Nebraska's Adrian Martinez is widely considered one of the better dual-threat quarterbacks in college football, and he entered Saturday's game against the Gophers averaging 314.9 total yards per game, including a team-leading 64.2 on the ground.
When the clock struck 0:00, Martinez was left to exit Huntington Bank Stadium with 241 passing yards and a TD, but with minus-17 rushing yards, the worst output of his Cornhuskers career, as Minnesota held on for a 30-23 victory.
During the lead-up to the game, Gophers defensive coordinator Joe Rossi stressed the need for his players to keep in their lanes and have eye discipline in the hopes of preventing Martinez from escaping the pocket and doing damage with his speed.
"I'll tell you what: Joe Rossi and his staff executed the game plan to perfection,'' Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said. "… We had to condense the run lanes and we couldn't just rush the passer. We had to rush the passer through the offensive line. We weren't going to rush past Adrian. … We did exactly what we needed to do.''
The Gophers defense forced two first-half three-and-outs to help their offense take a 21-9 lead, then came up strong after the offense misfired in the second half.
After Tanner Morgan threw an interception at the Nebraska 33 on the first possession of the second half, Minnesota's defense forced a three-and-out. Though Nebraska scored to make it 21-16 after a second interception, the Gophers held strong under further pressure.
"We knew a game like this could come down to the narrow margins,'' said defensive tackle Nyles Pinckney, who had three tackles, one sack and 1.5 tackles for loss. "… When we'd get to third down, we'd have to toughen up and make a play.''
And fourth down, too. When Nebraska drove to the Gophers 1 late in the third quarter, Mariano Sori-Marin and Jordan Howden stopped Martinez for no gain on third-and-goal, then Tyler Nubin stood up running back Jaquez Yant on fourth down to complete the goal-line stand.
