Gopher Football
This will go down as one of the classic Gopher football games. Purdue/Minnesota games have provided a few thrillers over the years. Gopher fans can’t forget the 2001 game played in the Metrodome when the Boilers came back from an 11-point deficit with not a second to spare to force an overtime which they won. The last win for the Gophers over Purdue was yet another thriller, though awhile back. The Gophers converted on a 2-point extra point attempt with seconds left to win 39-38. Back then (1995), however, Purdue and Minnesota were usually playing for 10th place in the Big Ten. The Gophers ended up 1-7 in the Big Ten in ’95. It’s safe to say this win will be for a lot more than the one ten years ago.
The Gophers jumped out to 10-0 in the first half thanks in large part to their much heralded running game. Just eight minutes into the game, Minnesota had 100 yards rushing against a defense that only gave up 32 yards on the ground through two games. Purdue stayed right in there largely as a result of some big plays. The first big one came in the second quarter when the Boilermakers went for it on a fourth and one near the 50 yard line. Quarterback Brandon Kirsch fooled the defense with a pass up the middle for a touchdown. The half ended with that 10-7 lead for Minnesota.
The Gophers would match their biggest lead of the day (10 points) with a 5-yard TD pass by Gary Russell. Purdue answered with a touchdown of their own in the third quarter. A Jason Giannini field goal made the score 20-14 after three quarters.
The fourth quarter soon looked like a typical Gopher meltdown against a top-ranked opponent, with Purdue being ranked 11th in the AP poll. Brandon Kirsch threaded a beautiful 8-yard TD pass threw maybe three defenders in the end zone. That gave Purdue a 21-20 lead, their first of the game, with about six minutes left. Then the meltdown looked complete on the very next series with a Bryan Cupito interception by Dan Bick who returned it for a TD.
However, the much-maligned Cupito was down but not out. He led the Gophers down the field for one last desperation drive. And for (Purdue) Pete’s sake, he hit Logan Payne on a perfect 8-yard TD pass deep in the end zone. (Oh, and the refs didn’t blow the call, like three years ago in OT, even though the end zone lines are still goofy.) Now came the necessary 2-point attempt. The Gopher offense pulled off a surprise of their own by running the option to perfection, with Cupito keeping it in for the score.
But Cupito’s heroics were not done. The Boilermakers scored a touchdown on their overtime possession. The Gopher offense’s backs were against the wall on their possession, facing a fourth down on the eight yard line. Cupito hit a bullet up the middle to Logan Payne to send it into the second OT.
It took the Gophers four plays to score a touchdown in the second overtime. Again, Cupito and Payne connected on a key play. This time it was a 13-yard pass to the Purdue eight yard line. Next, it was time for some defensive heroics. On fourth and two at the Gopher 17, Tiller was forced to roll the dice again and go for it. This time the Gopher defense held as Kirsch’s pass went incomplete. Brandon Owens broke up the pass.
It’s not often that I would give major credit to the defense when they give up 35 points, but remember this game did go into double overtime. They made so many plays to keep the Purdue offense on their heals. It was some trickery and turnovers that kept Purdue in the hunt for the win. John Pawielski was a real standout. An open field tackle for a 2-yard loss in the first half was a prime example of the day he had. Brandon Owens was all over the field making big hits. And speaking of hitting, many of Kirsch’s incompletions were a direct result of some hard hits to the receivers. Also, the defense continued to force more turnovers. Pawieklski and Terrance Campbell had interceptions in the second quarter, which allowed the Gophers to keep the lead at the break. So far, the newly aggressive Gopher defense looks for real.
Almost overlooked in all of this was our Heisman Candidate Laurence Maroney who ran for 217 yards against the nation’s #1 ranked run defense. And Maroney was worked hard. He had an incredible 46 carries. If that wasn’t enough, Maroney had five receptions, returned kicks and even threw a pass. The final Maroney damage was 330 all-purpose yards.
Gary Russell was no slouch either with 75 yards running, two touchdown runs and one TD catch, including the game-winning score.
Special teams were reliable too. This definitely was one week that the Gophers couldn’t afford a missed extra point. Jason Giannini delivered this time and was also 2-for-3 on field goals and is now 7-for-8 on them for the year. Kick returns were mostly good and punts not so good. All in all, it was a solid day for this crew.
Yes, this really was a team victory. Mistakes were made, which should be expected in the first conference game. It was the team’s response after those miscues that will be remembered. After falling behind 28-20 on a bad interception late in the game, the Gophers could easily have packed it in. The same could have happened in the first OT. The bottom line is that, unlike teams in the recent past, they made the plays when they were out of second chances.
Next week, the Gophers will hit the road against another undefeated Big Ten Ten team, Penn State. The Lions pulled out a thriller of their own today against Northwestern. Hold on Gopher fans, we may be in for another double overtime game.