Tracy Claeys swears he had no flashbacks last Saturday, no deja vu moments. "I've just tried to leave it in the past," the Gophers' defensive coordinator said.
But the similarity between Miami's final drive against the Gophers, and the length-of-the-field march the RedHawks pulled off against Claeys' Northern Illinois defense last December, was striking.
With 1:30 to play on Saturday, Miami (Ohio) was seemingly stalled at the Gophers' 44 yard line, and faced a fourth-and-10 to keep its upset hopes alive.
How's this for eerie: With 1:50 to play in the Mid-American Conference championship game in Detroit on Dec. 4, the RedHawks needed to convert a fourth-and-20 against Jerry Kill's Huskies to hold on to the ball. Northern Illinois nearly had Miami quarterback Austin Boucher sacked, but he rolled across the field to his left and unloaded a desperation pass. Three Huskies leaped to knock the ball down, but instead tipped it into the air and into the hands of Miami receiver Chris Givens for a first down.
That play saved Miami's drive, and the RedHawks scored moments later to snap Northern Illinois' nine-game winning streak and upset the 24th-ranked Huskies, 26-21. "I'd have a championship ring," Kill said this week, remembering that game.
But Claeys said that play didn't cross his mind as the Gophers lined up on the fourth down, and didn't even flinch when Miami once again converted the critical play. This time, quarterback Zac Dysert (who was injured for the MAC title game) hit Nick Harwell across the middle for 17 yards.
"I used to, when I was younger, let that stuff bother [me] forever," Claeys said. "I had a good friend of mine tell me that the sun doesn't shine on the same dog's butt every day. Sometimes things just happen, and you can't worry about it. You move on, or it will affect what happens next."
And that's the part that Claeys was happiest about Saturday. The Gophers shook off the blown chance to essentially end the game right there, and allowed the RedHawks only seven yards on the next three plays.
"I give the kids credit. We could have busted after that," Claeys said. "But they didn't -- they competed. Some teams will crumble when they make that fourth and 10."
Still, Miami had the ball on Minnesota's 20, with six seconds left. Dysert lofted a toss into the end zone, headed for Givens, with the game on the line.
If this had been a movie, the ball would have spiraled in slow motion, with plenty of shots of the fear in Gopher fans' eyes.
But Givens was double-covered, and Kim Royston swatted the ball away, clinching Minnesota's first win.
"I had a good view of it. I saw the ball come out right away," Claeys said. "That's the throw we wanted [Dysert] to make -- we've got two guys on [Givens]. If he goes up and catches that ball among two defenders, then it's just not a good day for us."
It was, though. Much better than that day in December.