Coaching and transfers news was hot and heavy on Monday and Minnesota was included among the noise. TGR has a recap of Monday's action.
Mike Sanford, Jr. will not return:
After two years as co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, Mike Sanford, Jr. will not not be retained by Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck as reported by FootballScoop.com on Monday.
The Gophers have struggled to get back to the offensive production of that magical 2019 season, where they averaged 432 yards per game under former offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca.
Under Sanford, Jr., the Gophers offense averaged 391 yards per game during the 2020 season. That number decreased to 360.3 yards per game this season.
However, the most glaring red flag during Sanford, Jr.'s stint with Minnesota is the regression of quarterback Tanner Morgan.
Let's go back to Morgan's breakout year in 2019 under Ciarrocca - 3,253 passing, 30 touchdowns, seven interceptions, 66% completion percentage while averaging 250 passing yards per game.
Under Sanford, Jr., Morgan's numbers and efficiency has taken quite a dip.
During the seven-game 2020 season, Morgan threw for 1,374 yards, seven touchdowns, five interceptions, 58% completion percentage while averaging 196 yards per game.
Minnesota currently sets at 8-4 and is awaiting their bowl destination, but Morgan's numbers were far from impressive - 1,935 yards, 10 touchdowns, eight interceptions while throwing, 59% completion percentage while averaging 161.2 yards per game.
The numbers don't lie and the move is definitely warranted.
Two more enter the portal:
Staying on the Tanner Morgan topic, the Gophers' signal-caller announced on Sunday that he would be returning for a sixth season in 2022.
That news naturally prompted some quarterback roster attrition as both Jacob Clark and Zach Annexstad announced their intention to transfer on Monday.
Clark saw the field once during his Minnesota tenure, completing a 39-yard against Maryland during the 2019 season.
Annexstad played in seven games during the 2018 season, but suffered a season-ending foot injury during fall camp in 2019 that allowed Tanner Morgan to win the starting job.
The Mankato, Minnesota native went 97-of-187 (52%) passing with nine touchdowns and seven interceptions during his time with the Gophers.
Minnesota's quarterback depth chart now includes Morgan, Cole Kramer, and freshman Athan Kaliakmanis. Longtime 2022 commitment Jacob Knuth is expected to sign with the Gophers next month as well.
Clark and Annexstad join James Gordon, M.J. Anderson, Rashad Cheney, Curtis Dunlap, and Cameron Wiley as other Gophers that have entered the transfer portal since October.
============================
- Talk about it INSIDE GOPHER NATION.
- Follow us on Twitter: @MinnesotaRivals, @AlexCarlsonTGR, @SeanW_Rivals, @JaredHalus, @FreshCoastHoops
- SUBSCRIBE to The Gopher Report.
