Who replaces Decker? Everybody who's left

Troy Stoudermire was a receiving rookie last year, having recently moved from defense to offense. He was a freshman, but even then he could see it: When Eric Decker was injured, there just wasn't enough experience in the receiving corps for somebody to step up.

That has to change, because Decker is again sidelined. And it will, Stoudermire said.

"When Eric went down last year, I felt nobody really stepped up to be that guy on our team," Stoudermire said. "I feel this year a lot of guys, including myself, are ready and willing to be that guy. Both on and off the field."

The Gophers football team needs that to be true, starting Saturday night against Michigan State. Decker has a badly sprained left foot and will have surgery Tuesday in Charlotte, N.C., that will end his season with four regular-season games left. He is expected to be fully recovered in six to nine months.

Last year pretty much the same thing happened. The Gophers were off to a 7-1 start and were playing a tight game against Northwestern at home when Decker sustained a high ankle sprain that kept him out of one game and hampered him in the rest. Minnesota lost to the Wildcats in the final minute and didn't win again.

This year? Same plot, but Stoudermire, Brandon Green and Da'Jon McKnight -- all sophomores who were part of coach Tim Brewster's first full recruiting class -- believe they're ready to supply a different outcome. Add speedy freshman Bryant Allen and junior college transfer Hayo Carpenter and you have the group from which a new leader will have to emerge.

"We know we have to," said McKnight, whose only catch this season came on a two-point conversion. "As a group, we have to step up. Eric is one of our best players. He has fallen. Now we have to fill that void."

Easier said than done. Decker had 50 receptions. That's 21 more than tight end Nick Tow-Arnett, who has 19 as the Gophers' second-leading receiver. Stoudermire has 18 catches, Green 14. But in talking to the receivers, one thing is clear: Nobody seems intimidated by the challenge.

"There hasn't been a sense of trepidation," Brewster said. "It's the sense of, 'Hey, next man up.'"

Now offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch will look to take advantage of what each of the other receivers does well. That means less moving people around.

Green might be the smoothest route- runner in the group, and he has proven he can make the big catch, as he did against Syracuse and California.

Stoudermire is the most explosive of the bunch, which could serve him well in the slot. McKnight is big and strong and has an impressive vertical jump, which could come in handy near the goal line.

"Formationally you don't need to be as diverse," Fisch said. "You just get the guys lined up."

It could be an opportunity for Allen, who made his first catch last week, and Carpenter, a speedster who was highly regarded coming out of junior college.

Tow-Arnett also figures to play a bigger role as the Gophers re-identify key targets.

"We have to do the same things we did when he was here, which is go out and work hard, keep competing and go from there," Green said.

Quarterback Adam Weber knows he will miss Decker; the two have a friendship that translated into a wonderful on-field combination. Now Weber and MarQueis Gray will have to form different on-field relationships with their receivers.

"We'll need guys to make big plays the next couple games," Weber said. "Especially since we're struggling getting the ball downfield. We're going to have to hit some intermediate passes, make small plays into big plays."