ESPN College Football

Updated: September 25, 2009, 3:32 PM ET

Locker Room Report: Minnesota

Technology helps Golden Gophers prepare for game day

Comment Email Print Share

By Adam Rittenberg
ESPN.com
Archive

MINNEAPOLIS -- Minnesota offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch is a technology aficionado, and he finds himself in a virtual paradise the Friday before a game.

AP Photo/Paul BattagliaMinnesota's coaching staff uses the latest in technology to go over plays with quarterback Adam Weber (8) and his teammates.

Sitting at a computer in the Gophers' offensive meeting room, Fisch punches up clips from practice, the previous week's game and even cutups from his time as an NFL assistant. The giant video screen in the room also doubles as a Telestrator, allowing Fisch to diagram plays.

"We're all visual learners," Fisch said. "The most important thing is 3-D and color and all those things. They're not just black-and-white sheets of paper any longer. We try to be Y2K-compliant. We try to play to their strengths."

Though the self-scouting process begins early in the week, some of the most important parts occur hours before kickoff. Fisch and the offense will go over the opening set of scripted plays one final time before the team walk-through.

At Fisch's side sit quarterbacks Adam Weber, MarQueis Gray and Adam Lueck, who take notes on the game plan for the team's upcoming showdown against California. Gray, the Gophers' backup, wears a T-shirt bearing a quote from famed quarterbacks coach Steve Clarkson, which reads in part: "The quarterback is like an artist. The artist controls where on the canvas. The quarterback controls where on the gridiron."

Fisch is the artist here, and he controls all the clips the players will watch in their final preparation for Cal.

"In the play-action game, have the mindset of, 'Completions, completions, completions,'" Fisch says as they go over the calls. "Take what they give."

Fisch then asks Lueck to hit the lights. A Denver Broncos-Cleveland Browns game from 2008 appears on the screen.

Fisch served as Broncos wide receivers coach in 2008 and brought over much of the Denver offense to Minnesota. The Gophers' quarterbacks have run through the entire playbook in practice but only attempted 71 passes in the first two games.

One of the plays Fisch intends to call against Cal hasn't been run in a game, so he uses Broncos footage from 2008. The players watch Jay Cutler go play-action and find tight end Tony Scheffler for a 39-yard gain on the first play from scrimmage against Cleveland.

Fisch, who wants to call the play during the first five snaps against Cal, tells the quarterbacks it worked three times against the Browns in Denver's victory last November.

"This should be an all-day sucker," Fisch says.

When Minnesota's wide receivers, tight ends, running backs and fullbacks enter the room moments later, Fisch begins quizzing them on their assignments for the game.

"That's what I'm talking about, Troy!" Fisch says to sophomore wide receiver Troy Stoudermire upon hearing a correct answer.

[+] Enlarge

AP Photo/Paul BattagliaMinnesota wide receiver Eric Decker (7) learns the team's plays on the big screen.

They begin to review plays from the week's practices. Fisch will occasionally switch over to the Telestrator and illustrate the routes he wants the receivers to run.

On the screen, Weber fires a post pass to star wide receiver Eric Decker in the end zone.

"Where is it on your priority list of red-zone passes?" Fisch asks Weber.

As plays are reviewed, the players whisper to one another, confirming each man's assignment. They watch a swing pass from Weber to Decker at the 5-yard line.

"You just go score," Fisch says. "Score all day long. But spike it at home. Don't spike it here [and draw a penalty].

"You've got to catch touchdown passes this week. Let's make it, I don't know, 28 points in the first half."

Fisch tells the players where he intends to call certain plays on the field.

For example, when the offense gets near the 10-yard line, he'll likely call a wide receiver reverse pass. Both Weber and Gray are excellent athletes and can get open in space.

Fisch then shows a clip from practice, where Decker runs an end around, stops and then throws back to Weber along the sideline.

"Make sure it's there, Deck," Fisch says. "You don't have to be full throttle."

The team walk-through will begin soon, so Fisch quickly runs through the calls for the opening offensive script. He tells the wide receivers that for the evening meeting, he'll put together clips of Broncos wideout Brandon Stokley running the same plays they'll use against Cal.

"OK guys," Fisch says, "we're on the field in five minutes."

Adam Rittenberg covers Big Ten football for ESPN.com. He can be reached at espnritt@gmail.com.