Good afternoon on Week 2 of the college football season. The Gophers seek a 2-0 start to the season when they face Eastern Michigan tonight at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis (6:30 p.m., BTN, 100.3-FM). Coming off a thrilling comeback win over Nebraska in the opener on Aug. 31, the Gophers will try to turn back the upset-minded Eagles, who went 9-4 last year and have beaten Power Five opponents on the road four times since 2017.

While the Gophers used a handful of game-turning plays in the final 2:32 to beat the Cornhuskers, today they'll seek the consistency they didn't show in the other 57:28 of that game. Most importantly, they want to run the ball much more effectively than they did against Nebraska, which limited Minnesota to 55 yards on 25 carries. Sean Tyler led the Gophers with 41 yards on 10 carries.

Gophers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis admitted he wasn't nearly as sharp as he wanted to be against Nebraska after completing 24 of 44 passes for 196 yards and a touchdown with an interception. He was helped by a spectacular TD catch by Daniel Jackson on a fourth-and-10 play late in the fourth quarter. Kaliakmanis recovered late by going 3-for-3 for 19 yards on the Gophers' winning drive.

Minnesota's defense showed a penchant for big plays by forcing four turnovers, including Justin Walley's punch out for a fumble to set up a touchdown and Tyler Nubin's second interception to set up the winning field goal. Defensive coordinator Joe Rossi saw much to improve, especially the Gophers' performance against a running quarterback after the Huskers' Jeff Sims rushed for 91 yards.

Special teams could play a key role today. Eastern Michigan returned a kickoff and free kick for touchdowns in its 33-23 victory over Howard last week, while the Gophers gave up a 63-yard kickoff return against Nebraska. Minnesota's Dragan Kesich handled a pressure-pack situation well by kicking the winning 47-yard field goal as time expired.