It was yet another case of too little, too late for the Gophers as Iowa retook possession of the Floyd of Rosedale Trophy. The 40-35 win means the Hawkeyes remain unbeaten and continue to have a shot at the College Football Playoff; the loss means Minnesota has to win both of its remaining games to be bowl-eligible. I’ll look ahead to this Saturday’s matchup with Illinois in a bit, but first, the takeaways from the Iowa game.
Comeback Attempt Falls Short For Minnesota; Illinois Visits Saturday
The Positive:
-Quarterback Mitch Leidner continues to improve week to week. According to the broadcast crew, he’s focused on his footwork and stepping up in the pocket in the last few weeks, and it shows. A lot of the balls that, earlier in the season, were just too high, or just overthrown, are now on target. With his 25th career touchdown pass in the second quarter, Leidner tied Tony Dungy for eighth-most in school history.
-No turnovers.
-The run game appears to be getting back on track. One hundred thirty-three yards isn’t anything to write home about, but against the ninth-ranked run defense in the country, it’s respectable.
-Cornerback Eric Murray and linebacker Cody Poock both played very well.
The Negative:
-The injuries continue to mount on defense, and it showed. Both starting tackles were out, and cornerback/kick retuner Jalen Myrick is likely done for the season with a rib/lung injury suffered at Ohio State. Iowa racked up 508 yards of total offense.
-The coverage units continue to allow big returns.
-Penalties were a big issue. Twelve for 87 yards is unacceptable.
Up Next…
Visiting the Bank this weekend will be 5-5 Illinois. The Illini are allowing 153.8 yards per game on the ground, and have given up 11 rushing touchdowns this season. I’d like to see a healthy dose of Shannon Brooks to start the game, along with a few designed run plays for Leidner, but this looks like another game where the Gophers have to rely on the pass. Through the air, Illinois yields just over 197 yards per game, and have allowed 15 passing touchdowns. Assuming that their top defensive back will be covering K.J. Maye, this could be another big game for Brandon Lingen.
As for the Illini offense, they’re a pretty balanced team, with 26 touchdowns on the season- 12 rushing, 14 passing. Leading rushers Ke’Shawn Vaughn and Josh Ferguson have combined for over 1,100 yards and nine scores. I’d expect them to go up the gut more than usual, with the Gophers playing backup interior linemen (unfortunately, coach Tracy Claeys told the Star-Tribune earlier in the week that he doesn’t expect any of the injured players on defense to return for Saturday; I wasn’t able to find any more recent quotes to contradict that). Eric Murray will likely draw the assignment of covering leading receiver Geronimo Allison, but there are six other players on the roster with at least one touchdown reception.
Main Image
