MINNEAPOLIS - A stagnant Minnesota Gophers offense on Saturday kept their trophy case barren and their Big Ten win column empty.
A week after handing the Governor’s Victory Bell back to Penn State - the last of four rivalry trophies they possessed - Minnesota failed to commandeer Floyd of Rosedale from Iowa. And the 14-7 loss to the hated Hawkeyes puts Minnesota (3-2 overall, 0-2 Big Ten) in the West Division basement.
Fifth-year senior quarterback Mitch Leidner threw two interceptions, and Minnesota’s offense mustered just 268 yards in front of 49,145 bipartisan fans at TCF Bank Stadium. Those were the Gophers’ lowest point and yardage productions in 12 games, since they were held to 173 yards in a 27-0 loss to Northwestern in the Big Ten opener last October.
“It’s pretty obvious, we got whipped up front,” Gophers coach Tracy Claeys said.
For the second consecutive year, the pig trophy will stay south of the border. Minnesota running back Shannon Brooks, who scored the Gophers’ only touchdown, said the locker room was “just quiet.”
“I don’t think it’s just the guys; it’s the whole state,” Claeys said. “I mean, this is two states battling against each other, so it is disappointing.”
The Gophers had 198 yards going into the final drive with 1:26 remaining. Leidner shook off his second interception a minute earlier and completed passes of 16, 21, 15 and 23 to reach Iowa’s 13-yard line.
But Minnesota was called for a false start for not having everyone set for a second before the snap. Leidner then threw three incompletions, and Minnesota turned the ball over on downs with 43 seconds left.
Leidner had been strong against the Hawkeyes, going 1-1 in his previous two games. He had a completion percentage of 72.5, with five touchdowns and no interceptions as well as 22 rushes for 109 yards and another TD.
But in his last chance to regain Floyd, Leidner was 13-for-33 for 166 yards, two sacks and two picks. He had one yard rushing on seven carries.
“He never could set his feet because he had to get the hell out of the way,” Claeys said. “They were just squeezing the pocket, and the protection wasn’t any good, and I think that leads to some inaccuracies.”
Well, the defense did its job. After giving up a Big Ten-worst 255 yards per outing entering the game, Minnesota held Iowa to 142 passing yards. They forced three Hawkeyes turnovers and gave up only one touchdown.
The Gophers offense couldn’t capitalize after linebacker Kamal Martin’s interception in the fourth quarter, and Hawkeyes running back Akrum Wadley made them pay. Wadley eluded a tackle attempt from backup safety Jacob Huff and ran for a 54-yard touchdown. LaShun Daniels added a two-point conversion for the 14-7 margin.
On the first drive of the second half, a Hawkeyes field goal gave them a 6-0 lead after a 60-yard, 10-play drive. The Gophers answered with an eight-play, 58-yard touchdown drive to take their first lead of the day, 7-6.
Brooks, who came into the game averaging 31 yards on his touchdown runs, scored around the edge from the 9.
The Gophers were scoreless in the first half, turning the ball over twice and gaining fewer than 100 total yards against the defense that gave up 38 points to Northwestern last week. The deepest the Gophers drove was to Iowa’s 45, but two plays later Leidner was intercepted trying to thread a pass into tight coverage.
Like Leidner, fifth-year senior Nick Rallis won’t get a chance to hoist the heavy pig trophy again.
“Definitely tough because it’s something that lives with you forever,” he said.
IOWA 14 MINNESOTA 7
Iowa 0 3 3 8- 14
Minnesota 0 0 7 0- 7
Second Quarter
IOWA-K.Duncan 22 yard field goal, 13:32.
Third Quarter
IOWA-K.Duncan 28 yard field goal, 10:10.
MINN-S.Brooks 9 yard rush (E.Carpenter kick), 6:17.
Fourth Quarter
IOWA-A.Wadley 54 yard rush (Daniels Jr. rush), 5:28.
TEAM STATISTICS
IOWA MINN
First Downs 17 14
Rushes-Yards 40-180 29-102
Passing 142 166
Sacked-Yds Lost 1-12 2-5
Comp-Att-Int 17-31-2 13-33-2
Return Yards 114 123
Punts 6-37.8 9-42.9
Fumbles-Lost 2-1 2-1
Penalties-Yards 4-32 8-58
Time of Possession 34:55 25:05
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING-IOWA, A.Wadley 14-107, Daniels Jr. 17-66, CJ.Beathard 9-7. MINN, S.Brooks 10-55, Rn.Smith 11-44, Ko.McCrary 1-2, Mi.Leidner 7-1.
PASSING-IOWA, CJ.Beathard 17-31-2-142. MINN, Mi.Leidner 13-33-2-166.
RECEIVING-IOWA, McCarron 6-62, Kittle 4-39, Jm.Smith 2-20, Mitchell Jr. 2-7, Scheel 1-12, No.Fant 1-4, A.Wadley 1-(minus 2). MINN, Wolitarsky 5-58, Ba.Smith 3-60, R.Still 2-36, Rn.Smith 2-3, Wozniak 1-9.
