The Minnesota Golden Gophers broke a three game losing streak Saturday with their first Big Ten victory in a 24-17 win over the Illinois Fighting Illini.
“We needed to go back to who we are, because we were beating ourselves in multiple ways,” head coach P.J. Fleck said after his first Big Ten win with the Gophers. “It wasn’t easy because there was a lot of adversity in that football game but I thought we responded well, I don’t think we win that game three weeks ago.”
The offensive line blocked incredibly well for the Gophers, springing Kobe McCrary – who filled in for the injured Shannon Brooks – for 153 yards and a score. McCrary averaged 6.4 yards per carry, while Rodney Smith finished with 103 yards of his own. The offensive line did a great job opening up lanes and getting into the linebackers while McCrary bowled over Illini defenders.
The biggest change from previous weeks, especially offensively, was keeping the mental mishaps to a minimum. They started with with the ball, taking the first drive 72 yards for an opening score. While quarterback Demry Croft threw two interceptions and only completed five passes, the team ran read-option plays without fumbling and continually executed on the ground.
When the team needed a drive late, they went down the field and scored a late game touchdown to pull ahead 17-10, essentially mistake-free. This team looked different because, despite the mistakes, they did not beat themselves.
“Wins these days in 2017, they are almost all a relief at some point,” Fleck said. “The pressure to win, that these young people feel from social media and what is said about them, what is written about them, makes it hard to be a student athlete in 2017, especially when it’s not going good.”
The defensive side stepped up, moving past the injuries in the secondary to Antoine Winfield Jr. and Antonio Shenault, giving true freshmen Justus Harris and Ken Holly-Handy the chance to fill in.
The defense did everything you could ask of them. They cleaned up their tackling, played tight defense, and won the game in the trenches. The defense faced plenty of adversity, but played on and came up with an answer throughout the game.
The Illini were faced with a first quarter red zone position after a fumble on the 15-yard line from Smith and the Gophers. But the defense bounced back in the second quarter by forcing a fumble of their own.
Starting cornerback Kiondre Thomas returned to make a start against the Illini, only to go down again. The team still had their young secondary fill in, with veterans like safety Duke McGhee directing traffic. The Illini brought in run-first quarterback Cam Thomas after removing his redshirt, in an effort to layer the offense.
The Gophers defense refused to play back on their heels, adjusting to Thomas and recognizing his role in the offense quickly. The aggressive play of the front seven yielded three sacks and eight tackles for loss.
The highlight was a fourth quarter, 31-yard pick six from linebacker Jonathan Celestin. The entire linebacker corps stepped up, with Thomas Barber leading the team in tackles with 11 and Carter Coughlin blasting through the Illini line for two sacks. They also held the running game in check, with the Illini only going for 121 rushing yards.
“Our main focus this week was dominating the line of scrimmage and stopping the run” Barber said, describing the front’s success. “The first three weeks, we held team under 100 yards rushing. And the last three weeks, we gave up 100 yards rushing. So stopping the run was our main focus in this game.”
There was no late-game burst conceded by the Gophers, forcing the Illini to drive down and earn their points. This was the most complete game the team has put together. From the secondary rolling with the adjustments, to the special teams, to the offensive line, every aspect of the team brought something to this win.
This was not mistake-free football, but the team was able to correct them selves in-game for the first time this season. The problems of the first half weren’t carried into the next. The Gophers made adjustments as they went on to put together a winning performance.
Listen to The Whole Gang Every Week on the Cold Omaha Staff Pod!
