going to get with 24," Morgan said. "He brings the most howl out of everybody in the building. He can do remarkable things on the field, but he's also a phenomenal leader, a phenomenal connector."

The Gophers return six backs including Ibrahim whom is the only of those backs with more than 30 carries a season ago. Ibrahim has done an exceptional job in the off-season of leading younger backs.

“He does a great job of leading that room, leading the offense too, and getting those young guys to be locked in like he is," Morgan said. "Those guys have definitely improved a lot, especially under his leadership."

With his leadership, this Minnesota offense will be dangerous for the rest of the Big Ten to handle. Morgan returns 31 total touchdowns from a season ago and Ibrahim seven.

"I definitely have to step up now. I was always leaning on them. Those two veterans (Smith and Shannon Brooks)," Ibrahim said. "Now it's on my plate, and I got to understand what they taught me, pass it down. It's a tradition in that room. It's a standard we always have to maintain...we all know in this running back room anybody can play at any given game, so you can't miss a beat."

Although Ibrahim totaled over 600 rushing yards last season, something he is hoping to improve on is his pass-catching ability. He knows new offensive coordinator Mike Sanford will want to throw the ball more.

"I definitely watched film on what type of plays he calls," Ibrahim said. "I understood that he likes to give the ball to the running back a lot, and not just handing the ball off. He likes to throw screens, throw bullet routes and stuff like that, so I've been preparing by catching extra balls...I have to be able to be an all-around back now."

Ibrahim's ability to be an all-around back is boosted with a Gopher offensive line that returns all five starters from a season ago.

"It's nice knowing who you got up front," Ibrahim said. "During this whole quarantine we had running backs and o-line meetings...where we talked about what we're doing and why we're doing it and making sure everybody is on the same page. So now when we get out there you can just see us moving as one. So we're all one, still gelling. Having a veteran o-line definitely helps us out."

With the recent news of a 2020 Big Ten schedule being announced, excitement is in the air for Gopher Football fans. From Head Coach P.J. Fleck, to the players, all the way down to the fans, it's just great to know football is back and a season will indeed be played.

"We're just happy that we got a schedule out right now," Ibrahim said. "We got something to look forward to, but we still have to prepare every day. It starts with today, continues tomorrow. We got to get better tomorrow. That's our standard, we always have to worry about right now."