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Weber honored by Big Ten
The Gophers freshman quarterback was named co-offensive player of the week with Purdue quarterback Curtis Painter.
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It didn't take Gophers freshman quarterback Adam Weber long to earn his first Big Ten honor.
Nine days after making his college debut, Weber was named Big Ten co-offensive player of the week Monday for his performance in a 41-35 triple-overtime victory against Miami (Ohio).
"I certainly didn't expect this," said Weber, who shared the honor with Purdue quarterback Curtis Painter. "It was definitely a surprise."
Weber set a school freshman record with 368 total yards and accounted for five touchdowns. His total offensive output ranked 13th in school history.
He completed 26 of 40 passes for 271 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed for 97 yards and one touchdown on 16 carries.
Weber threw two touchdown passes each to Eric Decker and Ernie Wheelwright. As good as Weber's final numbers were, they could have been better if not for several drops by his receivers.
"Everything kind of slowed down for me out there," Weber said. "I made better decisions, my reads were better. I just felt more comfortable."
Weber leads the Big Ten in total offense (314.0 yards) through two games. He had a steady second half after a slow start in the opener against Bowling Green and then followed that with a poised performance in the triple-overtime game.
"He's been prepared and he's played extremely well for two weeks," Gophers coach Tim Brewster said. "I told him that this is where the bar is at. We're not going to take a bunch of up-and-down. The bar has been set."
Brewster said he was particularly impressed with Weber's decision-making and poise when Miami blitzed. He didn't panic or take off running. He stayed in the pocket and was decisive in his throws. His 59-yard catch-and-run touchdown pass to Decker in the fourth quarter came against a heavy blitz.
"[Offensive coordinator Mike Dunbar] really instills in us that when they blitz, they're taking a risk," Weber said. "We have to use that as an opportunity to exploit the defense."
Despite his performance and Big Ten accolade, Weber was less than satisfied. He said the offense still had too many mistakes and breakdowns.
"We missed a lot of opportunities," he said. "You look at the tape and you see things that need to be corrected. Yeah, we feel pretty good about how we've played, but there is still a world of improvement that we can make."
Chip Scoggins • ascoggins@startribune.com
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