Gophers defense excelled at bottom line — it gave up only 13 points

WEST LAFAYETTE, IND. – Purdue's quarterback threw 52 passes Saturday. The Gophers offense ran 53 plays total.

To underscore how misleading football statistics can look sometimes, the Gophers won the game.

Their defense had to work overtime, and then some, but a fitting conclusion came with 47 seconds remaining when Gophers safety Tyler Nubin dissected a play perfectly to grab an interception that sealed a 20-13 win at Ross-Ade Stadium.

Purdue ran 86 plays — 86! — yet scored only one touchdown. That seems almost impossible to accomplish.

Ultimately, only one of those stats matter, and the Gophers buckled down and made critical stops when the situation demanded it.

"I'm not into 'bend-not-breaking,'" coach P.J. Fleck said. "We want to always keep people out of the end zone."

That process felt like rope-a-dope at times. Not clean, occasionally vulnerable, but then someone would make a play to extinguish the threat. A sack here, a pass breakup there. And then you look up and the opponent has only 13 points.

That's an important quality to possess, being opportunistic, and the Gophers defense is redefining its own narrative: That unit has become a strength, not a liability.

Who envisioned that development after watching Ohio State turn the season opener into a track meet of explosive plays?

There were areas to nitpick Saturday. Third-down defense was leaky early, which enabled Purdue to run 48 plays in the first half. A leg injury knocked captain Mariano Sori-Marin out of the game in the first quarter, which put pressure on others to fill that communication void.

The Gophers knew Purdue would test their pass defense, especially with star receiver David Bell returning from a concussion. Quarterback Aidan O'Connell repeatedly targeted freshman Justin Walley.

"You've got a true freshman out there at corner and you've got David Bell out there, one of the best players in the country," Fleck said. "I would target him a lot too. He rose to the challenge. Was he perfect? No, but he's a true freshman."

The response is what matters. Walley gave up a few plays, but he also made several timely pass breakups. He was symbolic of the entire defense.

O'Connell completed 34 passes for 371 yards, but the Gophers also registered four sacks and eight pass breakups.

The Boilermakers completed eight passes that covered at least 15 yards, but there were no back-breakers, nothing deflating.

Purdue's yard total was impressive — 448 — but again, only 13 points on the scoreboard.

"We knew they were going to get completions," Nubin said. "The focus was on keeping explosive plays limited. That's the key to the game every single time."

The coaching staff reinforced that message all week in preparation. They anticipated Purdue might string together long drives that lasted double-digit plays. Just don't give up big plays and limit Purdue to field goals, coaches preached.

They held the Boilermakers scoreless in five possessions in the second half.

"When we needed to make the play," Fleck said, "we made the play."

The defense's depth has become an advantage, particularly along the line. Coordinator Joe Rossi rotated nine linemen freely, including freshmen Jah Joyner and Jalen Logan-Redding. That didn't include defensive end MJ Anderson, who missed the game because of an injury.

The Gophers finally have legitimate depth across the line now, which keeps players fresh and keeps them motivated because there is competition for playing time.

"When you're playing Big Ten football, battles are won up front," Fleck said.

The Gophers have now registered 12 sacks in three games since getting none the first two games. Their tackling has been crisper at all three levels. Coordinator Joe Rossi has displayed a nice touch in calling blitzes at appropriate times to create pressure.

The Gophers had a long, hard week after the Bowling Green debacle. They needed a win, period, no matter how it looked. Purdue ran an absurd number of plays and put up impressive passing statistics, but the Gophers were able to exhale and celebrate because their defense rose to the occasion when it mattered most.