Analysis: Gophers defense finds its footing in time in Big Ten opening win over Rutgers

Anthony Smith and his defensive teammates on the Gophers football team had been pursuing Rutgers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis all afternoon, yet there he was, their former Minnesota teammate, threatening to lead the Scarlet Knights to a late field goal to force overtime or even a touchdown to sneak out of Huntington Bank Stadium with a victory.

Kaliakmanis had moved Rutgers from its own 21-yard line to the Minnesota 26 with 37 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter and the Gophers leading 31-28. On second-and-10, Scarlet Knights center Gus Zilinskas’ shotgun snap came when Kaliakmanis wasn’t ready and went through the QB’s legs for a 15-yard loss to the Gophers 41, much to the home team’s delight.

“A kid in a candy shop,” Smith, a defensive end, said, describing his reaction to the loose ball. “I was 7-year-old Anthony, being in the candy store, hearing, ‘Go free.’ My eyes brightened, and I think everybody else’s did, too.”

The miscue forced Rutgers (3-2, 0-2 Big Ten) to send out kicker Dane Pizzaro to try a 56-yard field-goal attempt with 20 seconds left. The kick had the distance but sailed wide right, ending Rutgers’ last threat and enabling the Gophers to use victory formation for the final snap in their Big Ten opener in front of an announced 46,234.

For Smith, a sigh of relief came, too, because it took a while for the Gophers to find their defensive footing.

“You know, winning is not easy,” said the senior from Shippensburg, Pa., who had 1½ of the Gophers’ seven sacks. “Winning is one the hardest things to do in football.”

Rutgers made sure of that. The Scarlet Knights drove 71 yards on 10 plays on their first possession only to see Gophers defensive lineman Rushawn Lawrence block Jai Patel’s 22-yard field-goal attempt. They then scored a touchdown to cap an eight-play, 62-yard march later in the first quarter and made it 14-0 on Kaliakmanis’ second TD pass to finish a 12-play, 68-yard drive early in the second quarter.

That changed quickly because in an eight-play stretch, the Gophers (3-1, 1-0) turned that two-TD deficit to a 14-14 tie with the offense and defense taking turns playing complementary football.

First, redshirt freshman quarterback Drake Lindsey found Jalen Smith for a 78-yard gain to the Rutgers 3, setting up Fame Ijeboi’s 2-yard TD run. Three plays later, Gophers safety Kerry Brown intercepted a Kaliakmanis pass at the Rutgers 36 and returned the pick 27 yards to the 8. One play later, Le’Meke Brockington caught an 8-yard TD pass from Lindsey for a 14-14 tie.

In the third quarter, it was the offense’s turn to help the defense. Lindsey, who completed 31 of 41 passes for 324 yards and three touchdowns, led drives of 13 plays for 85 yards and 15 plays for 75 yards as the Gophers took a 24-21 lead. In between, Smith had a solo sack and shared a sack with Jaxon Howard to force a Rutgers punt.

“Being able to be on the bench, having the offense put together a long drive — that’s really special for us because we can get our legs back," Smith said.

Added coach P.J. Fleck: “We won the opening four [minutes] in the second half, and that was the difference. We scored, then got them to punt. That was a big swing in the game.”

“To much who is given, much is expected, and much is earned,” Fleck said of Perich. “He’s a phenomenal football player and an unbelievable person, and he loves ball.”

While Rutgers took a 28-24 lead with 11:28 left in the fourth quarter, the Gophers didn’t panic. The defense made another stop and got the ball back to the offense with 6:24 to play. Lindsey and Co., did their thing, driving 72 yards in seven plays to take the lead on Javon Tracy’s 4-yard TD catch in which he lunged the ball into the end zone.

Then came the defense’s final stop that had Smith thinking about candy.