Minnesota has defeated Iowa in Iowa City for the first time in this millennium. It’s been since 1999 that the Golden Gophers carried the Floyd of Rosedale trophy out of Kinnick Stadium. They did it on the leg of their kicker and with the help of an invalid fair catch call in a critical stage of the game. Iowa had a blink of success early but became stagnant after their first possession. Minnesota couldn’t find the end zone all day but didn’t need to. Iowa now has two losses in the Big Ten this season. The division it had clear control over entering the week, is now wide open heading into late October.
Minnesota Stifles Iowa and Takes Floyd North
The Closing Sequence
Iowa punted the football with two minutes left in regulation down two points. Kirk Ferentz had all three of his timeouts, and put all trust in his defense. They did their job. Iowa forced a three-and-out that included a Gopher incompletion. The Hawkeyes had one timeout in their pocket, and Minnesota trotted out their punter with 1:41 remaining.
The kick sailed to the Iowa 45-yard line on a couple of bounces. Cooper DeJean picked it up, spun away from a defender, and proceeded to make half of the Golden Gopher specialists miss in a space as wide as a hotel hallway. He bounced it to the other end of the field, taking it 54 yards for a touchdown. It was absolute mayhem inside Kinnick Stadium as Iowa took a 16-12 lead with just over a minute in regulation.
Invalid Fair Catch
What happened next was something no one saw coming. The officials reviewed the play for what everyone thought was to check if DeJean stepped out. He did not, but the review lasted several minutes.
It was determined that DeJean waived an invalid fair catch signal before fielding the bouncing ball, ruling the ball dead at the point of possession. The booth replayed the entirety of DeJean’s motions on the play several times. He was pointing to the ball with his right hand while running to his left, signaling his players to scatter. His left hand was waving in a motion as if to keep his balance while running sideways. But his arm never elevated above his helmet, nor did it wave side-to-side above his head.
After the replay, the officials determined DeJean’s left arm motion was an invalid fair catch signal. Per Section 8 Article 1 of the NCAA Football Rule Book, this deprives the receiving team of their opportunity to return the ball. For that reason, it is the correct call. However, per Rule 12 Section 3 of the NCAA Rule Book, a fair catch is not defined as a reviewable foul if no foul is originally called on the field. No flag was seen on the field of play during the return. At any rate, Iowa put themselves in this position with their performance on offense on the day. It allowed Minnesota’s field goals to be the difference in the game.
Gopher Field Goals Contribute to Victory
Minnesota has struggled against Iowa over the years in large part due to their inability to finish drives with touchdowns. On Saturday, that trend continued. Minnesota forced two quarterback fumbles on the day, both giving them optimal field position. The first of which was in the second quarter, and the Gophers gained possession on the Iowa 32-yard line. The drive resulted in three points. Later on, Tyler Nubin forced another fumble on the Iowa quarterback. It gave Minnesota the ball at the Iowa 11-yard line. The drive lasted four plays and gained one yard, resulting in another field goal.
Mid-way through the fourth quarter, Minnesota strung together a key drive. It included a 39-yard pass from Athan Kaliakmanis to set the Gophers up inside the Hawkeye red zone. It was their first appearance in the red zone that was not handed to them by an Iowa turnover. Again, the Hawkeye defense stood strong and held the Gophers to a field goal, their fourth of the day. With the kick, Minnesota had their first lead of the day at 12-10. That field goal would be the game-winner.
Hawkeye Defense
You can’t ask any more of the Iowa defense in this game. They were on the field for 34:24 in this game and defended 70 total plays. It allowed just 3.4 yards per play and four of 18 on third down. Minnesota had possession in field goal range five times on the day and only got 12 points on the board. Deacon Hill’s two fumbles set up the Gophers inside the Iowa 32-yard line twice. Both times, the Hawkeye defense held Kaliakmanis and the Gopher offense to just three points.
Jay Higgins finished with another double-digit tackle day with 14. Iowa recorded three sacks and five tackles for loss. The group also forced seven three-and-outs and nine punts. They also came up with the most critical stop on the day late in the game. Their forced three-and-out with under two minutes to play set up the dramatic punt to close the game. Iowa did not allow a touchdown despite defending their territory on seven drives.
Hawkeye Offense
The only glimmer of light on offense in this game was Iowa’s opening sequence. On the Hawkeyes’ first possession, it drove the field 70 yards on 11 plays with much of their yardage coming through the air. Hill completed three passes, each to a wide receiver for a total of 64 yards. Iowa had the ball at the Minnesota five-yard line less than four minutes into the game. The drive stalled there and ended with a field goal for three points. For Minnesota, that was a critical stop, because it proved to be the difference late in the game. For Iowa, that finish continues the trend of ineptitude on the few chances it gets in scoring position.
The Hawkeyes did put together one scoring drive in the second quarter to take a 10-3 lead. But it was hardly from the success of its offense. The drive lasted six plays and 46 yards, but 32 of those yards were on Minnesota penalties. The Golden Gophers committed a face mask on a third down that would have ended the drive, followed up by a pass interference to set Iowa up at the six-yard line. Then, an offsides penalty put Iowa on the three. On third and goal, Minnesota stuffed Deacon Hill on a quarterback sneak, likely forcing a field goal. But Nubin committed the team’s fourth penalty of the drive, an unsportsmanlike conduct after the play was over. That gave Iowa the ball at the one-inch line, where it snuck into the end zone for six.
Minnesota Wins Floyd in Iowa City
For as dramatic of an ending as that fair-catch call was, Minnesota won this game in every way. Its defense hasn’t been quite where it wants to be, but it held the Iowa offense to 127 yards on the day. If you take away that 70-yard opening drive, Minnesota allowed just 57 offensive yards in the remaining 56 minutes of regulation. The Golden Gophers forced two fumbles to set up field goals and sealed the game with an interception in the closing minute of play. With their victory, PJ Fleck earns his first over Ferentz in eight attempts (one while at Western Michigan). The Big Ten West remains wide open as Iowa will head into their bye week.
