Defense falls flat against Illinois

Illinois scored early and often against the Gophers. It was 14-0 just 11 minutes into the game. They added another 20 points in the second period to stretch the lead to 34-10 at the break. The Illini scoring slowed in the second half but it didn’t matter much. The final was 44-17.

The defense was much worse than that score indicated. Illinois moved the ball with ease much of the time. On a nine-play 77-yard drive for a touchdown the Illini didn’t even face one third down. In fact, they only had two second down plays. A Desi Steib interception was the only time the Gophers stopped Illinois from scoring in the first half.

The statistics reveal the real disaster this was defensively. 655 total yards were given up, 462 yards rushing. Rashard Mendenhall had 201 yards rushing and Isiah (Juice) Williams had a fine day of his own with 207 yard passing and 133 yards running.

The Gopher offense was sluggish at best. The running game was nearly non-existent with only 95 total yards. Ernie Wheelwright was one of the lone bright spots. He made several difficult catches and ended up with 123 total receiving yards.

This game was definitely a step back for this team. Minnesota made a decent Illini team look like Big Ten powerhouse ready to knock off Ohio State. I guess we’ll find out this Saturday, when the play the Buckeyes, whether that’s really the case.

As for the Gophers’ future this season, it looks like a march to their first 0-8 Big Ten season since 1983. Iowa and Wisconsin remain. Neither of them are great teams. Iowa has recovered some from their horrible start and Wisconsin has fallen out of contention for a Big Ten title. Still, these teams should have no problem with a Minnesota team that seemingly can only compete with Northwestern. Maybe pride will take over for the Gophers in these border rivalries but I’m not holding my breath.