Minnesota-Rutgers could not have been scripted any better. The Gophers’ 42-7 win means their unbeaten streak is now at nine games, and their 2019 record is 7-0. With Illinois’ upset of Wisconsin, Minnesota now sits alone atop the Big Ten West. We’ll get to the movie of the week part in a minute.<\/p>\n
It was a valiant effort by Rutgers, but their defense had no answer for the Gopher offense, in particular Tyler Johnson<\/a>. The senior wideout caught six passes for 130 yards and a score, and now has the second-most receiving touchdowns (26) in school history. Tanner Morgan completed a mediocre 15 of 28 pass attempts, and still threw for 245 yards and two touchdowns. The run defense didn’t fare any better, as Rodney Smith<\/a> rushed for 111 yards and two touchdowns, and Mohamed Ibrahim<\/a> added another.<\/p>\n The Knights’ offense struggled even more. Freshman quarterback Jeremy Langan<\/strong> completed 9 of 19 pass attempts for 48 yards and no touchdowns. He was intercepted on the opening drive by Antoine Winfield Jr.<\/a>, and in the second quarter by Phillip Howard.<\/strong> Just for good measure, Winfield added a pick-six late in the game. Possibly the only negative from the game (from a Minnesota perspective, that is) is the injury to Kamal Martin. The senior linebacker spent an extended time in the injury tent before returning to the locker room via cart.<\/p>\n (Side note: with Wisconsin’s loss to Illinois, check back here<\/a> later on for updated Bowl Projections).<\/p>\n The score and the play on the field were far less important than what happened late in the third quarter of the Minnesota-Rutgers blowout. After a Mohamed Ibrahim touchdown, Casey O’Brien trotted out to hold for the PAT. If you missed College Gameday’s story on O’Brien<\/a> a few weeks back, here are the things to know:<\/p>\n Here’s the video from the game yesterday. Warning: you may find your environment becoming noticeably dusty.<\/p>\nMore Importantly…<\/h2>\n
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