As for Hamner, he was injured early, made a nice comeback, and then disappeared after fumbling toward the end of a brilliant game at Penn State. This season, against those same teams, Minnesota averaged almost 100 yards less. That happened only once last year. The Metrodome used to be filled with fans frustrated because the Gophers' defensive shortcomings outweighed their offensive efficiency. The groans in the Dome are still there, but for the opposite reason.
Patience is nice, but so are points.
Poor showings against Indiana and Iowa in the Gophers' final two games could lead to further grumblings over Uzelac's system. Just as likely, however, is that Uzelac and his offensive system will touch down at location No. 7 long before the decade is over.