From Kirk Ciarrocca and Joe Harasymiak to Athan Kaliakmanis and Flip Dixon, the Minnesota-to-Rutgers coaching and player pipeline has flowed eastward for the most part. But the most recent person who’s made the westward Rutgers-to-Minnesota journey just might have the biggest say in what happens when the Gophers meet the Scarlet Knights on Saturday in Piscataway, N.J.
Corey Hetherman, the Gophers’ first-year defensive coordinator, spent the 2022 and ‘23 seasons as linebackers coach at Rutgers. Hetherman, a native of Oxford, Mass., replaced Joe Rossi, another Rutgers coaching alum who left Minnesota to become defensive coordinator at Michigan State.
Hetherman has quickly put his stamp on the Gophers defense, a ball-hawking group that ranks second nationally with 15 interceptions, 12th nationally with 16.8 points allowed per game and ninth nationally in total defense, allowing an average of 290.6 yards. In down-to-the wire victories over USC, UCLA and Illinois, the Gophers defense secured each victory with a takeaway in the final minute of the fourth quarter.
Where coach P.J. Fleck stresses complementary football among the offense, defense and special teams, Hetherman breaks it down with the defense so the line, linebackers and secondary complement each other, too.
“Everything always has to be tied in,” Hetherman said. “We always have to work together on the front end and back end. There’s no ‘every once in a while’ with certain coverages. The majority of the things we do, it’s all tied in from the front to the back.”
The back end, especially at safety, is where the Gophers have surprised with how quickly they’ve adjusted to life without Tyler Nubin, the All-America safety who’s a rookie with the New York Giants. True freshman Koi Perich burst onto the scene with his five interceptions, which rank second in the nation. Redshirt freshman Kerry Brown ranks second on the team with 43 tackles and has two interceptions. Redshirt sophomore Aidan Gousby has 20 tackles.
Perich had game-sealing interceptions against USC and UCLA, and Brown followed last week with back-to-back big plays at Illinois. With the Gophers leading 22-17 with 4:05 left and Illinois at the Minnesota 33-yard line, Brown dropped running back Josh McCray for a 2-yard loss on third-and-2. On the next play, Brown knocked down Luke Altmyer’s pass intended for Zakhari Franklin, producing a turnover on downs with 3:17 to play.
“Early in the game, he comes down the line of scrimmage and misses a tackle,” Hetherman said. “Late in the game, he has the same exact play. He takes a shot; he makes the tackle for loss. He’s a guy who’s going to get better every single time he has something. And it’s over and over again. … He’s a fast learner. He loves football. He cares about getting better every single rep.”
