PJ Fleck: Mariano Sori-Marin the 'Joe Rossi Jr.' of Gophers defense
Mariano Sori-Marin #55 of the Minnesota Golden Gophers looks to the sideline during the fourth quarter at SHI Stadium on October 19, 2019 in Piscataway, New Jersey. Minnesota defeated Rutgers 42-7. ((Photo by Corey Perrine/Getty Images))
MINNEAPOLIS - It wasn’t that long ago that Mariano Sori-Marin was a wide-eyed underclassman on the University of Minnesota football team, looking up to the likes of Carter Coughlin, Thomas Barber and Kamal Martin.
Now, the junior from Illinois is one of the leaders of the Minnesota defense. He’s also really the only healthy returning experience among linebackers. Martin and Coughlin are in the NFL, Barber graduated and Braelin Oliver is unlikely to be ready to play when the fall season starts due to an injury in spring practice.
After a season delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Gophers put on the pads last week and held a scrimmage on Saturday. In two weeks, they kick off an eight-game regular season against Michigan for the Little Brown Jug under the lights at TCF Bank Stadium.
“This defense and this team knows the urgency we need to have at practices, and now it’s just time to go. We’re right where we need to be and I think guys are really excited about what’s to come,” Sori-Marin said last week.
Sori-Marin came to Minnesota after receiving little interest from bigger Division I schools and mainly focusing on a future in the Ivy League. He studies finance at the Carlson School of Management, and a conversation with P.J. Fleck was enough to make him a Gopher.
Sori-Marin played in every game last season, making seven starts to fill in for Martin, who battled injuries last season. Sori-Marin finished with 42 tackles, and had five stops in Minnesota’s historic win over Penn State. He played some of his best football in the Gophers’ biggest games last season.
He says he’s become a student of the game, learning from Martin, Barber and Coughlin. He used his free time during COVID-19 quarantine to study film, comb through playbooks, understand schemes and become a better leader. He initiated linebacker Zoom meetings, calls with the defense and organized captain’s practices that could be done safely under health protocols.
“We were away from coaches, away from the facility, so guys really needed to step up and take responsibility of the football team and be a player-led team,” Sori-Marin said. “We were without coaches for the entire summer, so it was player-led workouts, player-led captain’s practices, player-led film sessions. It was really put on a lot of leaders’ shoulders, so it was a great opportunity for me to show my leadership traits.”
Fleck considers him one of the smartest players on the team.
“You take a really smart player and you match that love for football, that’s what you see in his style of play. He is a prototypical Big Ten linebacker. He is basically Joe Rossi Jr. on the field,” Fleck said. “He is what you want when you draw up a middle linebacker, and outside backer in football, and we’re so thankful to have him.”
Sori-Marin played all three linebacker positions last year for the Gophers, who lost as many as seven starters from last season’s historic 11-2 run. But he’s not alone in being a leader, and he’ll lean on teammates like Coney Durr, Jordan Howden, Boye Mafe, Esezi Otomewu and Micah Dew-Treadway.
While the Gophers piled up an average of 34 points per game last season, the defense did its part too. Minnesota was ninth nationally in pass defense (184.2), 23rd in rushing defense (122.4) and 10th in total defense (306.6). They also tied for 37th in scoring defense, allowing about 22.5 points per game.
A lot of the faces on the 2020 defense might not be familiar, but the goals remain the same.
“I think at every single position there’s studs on this defense and I think fans are going to be really excited about a lot of guys on this team. We’re excited to get after it,” Sori Marin said.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a condensed schedule, the Gophers’ defense won’t have the luxury of the non-conference season to work out kinks. They’ll have to come out flying from the opening kickoff against the Wolverines.