Max Brosmer is Ready to Quiet the Noise + Offensive Breakout Players for the Minnesota Gophers!

I don't know about you but I am so sick of everyone saying well Max brosmer he has to adjust to the FBS he has to adjust we're gonna talk about why he'll be just fine and offensive breakouts on today's locked on Golden goers you are locked on Golden Gophers your daily podcast on the Minnesota Golden Gophers part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day what's up goer fans you're listening to lockon Golden Gophers part of the lockdown podcast Network your team every day my name is Kan Rob host of the podcast former collegia football video coordinator and recruiting assistant here to talk Golden Gophers with you each and every day of the week Monday through Friday but in the offseason we've been a little bit off we've been more of a three days per week kind of later in the week but we are getting closer towards full season or getting ready towards the fall camp in August and that's where we will kick it off back to 100% five days a week so definitely be sure to hit subscribe so you don't miss any of that daily Gophers content moving forward we're going to do breakdowns of every single gopher's opponent in depth we're going to do breakdowns of every single position group room for the Minnesota Golden golfers and more you're not gonna want to miss it so definitely hit subscribe over on YouTube or follow along wherever you get your podcast at locked on Golden goers now today we're going to talk about quarterback Max brosmer because I just I want to get away from the doubt of the FCS because there have been many uh FCS quarterbacks that have done well both at the FBS level and in the NFL so it's time to erase that narrative now on top of that we're going to talk about offensive breakout players impact breakout players for the 2024 season we did defensive in our last show so if you haven't caught that be sure to go back and listen to that one for our three breakouts there but then finally we're going to talk about my players my my guys for the goers 2024 season these are guys I'm putting a stamp on as com possible contributors for this year but I could be one year early on them before they make major impacts so definitely sit back relax and enjoy the fun but let's jump into max brosmer first because Max brosmer it is time to stop stressing or stop hearing other stress that Max brosmer is coming from the FCS that fact shouldn't hinder him at all there have been many of folks many of quarterbacks that have done well from the FCS to a higher level of football whether that be the FBS whether that be the power five whether that be the NFL and so it's time to get rid of those old narratives are always saying just because someone's coming from a lower program doesn't mean that or it means that they're going to take longer to transition or oh it's it's a it's a shot in the dark it actually has found relatively good success when you've shown the elite production and the elite capabilities at that FCS level now when we've seen uh FCS quarterbacks Thrive not only when they jump to the FBS at times but also on the way to the NFL if you look at the NFL right now FB FCS quarterbacks that are in the NFL currently is Jimmy Garoppolo Carson went Trey Lance Joe flacko Josh Johnson and Easton stick now these might not be the names that you're like oh lock them in the can and they're going Hall of Fame bound but a lot of these guys were high draft picks first round second round type draft picks or they have become consistent backups and dependable backups at the highest level of football so it just goes to show you that the FCS players can still get it done Jimmy Garoppolo has been to multiple Super Bowls now people might say he he shouldn't be your franchise quarterback and that's fine but he's held his own he's ran the systems he's done well and he done it done it at an elite clip to get himself to the NFL and become a starter and get paid and get to a Super Bowl on top of that you've got Carson Wentz who before his injury looked like one of the best quarterbacks in football before his injury he was on his way to an MVP and in that season his team ended up going to the Super Bowl he could have led that Helm Nick Foles ended up finishing the helm for him but Carson went showed that he had all of the ability now he might have gotten his own way off the field maybe some stubbornness maybe some uh disag personalities or what have you sounds like he wasn't the greatest locker room guy but he's always had the talent but he's also had the talent to throw interceptions but at the same time I believe he has more touchdowns than interceptions if you look at his record and I believe he has a winning football record when it comes to wins versus losses so overall Carson Wentz even though he's now a backup it has a very talented skill set and made it to the NFL TR Lance we haven't really gotten a chance to see him but he has gotten himself to be a firstr top three pick and he showed flashes before the injuries Joe flacko has won a Super Bowl and he just put together a historic season comeback player of the year I believe with the Cleveland Browns coming off of his couch back to the game in balling out for the Browns Josh Johnson we've seen him step up in in games at times and East stick is a consistent backup for the Chargers now also previous NFL players that have played at the FCS level Steve McNair Phil Sims Ryan Fitzpatrick Tony Romo Rich Ganon Curt Warner Josh mown there's another Super Bowl quarterback in that list for for you there's other consistent guys who are Pro Bowl type players now that's a mixture of old and new it's also a mixture of Super Bowl winners MVP level play some huge years some Journeymen and additionally we've seen the FCS to the FBS transfers have success recently as well players who have recently transferred up from the FCS to the FBS cam Ward cam Ward comes from incret world and he goes to Washington State and he becomes a top 25 pass in pass yards in the league on on top of being actually he was a top eight in pass yards in the league and top 20 in passing touchdowns in the entire country shadur Sanders came up last year became a top 25 player in pass yards and a top 15 player in passing touchdowns and that was with one of the if not the worst offensive line in the entire nation and Sher Sanders still found a way to translate still found a way to read the field still found a way to produce at an effective and elite clip and did that at the FCS and he has done that now at the FBS and they're hoping that he can take even another step forward become a top draft pick become a Heisman candidate if his o line can put it together bayy zappy became the number one player in the country in pass yards and pass touchdowns I believe he still holds the record for passing yards in a single season he passed Joe Burrow's numbers bayy zappy bowled out Austin Reed came from D2 not FCS D2 became a top three in passing touchdowns and the number one in passing yards in the country Tony musket transfers up to Virginia now he struggled with injuries but in four full games he had a thousand yards almost and six touchdowns passing he was Virginia's starter prior to the injuries and he came back and started a bit after them but what I'm saying is we have seen it translate from the FCS to the FBS it isn't like a rarity nowadays if you produce at a high clip an elite clip which Max brosmer had done he was the second finalist in the Walter Payton basically the Heisman of the FCS he can get it done now I'm not saying Max is going to light the world on fire I'm not saying he's going to be the number one passer or even top 25 at that I'm just saying we've seen it done the Minnesota offense likely won't pass enough to give him the chance to get there but the ability is there now that being said max brosmer is experienced Max broser makes Smart plays he will take the check down he takes care of the ball he can hit the layup throws and he can hit the big throw now all all of this is also in the brief times that we've been able to see him in the spring in the media sessions and the open practices and what have you I saw the evolution of him getting adjusted to the speed of big 10 of him making the smarter reads of him getting up to the level play of what he can get away with what he can't where he can place it uh how much bigger Defenders are and how they can bat the ball down at the line of scrimmage he was feeling it out and it got progressively and progressively better as the spring sessions went on we got to see him more so that's on the field but then even off the field even off the field oh and by by the way in that spring session he did all that without his number one option in Daniel Jackson which should only make life easier for him but even off the field his leadership has been off the charts extremely quickly he was voted a team captain by his teammates in just a matter of months coming in not knowing anybody coming in during the bowl game prep helping out his team where he could and then all of a sudden when he can get into things in January his teammates end up voting him a captain by the end of January early beginning of February so he's a team captain he had Pro Day experience with the alumni and he got together with them ahead of time throwing with Brevin band for Chris Aman Bell Cory KRS and talking them through and showing his leadership on the field on that pro day and directing kind of how do they want things run and talking with the scouts and things like that talking with Josh maau to learn more about the headsets and putting himself into advantageous position for next year and then on top of that the offensive coordinator Greg Harbo he has talked about the CH that Max brosmer challenges him and Max brosmer pushes him to be better but on top of that Max brosmer sends him Clips sends him ideas of his own to incorporate or how do they think about this or could is this something they could do he is constantly thinking about football and on top of that he's setting up trips to Georgia in the beginning before the spring session and after the spring session with his receivers with his fellow quarterbacks to get them in the work to get them going to building chemistry to taking that extra step to build things quicker and help Elevate for this one season he will have this is a guy who has worked alongside Jaylen Herz CJ strad Justin Fields among others now those are some of the hardest working guys in the NFL and on top of that his quarterback coaches who work with them and work with him have talked about and mentioned how he absolutely holds his own and he can be an NFL players standing next to those guys he doesn't look lost he doesn't look out of place he looks like he can fit in seamlessly so let's retire the worry narratives let's not act like he can't be a top quarterback in the Big 10 because he absolutely can and he has what it takes to make this Especial year for the Gophers so we're going to tap in we're going to retire the FCS warries and we're going to cheer on Max brosmer this up season now we're going to move into offensive player impact breakouts three players I think are going to have a massive season for the offense I'm going to dive into that coming up next first I want to talk to you about our friends over at eBay Motors because passion drive and patience is the winning formula to not only championships but also what helps keep your ride or die your vehicle alive eBay Motors has everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up to PE performance they've got everything you need need from over 122 Million Parts to keep your vehicle alive You'll Always Find exactly what you're looking for from superchargers roof racks exhaust kits LED headlights and more I'm getting ready to soup up my truck a little bit and I am definitely heading on over to eBay Motors because they have everything you need whether you're into speed power or style they have you covered so go to Ebay motors and with the eBay Motors guaranteed fit your part is guaranteed to fit your ride every single time or your money back cuz you're burning rubber not cash with eBay Motors so all the parts you need at the prices you want it's easy to make your car the MVP with eBay Motors keep your r or die alive at eBay motors.com eligible items only exclusions apply and the eBay guaranteed fit is for us customers only all right go fans last show we talked about three impact defensive players that I think or yeah that I think are going to take the next step in this 2024 season today we're going to talk about three impact breakout offensive players that I think are going to have a massive impact for the 2024 season now I did honorable mentions on the defense so I'm going to do it on the offense as well I put Daniel Jackson in the honorable mentions because he has been growing steadily each and every season and I do believe he could have his best season yet with some more uh steady quarterback play but that being said I don't see that as a breakout I just see that as adding on to his success so I couldn't put him in the actual impact breakouts because he's always had an impact especially these last two seasons Max brosmer I put into that conversation but I feel like it was too easy on top of uh I think that the expectations are there that it's not really a breakout of sorts but people are expecting him to do really well from jump with his only year of Eligibility and the production that he had at the FCS and then I also put honorable mentions of CA bangura and Elijah Spencer I think both of them will be heavily involved in the offense but I don't know how much uh touches how much looks how much targets or what have you they will receive so in the end I do believe they could end up as the top three but I just don't have them as my top three for this segment now my three names that I'm going to dive into one is a wide receiver the first one I bring up is lamei Brockington now this is a lot more projecting than it is based on numbers especially from last year because he suffered an injury last season but we saw the potential in 2022 where he had over 200 yards he had a major touchdown against Wisconsin one of the biggest touchdowns of the season to help put that game away but lamei Brockington he's he's been taking strides and steps and you can see it very clearly in these spring practices in my opinion now a year ago at this point in time when we were entering the spring sessions I was watching Daniel Jackson I thought Daniel Jackson did really well to close out his 22 season and then watching him in that spring session I was like this dude just seems to be on another level a different sense of confidence a different sense of swagger he's coming down with every catch I see put up his way in the spring sessions he looks special and I said I think he's going to be a breakout for this next season he's going to be the number one receiver he's going to lead the team in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns and what have you and he did that he did that and then some I think lamei Brockington has had a very similar type of spring it seems like he's taking strides he's more confident he seems like he's faster he's stronger he's always in the right place he has a good connection with Max brosmer already and I think lcky Brockington is going to put himself into the conversation to be a consistent wide wide receiver and find a good healthy amount of production in this upcoming season now maybe that's 500 yards and a few touchdowns maybe four to five touchdowns that's still a really good season for someone who was coming off an injury and only had 75 yards last season so lamei Brockington as a player I do truly believe is going to take that next step and put himself into a confident position to be one of the leading receivers in this room now my second impact breakout player is Greg Johnson Greg Johnson started out the year last year with the expectations or the talk from the coaches that he wouldn't necessarily be a red shirt he could find himself on the field that's how much he came in ready he came in strong and he had impressed his coaches from day one as a true freshman in the spring early and rolly sessions well he did just that he didn't end up red shirting he played in a number of games last season I believe he got one or two starts and so overall Greg Johnson was a player that was building his confidence but he was getting his feet wet now he was making some learning mistakes if you look at his PFF grades there were moments where they're really good and there moments where they were really bad now I think PFF is a little bit uh hit or miss on some of their blocking grades when it comes to the consistency that they have across the board but I I digress Greg Johnson is stepping into a full-time starter role this season it looks like he's going to be the center for the Gophers from what we saw all spring where he took all of his snaps there and I think that he looks more and more confident he looks more and more uh it looks like he's progressing a lot when we talked to the coaches in the spring sessions they talked about how he is just absorbing everything like a sponge and it seems like he is ready to do whatever it takes for his team to win now does that mean he's going to be the center for the next three years maybe not I think his versatility helps make him one of the best foundational pieces on this offens of line because if there's somebody who can play the center position more effectively next season you can move Greg to one of the Guard positions I think he's more naturally at one of the Guard positions if he absolutely dominates that Center this year then you can help plug other players around him he could even play tackle if he had to and that versatility will only help him in his Pro aspirations but I think this year is where we get the first feel of those Pro aspirations could be real he could play at a high quality level and he could be one of the best offensive linemen in this entire room so I think Greg Johnson's going to take a massive step this year be a very consistent player fix up and clean up the small little mistakes he made as a true freshman and be ready to go in his second season and my final player for the impact Breakout it seems like it's a little too easy to do I almost didn't want to do it because it just seems too chalk but I'm putting Darius Taylor because he had an injured season last year now we've talked about time and time again on this show that Darius Taylor's numbers especially when it comes to rushing yardage numbers were off the charts he led the entire country in rush yards per game but he only get to play in six games in one of those games he only got one carry for three yards if you take that game out his rushing yards per game jumps by almost 25 yards per game that is a huge leap now even if his production comes back some he still will be at the top tier of that Echelon of rushing yards per game even if his thing came back about 25 to 30 yards per game he would still be in that top quality of running backs that's how special this kid is and on top of that I think he's going to be ready I think his body's going to be ready I think mentally he's going to be ready I think overall he knows what it takes to prepare and what to expect heading into the season now before he was an early in true freshman who had never played at this level so he was still feeling it out and that's part of the reason Fleck didn't give him as many opportunities in that Nebraska game besides the one carry for three yards because he didn't know what it was going to be in a nighttime Prime Time Thursday night game against Nebraska on Fox you don't know what you're going to get from a true freshman at that point now the next game when it wasn't as bright of lights and it was the opportunities to be uh take a little bit more shots with things and it was against an opponent that you think you should step have you saw him absolutely Dominate and from then on the trust was there this year the trust is going to be there right away the health is hopefully going to be there and on top of that he's going to be stronger he's going to be faster he's gonna have the game slowed down for him a bit and that can make Darius Taylor one of the best if not the best running back in the Big 10 and potentially in the country so Darius Taylor is going to have an impact breakout season because he wasn't able to F fill this entire season last year so those are my impact players now the final things I'm going to talk about on today's show is my go players the people that I'm putting in my my guys list that could step up and find themselves into roles this year younger players that haven't really gotten to play but maybe I'm a year early on them before they enter a starter type position an impact breakout type position or what have you we're going to talk about who those players are coming up next first I want to talk to you about our friends over at game time because game time is an authorized ticket Marketplace for Major League Baseball which makes getting tickets faster and easier and on top of that prices on Game Time app actually go down as you get closer to the first pitch so definitely give them a look because they have killer last minute deals all in prices view from your seat and they have the lowest price guarantees so game time takes the guesswork out of buying tickets for the MLB same thing for the WNBA if you're not ready for basketball to be done well luckily it's not and the WNBA is in full swing the links are absolutely balling out hopefully nefisa kier's injury from yesterday isn't too serious and she will be able to keep on progressing she is in the MVP race right now so definitely tap in with game time because like I said they can save you up to 60% off of buying last minute tickets for sports 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could be contributors they could be players that are getting ready to take on a bigger role this year and then potentially be starters in the next season but I could be a year early on them when it comes to Major Impact now none of the names will have been in the breakout session that we just talked about or any of the like full-time starters that we've seen for the last year to now these are all going to be names that are maybe haven't seen any snaps or consistent snaps or red shirt or what have you now once again we're going to do three on the offense three on the defense you'll find some consistency from me on these names because these are some names that I've really been talking about this offseason or maybe even last offseason uh that haven't necessarily gotten the chance to play quite yet they've impressed me they've intrigued me but they're relatively younger and haven't got their shot now number one on my list right now is Pierce Walsh Pierce Walsh is someone that really impressed me this spring a tight end for the Gophers last year he was a true freshman ended up red shirting I don't think he saw any snaps on the field whatsoever but we come into this spring session and I'm like man this dude just keeps showing up he's running with the ones he's running with the twos he and then all of a sudden the more that spring goes on the more you see him getting reps with the ones the more you see him building but his his connection with not only Drake Lindsay but also with Max brosmer was very impressive his neck for the ball his soft hands to catch the ball all of this as a red shirt freshman tight end but he also looks like he gained a healthy amount of weight gots stronger looks bigger and honestly I wouldn't be surprised to see him push for a healthy role in this tight end room now you've got two seniors back you got Jameson gears you've got Nick Keller both of them Jameson gears has been waiting for his turn behind brevan spamf for Nick Ker's been involved uh for the past couple Seasons now those two will probably still see the starter snaps as we head in the season but I do think Pierce Walsh can carve out a role and as the season goes later on I do think we could see him on the field more and more and see him become that consistent sneaky maybe third or fourth option in the receiving game that the Gophers could desperately use so Pierce Walsh is definitely a name high up on my list now number two for me is zaquan Brian now in limited playing time last year he held his own and he flashed potential if you look at PFF they credited him as being targeted six times and he only allowed two receptions for a total of 19 yards and limited the yards after catch to only four yards he also had the opposing NFL quarterback rating or the opposing quarterbacks with the NFL rating they take a look at it and they see how you would hold up in the NFL rating if you were targeted as a quarterback his was a 43.1 which was only beaten last season by like Tyler nuben and one or two others that were like consistently starting often zaquan Bryan showed he can hold his own he can be that that guy that can step up into a bigger role and hopefully be more of a lockdown but also he lays huge hits on players and we saw that in his tape coming out of high school but you also saw on the field in his limited snaps last year you look to the Bowl game and you're talking about Fannon Jr who was one of the best tight ends in the country one of the better tight ends in the entire country and he comes across on a third down critical third down they're moving down the field he catches the ball as zon Bryan pops and Pops the ball out gets a pass break up and it was a huge play to help get the Gophers off the field he also prevented a touchdown in the scoring zone for Bowling Green in that bowl game as well so zaquan Bryant I think he's going to step up maybe he's the third quarterback fourth quarterback in this room right now behind Justin Wally and behind the transfer it seems like right now but he could be that next man up and I think think he will see time in the rotation time on the field and I think he's going to impress in that time on the field so much so that I think he could not only work himself into more consistent snaps this year but he could be a starter in Justin Wally's place or Ethan Robinson's place next year as both won't be on the team anymore so Z won Bryan is a key piece and I think he is going to be a guy that is a starter in 25 but finds his first uh real time this upcoming season now my number three player on this list is Jackson Howard coming from LSU coming back home to Minnesota and I think he's going to be ready now he might be that second guy to fill behind J Joiner slot J Joiner is clearly going to be the starter but we rotate defensive lineman so consistently you usually have about eight deep you have two at each position at least and they're constantly rotating keeping fresh legs so you can get after the quarterback well I think this new defensive coordinator and Coach heatherman is really going to want to get after the quarterback really want to put the pressure on really want to Blitz really want to get after it that means more time for your Jackson Howard more time for your guys behind J Joiner and uh Danny Stout which means hopefully you see a little bit more Anthony Smith hopefully you see a little bit more Jackson Howard and Jackson Howard could actually play behind Danny strigo as well I think that's actually where he might be to start off this year playing behind Danny strio and then uh Anthony Smith is playing behind jaw joiners sorry I mixed that up a little bit right there but regardless I think all four of those guys are gonna get a ton of reps this year and Jackson Howard's going to show why he was the best player in the state of Minnesota as a high school recruit of 2023 and he might show why LSU probably should have done more to keep him on hand and get him more minutes but LSU is a talent Factor as well so Jackson Howard happy to have him back I think he has a breakout season or he's a player who gets more he's my guy one of my guys uh player that gets more time this upcoming season and can work into being the guy a top starter in 2025 now I've got uh three more names for you two more on offense one more on defense the next one on offense I want to talk about is Kendrick laner I've been talking about him for the last year and a half now it seems early spring last year I was impressed by him ping into fall Camp impressed by him even more coach Fleck seemed to talk about him Non-Stop and talked about how he's grasping things and he was really impressive for a true freshman and when you saw him last year we saw him running with the twos a lot and then you get into the spring sessions this year he runs with the ones a lot especially with Daniel Jackson not on the field I think he's going to put his name into the conversation to be one of those next guys to step up because Daniel Jackson's leaving this year uh Elijah Spencer's leaving this year they don't have eligibility left and lcky Brockington will be back for one final season I think Kendrick laner find some time find some reps find some opportunities this year and he moves into a full-time starter in 2025 now one more on each side of the ball we'll go to defense first and that's Tyler stolski Tyler stolski walk-on player I believe he earned a scholarship this offseason but I can't officially say for sure Tyler stolski made 21 of his 25 tackles last year in three games where he got his first opportunity seven versus Purdue eight versus Ohio State six versus Bowling Green now these were opportunities where other players went down to injury Cody lindenberg was hurt Maverick Bowski was hurt the linebacker room was torn to shreds but Tyler stoy came in and he gave us some consistent minutes he also had a sack in the bowl game and I think he continues to build off that because as the game slows down after you get that feel for in-game experience things start to tick up I don't think he's going to be a starter on the team this year I think that's definitely lindenberg and Maverick barowski but I think he can find himself in that rotation of linebackers where he gets some opportunities here and there and rotates in so I think when he does that he'll get some feel he'll get some opportunities now if Cody lindenberg leaves for the NFL maybe that's an opportunity for him to step up next year and be a starter type player or be a heav heavily rotated linebacker but I think stolski is in for a big season and finally my last player Philip Daniels I would not be surprised if he wins the right tackle battle against uh Martez Lewis and Aluma coming in as a transfer I think Philip Daniels is teed up to be a starter for this gopher team and if it's not in 2024 it's G to be in 2025 I think he's gonna find himself if he doesn't get that starter position against Martez Lewis uh and Aluma I think overall that he ends up playing a role similar similar to what we saw Greg Johnson do last year where he might not start but he'll find way on the field he'll find his way into that sixth extra offensive lineman for some packages and he will be a guy who gets some opportunity and ingame experience because he will likely be a starter in 2025 so those are my six my guys again that's Pierce Walsh uh Kendrick laner and Philip Daniels on the offensive side zaquan Bryan uh Jackson Howard and Tyler stolski on the defensive side let me know your thoughts in the comments below let me know who your guys are in the comments below but I look forward to the goph for season coming up and we'll be sure to talk more football as it keeps on approaching here at lockon Golden Gophers that's going to do it for us on today's show thank you so much again for listening to lock and be sure to leave comments be sure to talk to others in the comments below but most of all we're going to roll the boat Sky ma go goers as always and oh yeah please do not forget to hit subscribe