{"id":38164,"date":"2021-09-03T19:15:29","date_gmt":"2021-09-03T23:15:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=38164"},"modified":"2021-09-03T19:15:29","modified_gmt":"2021-09-03T23:15:29","slug":"gophers-come-up-just-short","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2021\/09\/03\/gophers-come-up-just-short\/","title":{"rendered":"Gophers Come Up Just Short"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’m guessing a lot of experts watching last night’s game were surprised to see the Gophers come up just short against Ohio State. Nobody seemed to be giving Minnesota much of a chance against the #4 Buckeyes. And yet, the two teams played an exciting game for three and a half quarters. This is the kind of game that’s a lot of fun to watch- if you don’t particularly care who wins. If you’re a fan of either team<\/a>, it’s a nail-biter. Here are my takeaways from the game:<\/p>\n

I Love the Mental Make-up of This Team<\/h3>\n

The Gophers took the lead for the first time, having trailed 10-0, with 3:32 left before halftime. There were three lead changes in the third quarter before Ohio State took the lead for good. They extended it to ten points with a fumble return touchdown late in the quarter.<\/p>\n

But even then, Minnesota wasn’t done! In the fourth quarter, a Gopher field goal brought them back within a touchdown.\u00a0 Unfortunately, the Buckeyes promptly added one of their own. Quarterback Tanner Morgan<\/a> led the gritty Gophers on another scoring drive to bring them back to within seven, and the defense got a stop, but the Buckeyes recovered a fumble and went on to score again. (Note that the commentary team and officiating guru Mike Pereira thought there should have been a targeting call on the hit leading to the Mike Brown-Stephens<\/a> fumble).<\/p>\n

At no point did the Gophers look defeated, deflated, or as though they had given up. This is the #4 team in the country, a team that got to the National Championship a year ago (admittedly with a very different roster), and with 5:31 to go in the game, Minnesota still had a chance to win. Instead, the Gophers come up just short despite a gutsy performance.<\/p>\n

Special Teams Have Improved Vastly<\/h3>\n

New kicker Matthew Trickett<\/a> made all four of his PAT attempts, and nailed a 46-yard field goal. Aussie punter Mark Crawford punted three times and got two of them inside the ten-yard line. It’s a small sample size, but this is the best I’ve felt about Gopher special teams in awhile.<\/p>\n

Dylan Wright<\/a> is a Huge Addition<\/h3>\n

Transfer Dylan Wright from Texas A&M is a stud. He caught five passes for 57 yards and a touchdown against one of the country’s best defenses. At 6’3″, 215 he’s got a noticeable size advantage against DBs, but he’s also faster than you’d expect a guy that big to be. His arrival will help tremendously in the passing game, especially if Chris Autman-Bell<\/a> continues dealing with his training-camp injury.<\/p>\n

Mo’ Problems?<\/h3>\n

The biggest downer in the game was the injury to Mohamed Ibrahim<\/a>, whose teammates apparently call him “Mo Money”. (Ask your parents, kids). Through three quarters, he had 30 carries for 136 yards and two touchdowns, passing Laurence Maroney<\/a> for fourth on the career rushing TD list.<\/p>\n

Ibrahim also got the ball on fourth-and-one in the second quarter, from the Minnesota 29. He ripped off a 56-yard run.<\/p>\n

No word yet on his injury (he was in a walking boot on the sideline) or how long he might be out. I’d be very surprised to see him against Miami of Ohio next weekend- no reason for him to play that game at anything less than 100%.<\/p>\n

In summary:<\/h3>\n

Watching the Gophers come up just short against Ohio State was both frustrating and exciting. Frustrating because they were so close<\/em> to pulling the upset, and exciting because they look like a very good team. So good, in fact, that 11 or 12 NFL teams had scouts at the game.<\/p>\n

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Embed from Getty Images<\/a>