Saturday’s game had a chance to be an ugly stain following three-straight Minnesota wins, but Rodney Smith and the Gophers offense kept up the pressure, topping Purdue 44-31. The Gophers improved to 7-2, including a four-game conference-winning streak.
BY THE NUMBERS
2 Field goals over 50 yards as Emmit Carpenter connected from 52 and 53 (as well as 28). It’s the first time a Gopher kicker has made two 50+ yarders in a game since 1997.
“Emmit Carpenter played awfully well,” said Tracy Claeys.
Well said, Coach. Well said.
15 Seconds left in the half when Minnesota got the ball at their own 23 and thought it’d be a good idea to try and get points. Mitch Leidner proceeded to throw a pick on the next play, setting up a short Purdue touchdown. The score gave the Boilermakers the lead, 28-23, heading into the half.
“We’d been getting behind them so I told the guys, `Let’s throw the ball deep and go four verticals,’” said Claeys. “Obviously that did not get communicated so that’s my fault. At least it didn’t get communicated to Mitch so that’s my fault.”
14 Total touchdowns on the year for Rodney Smith as he ran in three scores on Saturday. Those 14 touchdowns are good for third on Minnesota’s all-time season list. The sophomore racked up 153 yards on the ground, and found the endzone in the fourth to put the game out of reach.
“I didn’t have to do much,” said Smith about his last TD run. “The line blocked well, great play call, and all I had to do was beat the linebacker.”
1 Targeting call on Nick Rallis. After a textbook big hit to the receiver’s shoulder, the refs threw a VERY late flag, and upheld the call after review. In a season where Gophers seem to be getting flagged for targeting every game, this was a perfect example of what’s wrong with the rule. Truly, the more you watch it, the less sense it makes.
Claeys clearly didn’t agree with the call, but held his tongue at the press conference. He joked he had more to say, but wanted to save more money for Christmas, rather than give it to the Big Ten.
6 Sacks for the Gophers’ defense. Both Steven Richardson and Blake Cashman led the way with two sacks apiece.
4 Big Ten wins in a row for the Gophers. The remaining games will be challenging but Minnesota is still squarely in the mix to make it to Indianapolis.
“We are really happy with where we are at right now going into the last three games of the season,” said Leidner. “I love being around these guys every single day in practice. There is a lot of competitive spirit with these guys and it’s fun to be around.”
21 Points off turnovers for the Gophers. Minnesota’s defense gave up a ton of yards (414 total), but produced three turnovers that the offense turned into three touchdowns.
258 Rushing yards for the Maroon and Gold. Minnesota averaged a healthy 5.5 yards per carry on the day.