1. The Wolverines are really, really good
This might be from the playbook of Capt. Obvious, but seeing Michigan live and in person hammered home how good this team is. Sure, the Wolverines' 6-0 record hasn't been built on beating the Georgias and Alabamas of the college football world, and their toughest opponent so far might have been Rutgers, but Michigan was impressive Saturday. The Wolverines averaged 7.7 yards per play to the Gophers' 3.1. Michigan gained 10.5 yards per pass attempt to Minnesota's 3.3. And the Wolverines had only one penalty for 10 yards to the Gophers' four for 36.
2. Athan Kaliakmanis had a rough night
Gophers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis entered Saturday having completed 26 of 33 passes (78.8%) over his past two games, but he struggled from the get-go, throwing a pick-six to Michigan cornerback Will Johnson on the game's second play from scrimmage. Kaliakmanis finished 5-for-15 for 52 yards and a touchdown with another interception by safety Keon Sabb that went for a touchdown in the third quarter. Kaliakmanis had more yards throwing to the opponent (64) than he did throwing to Gophers teammates (52).
3. Minnesota's offensive and defensive lines struggled
Michigan rolled up 432 yards of offense and held the Gophers to 169 yards in large part because of the play of its offensive and defensive lines. While the Gophers rushed for 117 yards, they weren't efficient in the run game. Aside from the first-quarter possession during which Zach Evans rushed four times for 38 yards, Minnesota averaged only 2.3 yards on its other 35 carries. The Gophers defense generated no sacks or quarterback hurries.
4. Red zone didn't exist for Gophers
The high point of Saturday's game for the Gophers was the difficult catch that Daniel Jackson made late in the second quarter for a 35-yard touchdown play that cut Michigan's lead to 24-10. That was the only time the Gophers visited the end zone. In fact, they ran no plays in the red zone inside Michigan's 20-yard line. Their deepest reach into Wolverines territory was the 35-yard line twice in the first half. The Gophers did not run a play in Michigan territory in the second half.
5. Time to reset, regroup and heal
The Gophers are idle this week and return to play Oct. 21 at Iowa. The break is coming at a good time for a team that's licking its wounds both physically and mentally. The bye gives their leading rusher Darius Taylor and their top linebacker Cody Lindenberg added time to rehab their injuries in hopes of returning to the lineup.
