Trojans Are on the Board
The game started slowly as both defenses were being stingy early. The Gophers finally broke through with a Dragan Kesich 32-yard field goal. The kick was set up by some hard-earned rushing yards by Marcus Major and Darius Taylor, who had an overdue 2024 coming-out party.
Gophers Answer Back
The Gophers then put together a 15-play, 75-yard drive, highlighted by a brilliant 40-yard run by Taylor up the middle. At the end of the play, a nine-yard face mask penalty was tacked on, bringing the ball down to the USC nine-yard line. Later in the drive, Brosmer sneaked it in from a yard out to put the Gophers in front 10-7.
After an Ethan Robinson fumble recovery, Minnesota had a chance to add to its lead with 1:51 left before halftime. But the Gophers played it conservatively, and the Trojans capitalized on a Taylor fumble to start their own drive on their 49-yard line with 1:27 left on the clock. The big play was a pass reception by Marks that covered 17 yards. As the clock ran out, Michael Lantz nailed a 54-yard field goal to tie the game at 10-10.
USC Draws First Blood in Second Half
Minnesota Takes Over
Gophers punter Mark Crawford pinned the Trojans down at their four-yard line, but the Moss and Marks show went right back at it until USC was faced with a third and four at the Minnesota 35-yard line. Moss dropped back to pass, but suddenly, Minnesota defensive end Jah Joyner exploded in from the left side, hitting Moss while also deflecting a pass that ended up nicely in the hands of linebacker Devin Williams. That was all the stimulus Minnesota would need to take the game over.
From there, Taylor took his cue and, after a fake handoff, caught a pass from Brosmer that he turned into a 20-yard gain and a Minnesota first down. On the next play, he started left and then cut back to the right on a brilliant maneuver, resulting in a 19-yard ramble down to the USC 24-yard line. A pass interference call moved the sticks to the Trojan 10-yard line. Brosmer, on the next play, executed a fake handoff only to scoot around the right for his second rushing touchdown of the night. The game was knotted at 17, with 7:08 left on the clock.
Gophers Take It Home
Aftermath
After the game, coach Fleck talked about the terrific game that his entire defense played. “I thought we covered really well. Covered really well. It was tight coverage. We were knocking the ball out. And not only that, I thought we hit them. You caught a ball and how many times did a kid go head over heels?”
The Gophers hit the road next weekend to play a struggling UCLA Bruins team. And the USC Trojans host the 7th-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions in an epic Big Ten battle.
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