Dein erstes Forum » ACCLIMATED: New defensive coordinator

MINNEAPOLIS -- Last year, Minnesota took a losing record and winter clothes to the postseason.The Gophers will bring a better vibe to their bowl game this time, making sure to pack the flip-flops, too.After qualifying for the 2015 Quick Lane Bowl in Detroit at 5-7 on the strength of their graduation rate because there initially werent enough eligible NCAA FBS teams to fill all the slots, the Gophers (8-4) were picked for the Holiday Bowl in San Diego. The game is Dec. 27.Beautiful spot, wide receiver Drew Wolitarsky said. I think the guys will be pretty amped to go and be able to kind of free roam and hit the beach and enjoy ourselves. I think that the energy will be up and a lot more positive, for sure.When they lost the last game on their schedule last year to Wisconsin, the Gophers figured they were done. They had to rally to beat a non-power-conference opponent, Central Michigan, in an indoor stadium in a northern city.A lot of guys had checked out, having such a disappointing season, but our ability to come back and win that was big, Wolitarsky said. I think that can lead us to have some momentum to win this one too.The venue shift from drab to sunny sure helps, a selling point not lost on the university in the form of a Gophers helmet planted in the sand on the front page graphic on the athletic department website.Facing a daunting Pac-12 foe, Washington State, adds meaning. So does the opportunity to reach nine victories for the first time in 13 years and only the second time since 1905.We wanted it to be Pasadena, Wolitarsky said, referencing the Rose Bowl, but it didnt go as we planned, obviously. But were very fortunate to be here and get those nine wins.This will be the programs 14th appearance in a bowl game in the last 18 seasons, a stretch during which the lineup of postseason games has swelled considerably. Gophers fans have been presented with opportunities to visit Nashville, Tennessee, and Tempe, Arizona, three times each and El Paso, Texas, and Houston twice. Thats a glaring example of why the Big Ten recently shuffled the allocation process, and Minnesota this year will benefit. The Citrus Bowl two seasons ago on New Years Day is the only other bid in the last 15 years that Gophers fans were fired up for.For Wolitarsky, the senior from Santa Clarita, California, hell get to play in his home state in front of more than 100 family members and friends instead of the usual 10 or so at a regular-season game.So Ive got find some tickets, Wolitarsky said.For coach Tracy Claeys, the game is confirmation from athletic director Mark Coyle that hes staying on the job for the foreseeable future.Whenever you have a new boss you dont know how they feel and some of them, they want to bring in their own person, Claeys said. So I trust him and respect him an awful lot. He chose to come back here, and that was important to a lot of us. Wed like to have somebody in place whos not looking for the next job.---For more college football coverage: http://www.collegefootball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25Air Max Outlet . Pettersen, winner of last years Evian Championships, had nine birdies and three bogeys, holding off a series of challengers led by Marion Ricordeau of France. The second-ranked Norwegian made her season debut after missing the LPGA Tours opening event last month in the Bahamas because of a shoulder injury. Cheap Air Max For Sale . Carey Price didnt, but he still came out on top against one of his rivals for the No. 1 job at the Sochi Games. The Anahim Lake, B.C., native was stellar in making 39 saves in his home province and Lars Eller got credit for a bizarre short-handed winner as the Canadiens defeated the Canucks 4-1. https://www.airmaxchina.us/ . -- Eastern Kentucky thrives off creating havoc for others. Air Max From China . Now tied for second in the league in shootout goals, the 24-year-old likes to see what the opposing goaltender has in store before he ultimately lands on a move. Cheap Air Max Free Shipping . Detroit and Boston are deadlocked, 1-1, and Tigers manager Jim Leyland could be forgiven if he was caught rationalizing instead of dissecting how his club could blow a 5-1 lead late in Game 2.INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indianapolis Colts are betting big on their offensive line.They made a huge investment in left tackle Anthony Castonzo last September. They went heavy on offensive linemen in Aprils draft. They brought in Joe Philbin, who has instituted a hands-on approach to fixing the line. Now everyone wants to see if the payoff will be making the playoffs.Its a high-stakes risk for one of last seasons most disappointing teams.Anytime your quarterback gets hurt -- if he tried to scramble, he shouldnt have had to scramble, he should be able to stay in the pocket, Castonzo said. Obviously, we want to play as well as we can, so thats the goal. The goal is always 0.0 sacks.Nobody can expect perfection, but a year ago the offensive line was the Colts most glaring problem.Andrew Luck missed nine games with an assortment of injuries, backup Matt Hasselbeck struggled with multiple injuries during the second half of the season, third-stringer Charlie Whitehurst missed the season finale with an injured hamstring. Yet somehow the Colts won their last game with two street free agents who had been in town less than a week.None of those four is back for training camp, which opens July 26 at Anderson University, a Division III school about 30 miles northeast of Indy.The chaotic twists and turns provided a clear blueprint for Indys offseason.Instead of gambling on expensive free agents, general manager Ryan Grigson took the long-term approach by using his first-round draft pick on center Ryan Kelly, firming up the most unstable position along the line. Grigson didnt stop there, using half of his eight picks on linemen.Coach Chuck Pagano revamped his staff by keeping interim offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski and bringing in eight assistants including Philbin, the former Miami Dolphins head coach who has already made strides in bringing along this young offensive line.Luck also is chipping in by refining his ability to slide to a stop.Its part of practice. A big part of practice is making it as game-like as possible, Luck said in June, following his first action at Lucas Oil Stadium since lacerating his kidney when he didnt slide in early November. With all things, if you throw an interception you start running after the guy that intercepted it.dddddddddddd If youre out running and youre not near the sidelines, you slide.While that sounds good, Castonzo understands Indy will cash in if everybody helps Luck stay upright.Here are some other things to watch during training camp:TURNOVER TURNAROUND: Injuries werent Indys only problem last season. Luck threw two interceptions in a season-opening loss at Buffalo before things really got bad. He wound up throwing 12 interceptions in seven games, a pace that would have shattered his previous career high of 18 from his rookie season. Luck has averaged 1.0 interception per game through his first 55 NFL games -- a number that must be reduced to reach a Super Bowl.WHAT RUSH?: The Colts need help in this area on offense and defense. Frank Gore is still smarting after his streak of consecutive 1,000-yard seasons ended at four in 2015. At age 33, Gore is convinced he can finally end the Colts drought of 1,000-yard runners. The last was Joseph Addai in 2007. Defensively, Robert Mathis is still one of the leagues most feared pass rushers, but the Colts need to find a complement -- and a successor -- to the 35-year-old linebacker who is entering the final year of his contract.GETTING ACCLIMATED: New defensive coordinator Ted Monachino will start his tenure by trying to fix the Colts run defense. Chudzinski, who replaced the fired Pep Hamilton in November, has finally had time to install his own offense. How much will change? The Colts havent hinted at any secrets and certainly didnt provide much of a glimpse during offseason workouts. The next few weeks will be the first time most fans will get a real chance of seeing the progression.SILENT TREATMENT: One year ago, the pre-camp talk focused on Super Bowl titles. Not this year. Though players and coaches have almost universally taken the words Super and Bowl out of their vocabulary, they acknowledge the goal remains unchanged: bringing home the Lombardi Trophy.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '