Tanner Morgan 'takes the most crap,' but Gophers QB has 'carried himself so well'

Nov. 27—When Mitch Leidner isn't out deer hunting in the fall, the former Gophers quarterback is closely watching his old team, and after the U's 14-10 loss to Bowling Green in September, Leidner felt post-traumatic stress.

In Leidner's junior season in 2015, the U barely beat Kent State, 10-7. The home fans booed the poor offensive performance against a Mid-American Conference opponent and then-head coach Jerry Kill bristled at that response in what would be his fifth and final season at the U.

"We ended up getting the win, but it was one of the worst feelings because you know you didn't play good and you should have blown that team out," Leidner told the Pioneer Press this week.

After Bowling Green won as a 31-point underdog, Leidner empathized with quarterback Tanner Morgan.

"What I should have done is text him," Leidner said. "Again, I know the feeling."

Morgan and the Gophers bounced back to win four straight games in October, yet after a poor offensive outing in a loss to Illinois and some missed throws in a loss at Iowa, Morgan again found himself at the blunt end of criticism. Again, Leidner knew the feeling.

Leidner started 41 games for the Gophers from 2013-16 and the doubters grew after a successful season and a trip to the Citrus Bowl in 2014. Leidner said he didn't have many connections to social media back then, but he heard about the naysayers second-hand.

"I would be like 'Oh, yeah, whatever,' " he said. "I didn't really pay attention a whole lot."

Morgan said he mostly checks out of his Twitter and Instagram accounts during the season, but like Leidner, the criticism reaches him.

"The external factors, he hears," Fleck said. "I was told a long time ago, people that say, 'I ignore all of that, don't listen to that,' that is fake. That is false. We all hear it and we all see it. It's what you do with it."

Morgan won his 25th game as a starter last week at Indiana, becoming Minnesota's winningest quarterback since that stat was tracked starting in 1959. Morgan (25-12) passed Leidner (24-17), which was news to Leidner. Morgan's feat also drew derision because the mark wasn't set higher.

So, even when he's won, it's taken down a peg or two.

"I have felt for him; it's just too bad," Leidner said "He's done a lot of good things for the program and the university and he's carried himself so well. You just know he's worked his (butt) off."

Morgan will lead Minnesota (7-4, 5-3 Big Ten) against No. 14 Wisconsin (8-3, 6-2) in the Battle for Paul Bunyan's Axe at 3 p.m. Saturday at Huntington Bank Stadium. Against a lights-out Badgers defense, Morgan will likely need to make some big throws to pull off an upset. But without a home victory against the rivals since 2003, any win will be monumental.

Morgan, who is completing his fifth season, has not said if he will take advantage of a sixth year of eligibility next season. Saturday is "Senior Day," yet if Morgan and other older players participate in the pregame festivities, it doesn't necessarily mean this is their last season, Fleck said.

The criticism Morgan faces has increased since an 11-2 season in 2019, which included a victory over a ranked Auburn team in the Outback Bowl. Morgan, who has the highest completion percentage (61.2) and winning percentage (.676), has seen his numbers drop since then. There is no denying that. But it was clear what Morgan has meant to the program after Fleck awarded him a game ball inside the visiting locker room at Memorial Stadium last weekend.

"I have the most respect for that guy," receiver Chris Autman-Bell said. "He takes the most crap every day from all fans, all people in the world. He has the hardest positions in the world, the hardest position on the football team. I'm proud of that guy, I love him to death."

Gophers offensive coordinator Mike Sanford Jr., didn't know about the wins record until Fleck announced it to the team.

"When I saw that and looked over at Tanner, I'll be honest, I got choked up thinking about what he's been through, who he is as a human," Sanford said. "... This is truly one of the best people that I've ever been around. Not just to coach but to spend time with and hear their story and to get into deep conversations with. I can't say enough about him and he's why I do what I do. People like Tanner Morgan are why I love to coach."

Morgan has played on after losing his father, Ted — his confidant, coach, mentor and friend — to cancer in July.

"That was his guy," Fleck said.

Morgan, who is generously listed at 6-foot-2, was going to go to Western Michigan, before Fleck left and recruited him to Minnesota. He believed in himself enough to commit immediately and arrive at the U sight unseen.

"All he does is continue to rise to the top despite some of the physical challenges," Fleck said. "He is a phenomenal competitor. ... He is very courageous."

Leidner wondered how many minor injuries Morgan has had to overcome to be Minnesota's only starting quarterback since midway through the 2018 season. Leidner played through a broken wrist to his non-throwing arm since 2014 and had torn ligaments in his foot through most of the 9-4 season in 2016. There were other issues, too, "shoulders, knees, elbows, ankles, everything," he said.

The only time Morgan was publicly close to missing a game was in 2019 when he was concussed against Iowa. He cleared protocols and played against Northwestern the following next week and has started 37 straight games.

After Bowling Green, Morgan was swaying at the podium for a news conference three days later. "Tanner takes ownership to a completely different level," Fleck said. "He almost takes it to a head-coach level where you own the entire thing."

Morgan has leaned on his faith at those times.

"Truthfully, it's always a really good reminder of where my identity is at," he said after the Illinois loss. "It can be very easy to get caught up in being a University of Minnesota Golden Gopher football player when things are going well. When it doesn't, it's a great reminder of where my true identity is and that is in Christ."

Linebacker Jack Gibbens has seen Morgan be "on-point all the time," but as one of his roommates, he also has seen Morgan be goofy, play golf in the summer and just relax at home.

Leidner, now a traveling salesman of steel products and a part-time seven-on-seven coach in Sauk Rapids, Minn., has chatted a few times with Morgan, but it's Conor Rhoda, who works for a software company in St. Paul, who really stays in touch. They don't talk football very much, but Rhoda, who was 4-3 as a starter in 2016-17, did text Morgan about football after the Indiana win last week.

The gist of the message: "You have to be really proud of what you've done. You've done what nobody else has done here."

"I just said this place was starving for consistent quarterback play and Mitch brought a little bit of that," Rhoda said. "... Unfortunately for fans, I think that is hard to keep in perspective when they feel like the rest of the team is a step above what it was five years ago. Although Tanner is the most-consistent product they've had, it might feel that he has held them back. Whether he has or hasn't, it's tough for people to keep that in perspective."

WINNINGEST GOPHER QUARTERBACKS

1. Tanner Morgan, 25-12

2. Mitch Leidner, 24-17

3. Asad Abdul-Khaliq, 22-15

4. Bryan Cupito, 20-16

5. Ricky Foggie, 20-19

6. Adam Weber, 17-33

7. Sandy Stephens, 16-9

8. Tony Dungy, 16-16

9. Billy Cockerman, 12-8

10t. John Hankinson, 10-8-1

10t. Cory Sauter, 10-24

Source: Gopher Athletics

Note: Records kept since 1959