Perfect start has Gophers' confidence soaring

MINNEAPOLIS - Seven of the 11 teams in the Big Ten are off to a 2-0 start this season.

Truth be told, most teams from the six power conferences in college football are expected to be 2-0 at this point every season, as more and more programs schedule weaker opponents early to build up their record for the bowl game selection process.

But after the misery of a 1-11 finish last year, it's hard to deny the Gophers their moment to soak up this early success.

"We've been able to enjoy it a little more than most people would," quarterback Adam Weber said. "We're tired of how things were going, and we're going to change things."

With victories at home against Northern Illinois and on the road against Bowling Green, the Gophers have done what they weren't able to do last year - beat the teams they are supposed to beat.

You could even call last week's 42-17 win over the Falcons an upset - the oddsmakers in Vegas sure did - after Bowling Green defeated nationally ranked Pittsburgh on the road the week before.

On Saturday, the Gophers host Montana State from the Football Championship Subdivision, formerly known as I-AA. It will be another test to see how far they have come in coach Tim Brewster's second season.

Last year, the Gophers were throttled at home by North Dakota State. A convincing win over the Bobcats would be the next step in putting 2007 behind them.

"It's a start, not an end," Brewster said. "We're not overly excited. We're not too high. We're not too low. We've just got to keep going."

The Bobcats (1-1) are still trying to figure out what kind of team they have after an odd start to the season. They opened the season with a 59-3 win over Division II Adams State. Then they moved up with the big boys and were thumped by Kansas State 69-10.

"It is a very strange feeling," Montana State coach Rob Ash said after last week's loss to the Wildcats. "We had a big win and a big loss, and both of them were so lopsided that we do not really know a lot yet. It is just difficult to know where to go from here because we do not know what type of club we have."

Brewster knows the feeling.

But his second year is so far off to a smoother start, with Weber showing much more command of coordinator Mike Dunbar's complicated spread offense and the defense looking competent after fielding one of the worst units in the nation in 2007.

Last week was an eye-opener. After getting shredded by the Falcons at home in 2007, the Gophers created five turnovers and turned them into 28 points to blow the game open in the fourth quarter.

"I think we saw the difference," linebacker Deon Hightower said. "We talked to a few players afterward and they just said they felt like they played a whole new different team. That's the biggest thing, just improving day in and day out after that game."

The familiarity, and the early success, is breeding a new kind of confidence in the halls of the Gibson-Nagurski football complex on campus.

"Absolutely. It's a good thing to win. Winning breeds winning, you know?" Brewster said. "I totally believe in that theory. It's my responsibility to make sure that they understand how they got to that point, with the work ethic that we've identified ourselves with. ... I expect the same thing this week and I'm going to demand the same thing this week."

They will have to do it without leading rusher Duane Bennett, who is out for the season after a knee injury suffered at Bowling Green. Starting center Jeff Tow-Arnett also will not play, meaning redshirt freshman Trey Davis will get the nod.

Brewster made it a point to say the Gophers will be able to move on without Bennett, who had been the team's most versatile offensive threat this season. That should be true against Montana State, but the real test will come when Minnesota opens Big Ten play at Ohio State on Sept. 27.

The Horseshoe is still two weeks away, though. For now, the Gophers are trying to enjoy something they rarely experienced last year - victory.

"This is great for our confidence," offensive lineman Dom Alford said. "Right now we're 2-0. A lot of people really doubted us this year. For us to get off to a good start, it's really boosted our morale. We like winning.

"Last year we only got that one win. In the locker room after the game, the spirits were just so high. A lot of guys are hungry."