MINNEAPOLIS–As four F-16C Fighting Falcons out of Shaw Air Force Base flew over Huntington Bank Stadium on Saturday afternoon, the vibe of Dinkytown just felt different.
Yes, it was Homecoming.
Yes, it was a Big Ten Conference matchup.
Yes, it was a beautiful Autumn afternoon in Minnesota.
But still, something was different, and it wasn’t just the throwback jerseys.
That difference ended up being the Gophers’ complete domination from the opening kickoff until the clock hit 0:00 in the fourth quarter, giving Minnesota its fifth victory in a 48-23 win over Maryland.
The Gophers started on defense and started the game by letting up a 26-yard pass to Tai Felton before settling in and forcing the Terrapins into a turnover on downs four plays later on 4th and 1. From there, Brosmer and Co. went to work, starting the drive with a 24-yard pass to Daniel Jackson, his favorite receiver of the afternoon. A flag on the next play resulted in another first down and after two run plays, Brosmer hit Elijah Spencer for 13 yards and a first down. On the next play, Brosmer found Jackson for a 10-yard touchdown, beginning the best half of football the Gophers have played all season.
Minnesota didn’t have to wait long to get the ball back as the defense forced Maryland to punt after just 2:13, giving the ball back to Brosmer to get back to work. The drive started with a 7-yard pass to Darius Taylor before a completion to Jackson a couple of plays later. Lemeke Brockington joined the fun with a catch of his own and after a targeting call on Maryland, Brosmer his Brockington again before finding Spencer in the endzone, catching a touchdown right in front of the student section to put the home team up 14-0.
That’s when the fun began.
On Maryland’s next offensive drive, the Gophers forced a third and six, resulting in a passing play by Billy Edwards Jr. On the throw, Walley read Edwards like a good chapter book, intercepting the pass and taking it back for a pick-six score which sent a jolt of electricity through the 48,696 fans waving their maroon and gold towels they got as they entered the stadium. Another Kesich PAT put Minnesota up 21-0. Another interception by the Gophers–this time by Koi Perich, his fifth of the season–put Minnesota in a spot to end the first quarter up by three touchdowns, adding a field goal on the first play of the second quarter to go up 24-0.
Minnesota’s defense continued to limit any progression in the second quarter as Edwards and Co. went three and out on their next drive, before getting a field goal with 6:55 left in the half to eliminate the chance of a shutout. On the Gophers next drive, Brosmer hit Jackson for 17 yards, Jackson again for 8 yards, Spencer for 28 yards and Jackson for 4 yards and his third touchdown of the first half. Maryland scored a touchdown and the Gophers added another field goal to close out the half with a 34-10 advantage for the maroon and gold.
Minnesota received the ball to begin the second half and went right back to work with a pass to Taylor for 17 yards to start the scoring drive. After a roughing the passing penalty, Brosmer hit Jackson for another 15 yards before throwing a bullet to Spencer for his second receiving touchdown of the day, giving Brosmer 265 passing yards and four touchdowns up to that point. It is the first time a Minnesota quarterback has thrown for four touchdowns since Tanner Morgan did it in the 2019 season.
After the defense forced another turnover on downs halfway through the third quarter, Brosmer and the boys kept the ball in the air. Spencer caught a 19-yard pass to begin the drive and bring the ball out to the Gophers 35-yard line but that was all she wrote for that drive as the team pinned Maryland back to its 12-yard line with 6:22 left in the third quarter and the Gophers up 41-10, the Terrapins largest deficit of the season thus far. The student section slowly started leaving Huntington Bank Stadium with an inevitable win looming into the fourth quarter.
Any doubt of the Saturday afternoon victory was put to rest 11 seconds into the final quarter. There, Darius Taylor took the ball and ran it 51 yards on the opening play, giving the Gophers a 48-10 lead. Before that, Taylor had just 28 yards on 11 carries for the day, finding a way to make himself valuable in every single game he suits up for. He finished the game with 15 carries for 81 yards and a touchdown.
P.J. Fleck and the Gophers head to Champaign next Saturday for a battle with Illinois (6-2). Gametime is still TBD as of this post. The Illini are coming off a 38-9 loss to No. 1 Oregon on Saturday afternoon.
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Happy Homecoming!
