The Gophers struggled to move the ball in the first half but bounced back in the second half to defeat UCLA 21-17 on Saturday.

As the clock drew to a close in the fourth quarter, Gophers quarterback Max Brosmer led his team inside the five-yard line and found an open Darius Taylor in the flat for a walk-in touchdown to take a 21-17 lead with 31 seconds left.

Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck said Brosmer went through four reads and the offensive line gave him time to find Taylor for his third receiving touchdown of the season after not catching his freshman year.

The Gophers’ slow start to the game was not unusual for them. The team rushed for 26 yards on 13 carries totaling 84 yards in the first half, meaning they needed to play catch up and have a truthful conversation from Fleck.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever talked to a team like that at halftime,” Fleck said. “It was real honest to every single position group.”

Brosmer said the speech delivered by his head coach at the half challenged the team.

“It was more of that was not our best 30 minutes of football,” Brosmer said.

Fleck knew his team understood his message when UCLA quarterback Ethan Garbers’ final Hail Mary was intercepted by Gophers freshman Koi Perich for his second pick of the game to seal a Gophers win.

The pick marked Perich’s fourth interception of the season, handing him sole possession of the freshman interception record at Minnesota.

“It means a lot honestly to be on top of that with all the NFL safeties that have come through here,” Perich said. “It’s pretty cool. But I got to give credit to everybody, especially the coaches, they put me in the right spots.”

The Gophers started the second half down 10-0. The Gophers picked up 46 yards on their first five plays of the third quarter. Brosmer found a wide-open Elijah Spencer on a coverage bust by UCLA for a touchdown, cutting their deficit to three points.

Minnesota’s momentum continued as Garbers threw off his back foot late to wide receiver Moliki Matavao, but Perich dove in front for his first interception of the day.

Brosmer looked to feast off the energy by taking a deep shot to Daniel Jackson and was awarded with a pass interference call making it first-and-goal. Moments later, Taylor broke through the UCLA defense on his third rush giving the Gophers a 14-10 lead.

UCLA responded when Garbers launched for his receiver, J.Michael Sturdivant, who beat Gopher Ethan Robinson for a 42-yard touchdown and reclaimed a three-point lead for UCLA.

Minnesota’s offense was unfazed on the road as Brosmer led his troops down the field for a go-ahead score with under a minute remaining.

As time expired Perich picked off Garbers near the goal line on a Hail Mary.

Because the Gophers dug themselves a hole in the first half with a stagnant offense and leaky defense, it came down to the final play.

Minnesota tripped over themselves dropping two passes on the opening drive forcing a three-and-out.

UCLA came out firing with Garbers who picked apart the Gophers’ defense on the first drive. Bruins running back Keegan Jones capped off the drive punching it in for a touchdown.

A sense of hope illuminated for the Gophers when defensive lineman Deven Eastern batted a throw from Garbers. The ball was intercepted by Cody Lindenberg.

The Gophers’ defense supplied a struggling offense that went scoreless in the first quarter for the fourth time in seven games with the ball. Minnesota has scored 3 points against their five Power Four opponents in the first 15 minutes. 

Following back-to-back punts, the Gophers’ offense had 32 yards through three drives and picked up 47 yards on its fourth, leading to a 43-yard field goal attempt. Dragan Kesich pulled it wide right for his sixth miss in 13 attempts.

UCLA ended the first half with the upper hand at 10-0 at halftime. The first time the Bruins led at halftime all season.

Fleck’s speech spurred a second-half comeback that helped Minnesota surpass .500 for the first time since its week three win over Nevada, now a 4-3 overall record.

Taylor said the team was aided by the 12,000 Gophers fans in Pasadena, California.

“It was a great feeling,” Taylor said. “It was kind of like a home game away from home.”

Saturday’s win for the Gophers marked their first game at the iconic Rose Bowl Stadium since 1962 when they defeated UCLA 21-3 in the Rose Bowl.

At first, Gophers’ quarterback Max Brosmer was short of the goal line.

Then the call was overturned.

Brosmer took the snap and lunged into center Greg Johnson, but USC’s defense stopped the initial push. A second effort and some help from his teammates allowed Brosmer to break the plane and score the go-ahead touchdown putting Minnesota ahead 24-17 in the fourth quarter.

Freshman defensive back Koi Perich sealed the victory with an interception on the goal line that sent fans to rush the field.

Fleck told Perich he would develop on the field and this type of game was what Fleck envisioned for the freshman.

“(Perich) always thinks he’s getting an interception,” Fleck said. “He’d be all 11 if he could … I give him a lot of credit. He could have went a lot of different places. Again, we’re not the highest bidder, but he loves the state of Minnesota.”

Perich said when the fans hoisted him up after the game on the field, it was one of the coolest moments of his life.

Momentum shifted with 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter.

USC drove into the Gophers territory and Gophers defensive lineman Jah Joyner flew around the edge, slashing at USC quarterback Miller Moss’ arm, causing the ball to float in the air right to Gophers linebacker Devon Williams for an interception.

Joyner said he thought the offensive tackle moved early and wanted a false start but did not get the call.

“I thought it was a good move by me. I knew I could beat him off the edge all day,” Joyner said. “So, (I was) able to get my hand up and deflect the pass.”

After a holding penalty pushed the Gophers back, a defensive pass interference reignited the drive, making it first-and-goal. A read option saw Brosmer keep it for the first time this season and walk into the end zone for a touchdown, tying the game at 17.

An intentional grounding penalty helped Minnesota stop the Trojans and send the Gophers’ offense back onto the field.

Minnesota’s drive was jump-started after USC linebacker Easton Mascarenas-Arnold body-slammed Perich into the turf, causing a penalty.

Brosmer found Le’Meke Brockington for 22 yards on the drive’s first play. The Gophers then turned to running back Darius Taylor to run the clock to the two-minute timeout.

The Gophers rushed four times reaching the half-yard line, but were stuffed on third-and-goal.

Brosmer made his way into the end zone for his third rushing touchdown of the night after a lengthy review.

“Putting the fate of the team on the back of the o-line and what they did the whole game was absolutely incredible,” Brosmer said.

The Gophers quarterback said it was the first time he scored three rushing touchdowns and there was a lot of weight on both sides of him under the pile.

Moss launched a deep pass over the middle, and shades of Penn State’s Sean Clifford’s last-second interception to Jordan Howden in 2019 showed as Perich skied into the air to seal the win.

Saturday’s win played out like a game of cat and mouse that saw both teams take the lead and give it away. The Gophers played most of their games against Power Four teams from behind this season.

After back-to-back punts to start the game, Minnesota played smash-mouth football, rushing on seven of the eight plays leading to the opening score of the game, a Dragan Kesich field goal. Minnesota’s first points came from the Serbian Hammer four times this season.

USC responded with a methodical 15-play, 75-yard drive, manipulating the Gophers’ defense. Moss found USC wide receiver Duce Robinson wide-open in the end zone for a touchdown to give the Trojans the lead.

Taylor dominated Minnesota’s third drive, including a 40-yard burst down the sideline where a defender pulled his facemask and outran a safety to the edge. The ground game was too much for the Trojans, and Brosmer punched it in via the brotherly shove, 10-7 Minnesota.

Perich, coming off a 60-yard punt return against Michigan, forced the first fumble of his career and Ethan Robinson recovered, handing the ball back to Minnesota.

Taylor fumbled, giving it right back to USC, which led to USC’s Michael Lantz drilling a 54-yard field goal to tie the game at 10 as time expired in the half.

The Gophers scored 14 straight points in the second half to seal their first Big Ten win of the season, snapping a six-game losing streak in conference play.

Taylor finished the game with 200 all-purpose yards. He rushed for 144 yards on 25 carries and caught five passes for 56 yards.

“Tonight, my o-line was doing a great job. My tight ends were getting up to that second level,” Taylor said. “If that happens and we’re clicking on all cylinders, I can just be me and make those plays for the team.”

The last time Minnesota beat a top 15 AP-ranked team was No. 14 Wisconsin in 2021 and, coincidentally, the last time the Gophers stormed Huntington Bank Stadium.

Gophers football has yet to click early in games leading to early deficits and uphill battles that led to losses in Big Ten play.

Minnesota has not scored a touchdown in the first quarter in any of their first five games this season. They have yet to win a conference match since Oct. 28, 2023, when they defeated Michigan State.

Their recent loss to Michigan left Minnesota with a 2-3 overall record (0-2 Big Ten record) with three ranked opponents left on the schedule, including No. 11 USC, No. 7 Penn State and No. 24 Illinois.

The margin of error continues to shrink for Gophers football’s effort to make a bowl game. The Gophers must win four of their last seven games to qualify.

Offensive coordinator Greg Harbaugh Jr. said the offense is attempting to score touchdowns on every drive.

“The one thing we have to do offensively is quit feeling out how the other team is,” Harbaugh said. “We have to just go, and that’s been a huge emphasis for our guys this week.”

The Gophers punted on each opening drive against all three Power Four opponents they played in 2024.

Gophers quarterback Max Brosmer said starting games fast comes down to players’ mindset.

“We’re waiting too long to get into a rhythm,” Brosmer said. “We have to be able to move from play one, snap one and drive one.”

Brosmer said the offense will go back to the drawing board to figure out how to become more intentional at the start of games.

The three field goals against Nevada and Rhode Island were the only scores in the first quarter. The Gophers’ Power Four opponents this season shut them out in the first 15 minutes of the game.

Head coach P.J. Fleck said the Gophers are not executing well to start games.

“We have a drop here, missed protection, an early fumble, we have something that gets us off our row, our rhythm,” Fleck said.

A hurdle that comes with the Gophers’ early offensive struggles is that the defense has been identical to start games. North Carolina, Iowa and Michigan took touchdown leads to open the scoring against Minnesota.

The problem was extrapolated in Ann Arbor when the Michigan Wolverines jumped out to a 21-0 lead over the Gophers in the first half.

Fleck said if he had the exact answer, he would have stopped the chaos before it got out of hand.

In six straight Big Ten losses, Minnesota allowed 27 or more points. The Gophers host Southern California on Saturday, who average 34.25 points per game through four games, their only loss coming when they scored less than 27 points.

Gophers defensive back Coleman Bryson said Southern California has explosive athletes on the offensive side of the ball.

“Their passing game is dynamic. Their running game is dynamic. But we’re just worried about doing our best job,” Bryson said.

Southern California is totaling 460 yards of offense per game and leads the Big Ten in passing yards per game (316).

The Gophers are winless in the Big Ten and still have three ranked opponents on their schedule.

But as Fleck says, the Gophers must go 1-0 in this championship season against Southern California on Saturday.

Gophers football gave themselves too much of a mountain to climb in the second half as Michigan staved off their furious comeback and won 27-24.

Minnesota trailed 21-0 in the first half, but in the final 32 minutes, the Gophers outscored the Wolverines 24-6 making the final minutes dependent on an onside kick, recovered by the Gophers but ultimately ruled offsides.

Gophers kicker Dragan Kesich teed up the kick. The ball, hit with perfection and bounded by every Wolverine, was recovered by the Gophers, but there was a flag.

Offside was called on Gopher Matt Kingsbury, erasing a game-changing play. The Wolverines recovered the second kick and ran the clock out to end the game.

The Fox broadcast rules analyst Mike Pereira disagreed with the offside call.

“If you take a look at the high shot, like the all-22, I don’t think he’s breaking the plane,” Pereira said. “It’s so technical, but to me, he’s not.”

Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck said he was 10 yards downfield where the ball was recovered.

“I didn’t hear anything except he was offsides,” Fleck said. “I didn’t see it. We practice that every day, time it up right there on the edge because you have to be if you’re going to recover one of those.”

The Wolverines dominated most of the game, but a sliver of hope entered the hearts of Gophers fans with two minutes left to play. Gophers quarterback Max Brosmer rifled a pass to the back of the endzone where a spinning Daniel Jackson pinned the ball to his chest and got a foot down for the touchdown to bring the score within three.

The Gophers’ second-half surge ended there but began with a frantic final two minutes in the opening half. 

Minnesota maneuvered down the field on third-and-23 near midfield and Brosmer launched a hail mary toward the endzone that tight end Nick Kallerup grabbed.

The 44-yard connection left two seconds on the clock which stopped for a first down allowing Minnesota’s field goal unit to sprint onto the field. Kesich had enough time to set up and drill the field goal and cut Michigan’s lead to 21-3 at the half.

Michigan methodically moved the ball down the field, but Minnesota held the Wolverines to a 53-yard field goal to open the second half, reclaiming their three-touchdown lead.

After a three-and-out, Michigan aired the ball out. Following a first down, Wolverines quarterback Alex Orji targeted Colston Loveland down the seam, but Gophers cornerback Ethan Robinson ripped the ball away for an interception.

The Gophers offense responded with a 12-play, 76-yard drive finished with Darius Taylor’s three-yard rushing touchdown.

Minnesota’s defense forced a three-and-out and handed the ball back to the offense.

Freshman Koi Perich took things into his own hands on the punt. Perich found a seam, sprinted straight through it and scampered inside the Michigan red zone for a 60-yard return. 

Minnesota scored three plays later, gashing the Wolverines’ lead trailing 24-17 with 11:05 in the fourth quarter.

Minnesota’s defense stood tall against the Wolverines’ drive and forced another field goal, but Michigan killed six and a half minutes and pushed their lead to 10 points.

The Gophers could not recover the second onside kick and the Wolverines won despite a late surge from Minnesota.

Wolverines Head Coach Sherrone Moore said he was not happy with his team’s performance, especially in the second half.

“We got a lot of cleaning up to do as a team as a group to get better,” Moore said. “They came out with a lot of energy and we didn’t.”

The Gophers fell to a 2-3 record Saturday (0-2 in the Big Ten). Minnesota hosts Southern California for the University’s parents’ weekend on Oct. 5. The Gophers are still searching for their first Big Ten win.

Iowa Hawkeye Kaleb Johnson ran away with the Floyd of Rosedale as Iowa rushed to a 31-14 win at Huntington Bank Stadium over the Gophers.

The Hawkeyes lead tailback ran for over 206 yards and three touchdowns on 9.8 yards per carry. Gophers’ head coach P.J. Fleck said it was “a tale of two halves.” Minnesota thrived in the first half, faltered in the third quarter and broke down in the fourth.

“It’s a 60-minute game, I told our team. I said we played for 30 minutes,” Fleck said. “The job of the head football coach is to get his team to play hard for 60 minutes, and I failed to do that.”

Late in the second quarter, Gophers quarterback Max Brosmer led his team down the field with time running low in the first half. Darius Taylor bounced a run outside for a 17-yard gain into the red zone.

Brosmer on third-and-goal found Elijah Spencer in the flat. Spencer jumped into the air and bounced off a tackle before diving across the goal line for a touchdown.

The Gophers rode a touchdown lead into halftime on the back of Brosmer’s 165 passing yards and two touchdowns. His interception led to Iowa’s only touchdown of the half.

Minnesota outgained Iowa by 105 yards on offense, passing on 72% of plays. Fifth-year wide receiver Daniel Jackson led both teams with 93 receiving yards on seven receptions and surpassed 2,000 career receiving yards in the first quarter.

“I didn’t really get much press coverage,” Jackson said. “Just timing, running our offense. I don’t want to say anything special, just doing what we do good and executing it.”

For a moment, it looked like Floyd of Rosedale would be returning to Minneapolis with the Gophers up 14-7 at halftime.

Then the second half happened.

Iowa worked the ball into Minnesota territory with consecutive 15-plus yard gains into the red zone. Three plays later, Johnson bounced a counter run to the outside for a 15-yard touchdown to tie the game.

After Minnesota punted, a heavy dosage of Johnson led the Hawkeyes down the field. Johnson broke off a 40-yard touchdown run evading numerous Gophers tacklers and giving Iowa the lead.

Iowa continued to pound the rock down the field, wearing down the Gophers’ defense. Instead of a touchdown, the maroon and gold forced a 46-yard field goal putting the Hawkeyes up 24-14.

In the third quarter, the Hawkeyes outscored the Gophers 17-0 and outgained Minnesota by 145 yards.

Any chance of winning dwindled away for the Gophers when Johnson dashed outside again for 33 yards, eclipsing 200 yards on the night.

Iowa ran it on all six plays of the drive punching it in on a quarterback sneak with backup quarterback Brendan Sullivan.

Gophers redshirt senior linebacker Cody Lindenberg said Minnesota got Iowa’s offense in situations they liked and were able to execute in the first half.

“After that, (we) didn’t play a full game,” Lindenberg said. “Going into that second half, whatever it might have been, getting off blocks, making tackles, using tackling system … We’re gonna learn, watch the film and then get a lot better.”

At that point, fans called it a game, pouring out of the stadium.

The Hawkeyes made sure the Gophers did not get a chance to smell the endzone as Brosmer threw a pass into coverage intended for Frank Bierman that was intercepted off a deflection.

While the Hawkeyes did not control the entire game, they did have the upper hand to start.

The battle for Floyd started pass-heavy as the teams combined to throw it seven times to just two runs, both defenses forcing punts.

After a 17-yard completion to Jackson up the seam, Brosmer threw an interception to linebacker Jay Higgins.

Iowa went up first when the nation’s leading rusher, Johnson, broke multiple tackles bouncing it outside to the one-yard line. Johnson then powered it in for the game’s first touchdown.

Late in the second quarter, the Gophers marched down the field on offense.

Le’Meke Brockington was left in man coverage with Deshaun Lee on the sideline and a pass from Brosmer led to a 28-yard gain making it first and goal. Brosmer found Jameson Geers who narrowly placed both feet in the endzone for the Gophers’ first touchdown of the game.

The first half was only part of the story as Minnesota lost 31-14 and Fleck dropped to 1-7 in his career against the Hawkeyes, the lone win coming last season.

For the last year, Gophers fans stood behind referee Tim O’Dey’s ruling that Iowa defensive back Cooper DeJean gave an invalid fair catch signal.

The call sent the Floyd of Rosedale trophy back to Minneapolis and Iowa fans left with an urge to reclaim the golden pig.

The fight for the Floyd of Rosedale on Sept. 21 will be the 118th meeting for what the NFL said is college football’s most prestigious trophy. Both teams enter the weekend with a 2-1 record with home non-conference losses. 

The Gophers won last season’s matchup 12-10 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa.

After last season’s defensive duel, the pair will meet again with two of the nation’s best defenses squaring off at Huntington Bank Stadium.

The Gophers’ defense is ranked fifth overall in the country. This season, Minnesota allowed one touchdown through three games and held opponents to 186.3 yards per game.

Their one defensive hurdle came in week one when the Gophers missed 22 tackles against North Carolina, according to defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman. The Tar Heels running back Omarion Hampton leads the nation in yards after contact, and Iowa’s tailback Kaleb Johnson trails two yards behind with 308.

Gophers transfer defensive back Ethan Robinson said having seen a running back of Hampton’s caliber is helpful when preparing for Johnson.

“We learned lessons from week one about missing tackles and how to adjust our technique,” Robinson said. “Last two weeks we’ve seen some good backs but they haven’t been quite these guys.”

Johnson leads the NCAA with 479 rushing yards through the season’s first three weeks. But the Hawkeyes rank 108th in the country in passing yards per game.

Hetherman said the synergy within Iowa’s offensive line helps them run the ball effectively.

“They work really well together up front and then the running backs run through tackles,” Hetherman said. “Their backfield is very talented and up front, they have an older group.”

Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck said games against the Hawkeyes are “won in the trenches.”

The Gophers offense scored two rushing touchdowns in all three games to start this season, while Iowa has yet to allow a touchdown on the ground.

The Hawkeyes are top five in rushing defense allowing 56.3 rushing yards per game.

Gophers offensive coordinator Greg Harbaugh Jr. said patience is important on offense against a tough defensive front.

“You can’t get away from the run game when you’re only getting one, two, three yards,” Harbaugh said. “Because it’s just chipping away, it’s a physical game.”

The Gophers are averaging 130 yards per game on the ground and have featured multiple running backs including Darius Taylor, Marcus Major and Jordan Nubin.

Taylor said it is up to him to perform against Iowa and he will go back to his fundamentals to do so.

Taylor leads the team in rushing having played two games this season. Minnesota’s lead tailback is averaging 7.5 yards per carry and set back-to-back career highs in receptions.

Harbaugh said being efficient is also critical because the plays are limited in games against Iowa.

Gophers linebacker Cody Lindenberg said the defense will focus on executing details and fundamentals while taking it one play at a time.

 “These Big Ten games everything is magnified,” Lindenberg said. “Those little plays that you may have gotten away with in the first few games you’re not going to get away with anymore.”

Linebackers Maverick Baranowski and Lindenberg lead the team in tackles, combining for 33 tackles in three games.

Kickoff is at 6:30 p.m. for the Gophers’ second primetime matchup of the season hosting their rival.

The Darius Taylor game in Minneapolis saw the Gophers running back score three touchdowns in a 27-0 win over Nevada.

Taylor’s final touchdown in the third quarter shocked Gophers fans in the stadium. His 80-yard run was the longest rushing play by a Gopher since Laurence Maroney’s 93-yard rush against Wisconsin on Oct. 15, 2005. 

“It was wide open,” Taylor said. “All credit to my offensive line, tight ends and receivers, too. They were out there blocking.”

The hat trick of touchdowns was a career-high for the Gopher tailback, one by air, two by ground.

The Minnesota offense outgained Nevada by over 200 yards in the win. Meanwhile, the Gophers defense allowed one touchdown through three games.

“I’m really proud of our defense,” Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck said. “That’s the first time since 1962 that we had back-to-back shutouts. That was a long time ago, but I love how our defense is playing, I love the complimentary football.”

Minnesota hosted Nevada for its final non-conference matchup of the season. The Gophers rode in off a 48-0 shutout of the Rhode Island Rams.

Before kickoff, Minnesota ruled out returner Quentin Redding for the season due to injury. Freshman Koi Perich returned a punt for 28 yards in week two’s win and is the primary replacement for Redding.

The Gophers received the opening kickoff and drove down the field as quarterback Max Brosmer connected with Elijah Spencer twice for 40 yards. Dragan Kesich drilled a 52-yard field goal to put the Gophers up first.

A flag-filled first drive for Nevada included four penalties in the first three plays, leading to a punt. 

After a three-and-out for the Gophers offense, the defense got its sixth takeaway with the first career interception for redshirt freshman defensive back Kerry Brown.

“I’m thankful for my D-line getting pressure to the quarterback,” Brown said. “I saw the ball and I went to go get it.”

Brosmer found top target Daniel Jackson on back-to-back plays, amassing 49 yards down to the Nevada six-yard line. The Gophers attempted three passes but could not find the endzone.

Kesich trotted on for a 21-yard field goal, which he knocked through making it 6-0 Minnesota.

Nevada picked up another holding penalty but overcame it with a 25-yard completion from Brendon Lewis to Jaden Smith. The Gophers’ defense held Nevada to a 42-yard field goal attempt that ended up getting blocked by Anthony Smith.

Back-to-back three-and-outs led to a Nevada punt which Perich returned for 15 yards. After picking up two first downs, Brosmer looked deep for Cristian Driver who was not expecting the ball.

Nevada defensive back Keyshawn Cobb saw the ball floating to him and intercepted it.

Three plays later, Brown jumped a post route for his second interception of the game. The Gophers’ offense wasted no time scoring two plays later on two passes to Taylor for his first career receiving touchdown.

Minnesota got the ball back after a Nevada three-and-out. Taylor picked up five yards on his fifth reception, setting a career-high for the second consecutive week.

Brosmer connected with Jameson Geers down the seam for 22 yards. The next play, Brosmer launched downfield for Jackson and a pass interference penalty gave Minnesota first-and-goal.

Taylor ran it in from four yards out for his second touchdown of the game.

Minnesota outplayed Nevada in all three phases, finishing the first half up 20-0 with two interceptions and 143 more total yards than the Nevada Wolf Pack.

On the Gophers’ first drive of the second half, Taylor exploded for an 80-yard touchdown.

Nevada went three-and-out for the fourth time in the game. A sack from Brosmer on third down made it a 50-yard field goal for Kesich who pulled it wide right, keeping it 27-0 Gophers.

Both teams punted on their next drives. Nevada put together a sustained drive working inside the Gophers red zone for the first time. Lewis tried to test the secondary once again, lobbed it into coverage and Ethan Robinson grabbed it out of the air for his first interception as a Gopher.

Minnesota utilized the ground game to wind down the clock in the fourth quarter. The Gophers ran it 11 times in 12 plays to take the final 6:55 off the clock, closing out a shutout win over the Wolf Pack.

The Gophers return to Huntington Bank Stadium on Sept. 21 for their Big Ten opener against the Iowa Hawkeyes and a chance to defend the Floyd of Rosedale from their heated rival.

Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck said spreading the ball is the key to success.

Minnesota’s quarterback Max Brosmer found that key at Saturday’s game against Rhode Island when he completed 80% of his passes, leaving Fleck pleased with his performance. 

Another Gophers win meant another postgame crowd surf from Fleck in the locker room.

Coach got #RTB #SkiUMah #Gophers pic.twitter.com/jYk9Cywcqe

— Minnesota Football (@GopherFootball) September 7, 2024

Brosmer, the New Hampshire graduate transfer, said the game plan was the main reason for his ability to find different wide receivers.

“The o-line did an amazing job protecting all game and ultimately that allows the pass game and the run game to be efficient,” Brosmer said.

The Gophers quarterback finished the game with 271 passing yards and two touchdowns.

Offensive Coordinator Greg Harbaugh Jr. said Brosmer’s ability to diagnose the defense’s coverage kept the offense on schedule.

“It goes back to what I said the first time I talked about Max is his high-end processing ability,” Harbaugh said.

Gophers running back Darius Taylor posted career-highs in both receptions (4) and receiving yards (48) against Rhode Island.

Taylor returned to the field after missing week one due to injury. After the game Saturday, Fleck said the medical staff had Taylor in the range of 15 to 20 snaps.

The Gophers offense made use of Taylor’s limited plays as he touched the ball 18 times throughout the game.

Minnesota has historically relied on run plays. In each of the last five years, the Gophers finished in the top half of the Big Ten in rushing yards per game. Currently, the Gophers sit 17th in the newly expanded conference averaging 97.5 rushing yards per game.

Left tackle Aireontae Ersery said the Gophers offense missed Taylor and that the offensive line has been working on their ground game.

“If there’s issues with the run game we need to fix it as a unit,” Ersery said. “It has been brought to our attention, so we’ll go out there, go to practice and fix it.”

Minnesota rushed for 116 yards against Rhode Island thanks to 64 yards from Taylor. In week one, the Gophers rushed for 79 yards on 33 carries against North Carolina.

Fleck said the Gophers’ first two opponents did everything to stop the run.

“We were going to take what the defense gave us and we can sit there and be stubborn … or we can do what it takes to win the football game,” Fleck said.

The Gophers aerial attack picked up the slack in week two and the luxury of dominating a game is that more players got onto the field. Fleck said 71 different players were part of the Gophers’ win over the Rams.

Freshman quarterback Drake Lindsey and redshirt freshman transfer and wide receiver Tyler Williams connected for both players’ first collegiate touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Brosmer said he had a blast watching Lindsey play and was his biggest supporter on the sideline.

“Ultimate big brother moment,” Brosmer said. “He’s worked so hard and to see him have success on the field today was an amazing feeling.”

A sunny day allowed the Gophers football team to pick up their first win of the season as they crushed Rhode Island 48-0 at Huntington Bank Stadium on Saturday.

The Gophers defense pitched a shutout, including three interceptions and a fumble, whereas the  Rams did not snap the ball once in Gophers territory. Minnesota ended up resting its starters for the final quarter having amassed a sizable lead.

Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck said having to wait 10 days to play following the loss to North Carolina “festered” the team.

“It was more like fertilizer, it just grew and grew and grew,” Fleck said. “Every day they came out with the right mindset. We gave them three things on offense, defense and special teams to get better at and they did that.”

Max Brosmer started his fourth career game as quarterback against Rhode Island.

Darius Taylor made his 2024 debut at tailback for the Gophers after missing week one due to injury. Safety Darius Green started his first game after missing week one, but the Gophers were without defensive back Jai’Onte’ McMillan, who was injured in the North Carolina game.

Minnesota’s defense held the Rams to a three-and-out on the opening drive and a 20-yard completion by Brosmer to Christian Driver got the offense into Rhode Island territory. The Gophers stalled and fifth-year kicker Dragan Kesich drilled a 53-yard field goal putting the Gophers up first.

Two drives later still without a score, Rhode Island tried their backup quarterback, Clemson University transfer Hunter Helms, replaced Devin Farrell for a drive but the Gophers’ defense forced a punt.

Brosmer came out firing to start the second quarter throwing six straight times, completing five along with a Jameson Geers drop. Minnesota marched down the field and capped off the drive with a Taylor touchdown extending the Gopher lead to 10.

The Rams started the drive with three straight throws of their own but the fourth pass was intended for Shawn Harris Jr. and ended up in the hands of Minnesota’s Aidan Gousby for an interception.

The Gophers utilized running backs Taylor and Marcus Major out of the backfield in the passing game and drove down the field. The maroon and gold pushed Major through to the endzone from the 2-yard line.

When Farrell had the ball on the Rams’ next drive, defensive lineman Deven Eastern caused a fumble and Minnesota’s Jack Henderson pounced on the ball and the Gophers took over right outside the redzone.

Shortly after, junior linebacker A.J. Pena sacked Brosmer for a loss of 14 yards forcing Kesich to kick a career-long 55-yard field goal that he missed.

Minnesota led 17-0 and outgained Rhode Island 191 to 67 in the first two quarters. Brosmer finished the half completing all but five of his passes, and Taylor set a career-high with 35 receiving yards.

Brosmer established a strong connection with wide receiver Elijah Spencer, who caught three passes for 37 yards to open the second half. Brosmer completed his fifth consecutive pass to start the half this time finding Driver for another Gophers touchdown.

Farrell found Harris Jr. over the middle for 18 yards, picking up just the third first-down for the Rams of the game.

After Rhode Island’s fourth punt of the game, Minnesota leaned on its two best offensive weapons in Jackson and Taylor, who both picked up first downs. Brosmer continued his pinpoint accuracy hitting Le’Meke Brockington down the sideline for a 29-yard touchdown, putting the Gophers up 31-0 over the Rams.

Having built up the lead, young Gophers players had the opportunity to play. Freshman Koi Perich got his first taste of the field on defense for Minnesota. 

Farrell opened the fourth quarter with a pass that was tipped into the air by redshirt senior linebacker Cody Lindenberg and intercepted by Perich.

The freshman said the saying in the defensive backs room is, “Tipped balls and overthrows, got to get those.”

Drake Lindsey made his collegiate debut at quarterback replacing Brosmer. The freshman from Fayetteville, Arkansas led a scoring drive to start his Gophers career as Kesich hit a 47-yard field goal.

Helms returned under center after the interception by Farrell and nearly threw an interception of his own that Gophers defensive back Coleman Bryson dropped on the sideline. Two plays later, Henderson picked off Helms and walked into the endzone making it 41-0 Minnesota.

Henderson said he was thankful for the pressure the defensive line got that forced the throw from the quarterback.

“I was in the box presnap, the quarterback thought he had a one-on-one with our corner,” Henderson said. “The receiver ran a curl and my job there was curl flat, so it was perfect.”

The Minnesota defense got another stop, so Perich got the ball in his hands again on a punt return where he picked up 28 yards. The Gophers had returned three punts for just eight yards before Perich’s return.

“I got to take it to the crib,” Perich said as teammate Anthony Smith laughed aside him. “That’s my only thought on that.”

Lindsey led the offense down the field finishing it off with an eight-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Willams. The first passing touchdown of Lindsey’s career on his second consecutive scoring drive.

Max Brosmer had to wait an extra hour to make his Gophers debut. Heavy rain and severe thunderstorms swept through Minneapolis and caused a delay in the Gophers home opener against the North Carolina Tar Heels.

The game ended with the Gophers kicker, Dragan Kesich, missing his second field goal of the night and North Carolina escaping Minneapolis with a 19-17 win.

Postgame, Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck said it was a team loss.

“This isn’t lost by one person. This isn’t lost by one play,” Fleck said.” We had a lot of opportunities on offense and defense and special teams.”

Joining Brosmer as team newcomers were Jai’Onte McMillan and Marcus Major, Minnesota’s leading rusher Thursday. 

The Gophers 2023 leading rusher, Darius Taylor, was absent due to an injury, but Fleck said he was “close to playing.” On the defensive end, Minnesota was without an experienced returning safety, Darius Green, who led all returning secondary members with 51 tackles last season.

North Carolina won the toss and deferred, which meant Brosmer led his first drive as a Gopher to start the game.

Brosmer completed his first pass on third down, but it fell short of the first down marker and Jordan Nubin could not get the line to gain. After the second consecutive three-and-out for the Gophers, fifth-year punter Mark Crawford flipped the field with a punt that rolled to the three-yard line, a net of 58 yards.

Minnesota’s defense got the Gophers the ball right back with a three-and-out of their own.

The Gophers worked their way into the red zone before stalling inside the 10-yard line. Kesich, a top 10 kicker in the nation last season, missed his first attempt of the season.

Both teams had under 50 yards of offense in the first quarter, which ended scoreless.

North Carolina leaned on their veteran running back Omarion Hampton, who totaled 31 yards on back-to-back carries in the second quarter.

The Tar Heels continued to move the ball, and graduate quarterback Max Johnson dove across the plane to score the game’s first touchdown.

Minnesota could not respond, as the Tar Heels forced the Gophers’ third three-and-out in four drives.

Johnson tested Minnesota’s Justin Walley and paid the price as Walley picked off the pass intended for Bryson Nesbit and returned it 70 yards to the Tar Heels’ six-yard line. 

Walley said he played his technique and trusted in his coaches on the interception.

“The ball was there, and I just made a play on the ball,” Walley said. “Got some good blocking from my teammates and did what I could with it.”

Walley reverted to his roots as a running back and punt returner from D’Iberville High School.

A few plays after, Major punched it in for a touchdown tying the game to put the cherry on top of Walley’s pick. 

The Gophers’ defense came up with another three-and-out, bringing Bromser and the offense back onto the field. The New Hampshire transfer unleashed a perfectly layered ball to Daniel Jackson on a deep out route for 20 yards to the North Carolina 29-yard line.

Major ripped off a 19-yard rush down to the three-yard line, and two plays later, the Gophers used the tush push, with tight end Nick Kallerup shoving Bromser into the endzone.

Minnesota took the touchdown lead into the break and held the North Carolina offense to 93 yards in the first half.

North Carolina mixed pass and ran well to start the second half. The Tar Heels drove down the field, and timely plays from Johnson helped them convert three third downs. 

After a methodical 17-play, 70-yard drive, the Gophers got a stop on third-and-14, forcing a field goal. Noah Burnette banged it through the uprights for the Tar Heels to make it 14-10 Minnesota with 6:34 left in the third quarter.

North Carolina’s offense quickly returned to the field after Minnesota started with a three-and-out. The Gophers sent pressure that got to Johnson, who was hit while he threw an incompletion on third down. 

A holding call by Bryan in the secondary gave the Tar Heels a first down and erased the stop for the Gophers.

On the hit, Johnson suffered an injury and was carted off the field.

The sophomore quarterback Conner Harrell took Johnson’s place under center. Brown said North Carolina planned to use both quarterbacks in the game but did not expect it to occur through injury.

After leaning on Hampton to get into field goal range, Burnette hit a career-long 52-yard field goal to pull the Tar Heels within one point with 19 seconds left in the third quarter.

Brosmer led the Gophers’ offense down the field, making critical plays like a third-down scramble where he broke a sack. 

Gophers wide receiver Le’Meke Brockington made a grab and turned upfield before having the ball stripped. The ball bounced right into the hands of Major, who gained 16 more yards for a total of 38 yards on the North Carolina 10-yard line.

“Coach always talks about chasing the ball,” Major said. “You never know what’s going to happen. I was just right there with it and I had my dogs back.”

The drive resulted in a 30-yard Kesich field goal, which put Minnesota in the lead 17-16 with more than three minutes left.

After a run with Hampton to start the drive, the Tar Heels used Harrell’s legs on the triple option, getting to the outside before lofting it downfield to J.J. Jones, who picked up 32 yards to the Minnesota 30-yard line.

North Carolina ran it three straight plays and burned two of Minnesota’s timeouts before Burnette drilled a 45-yard field goal to put the Tar Heels up 19-17 with 1:44 left.

With just his second completion to a tight end, this one to Jameson Geers, Brosmer got the Gophers into field goal range. After two runs to gain a bit more for Kesich, with four seconds left, it all rested on his shoulders for the second consecutive season in week one.

Last season’s Big Ten Kicker of the Year could not rekindle his game-winning magic from a season ago.