{"id":50746,"date":"2023-09-11T16:30:46","date_gmt":"2023-09-11T20:30:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=50746"},"modified":"2023-09-11T14:19:22","modified_gmt":"2023-09-11T18:19:22","slug":"gophers-beat-eastern-michigan-25-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2023\/09\/11\/gophers-beat-eastern-michigan-25-6\/","title":{"rendered":"Gophers Beat Eastern Michigan 25-6"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Gophers took care of business and beat Eastern Michigan 25-6, Saturday night. Minnesota used a strong rushing attack and stifling defense to control the Eagles, who never really threatened the Gophers. The Gophers are 2-0 to start the season for the second consecutive year and the fifth time in seven years under coach P.J. Fleck<\/strong>. The Gophers are 19-1 against non-conference opponents in the Fleck era and rank second in the FBS in non-conference winning percentage since 2017.\u00a0 Minnesota extended its winning streak to four games, dating back to last season.<\/p>\n

Defensive Dominance<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The MVP of the game was Joe Rossi’s defensive unit, which held the Eagles to six points, 81 rushing yards, and 71 passing yards.\u00a0 Eastern Michigan’s quarterback Austin Smith<\/a> went nine for 20 for 71 yards and an interception. The Eagles only managed nine first downs and were three for 10 on third-down conversions.<\/p>\n

The second half was particularly dominant for the Gophers. They held Eastern Michigan to four yards on 14 plays, including a net loss of three rushing yards. Minnesota’s pass rush was relentless and recorded four sacks and five tackles-for-loss.<\/p>\n

A Strong Rushing Attack<\/h3>\n

The Gophers also finally got the run game going, with a strong effort from true freshman\u00a0Darius Taylor<\/a>\u00a0and senior\u00a0Sean Tyler<\/a>. Taylor had a career-high with 193 yards on 33 carries and a touchdown, while Tyler rushed for 93 yards.\u00a0Taylor started the game slowly and had eight rushing for 44 yards in the first half, but ran 25 times for 149 in the second half. Taylor\u2019s touchdown, the first of his career, was a 2\u2010yard run in the second quarter. He added 13 receiving yards and finished with 206 all\u2010purpose yards. Taylor’s 193 yards was the second most by a Gopher freshman since\u00a0Darrell Thompson<\/strong>\u00a0ran for 205 yards against Bowling Green in 1986.<\/p>\n

Athan Kaliakmanis<\/a>\u00a0was efficient but not spectacular and finished the game 10-15 for 117 yards with one rushing touchdown.\u00a0He threw one interception, which was tipped by\u00a0Brevyn Spann-Ford<\/a>\u00a0in the fourth quarter. Kaliakmanis’ one\u2010yard touchdown run in the third quarter was the second of his career. He spread the ball around and completed passes to five different receivers.<\/p>\n

Minnesota finished the game with 28 first downs, and they controlled the clock for over 39 minutes. The Gophers used explosive plays to move the ball and had 16 offensive plays of more than ten yards. They didn’t punt the ball during the game, marking the first time accomplishing that feat since beating Michigan State last year.<\/p>\n

Special Team Improvement<\/h3>\n

The Gophers special teams improved from the Nebraska game, led by a strong performance by\u00a0Dragon Kesich<\/a>. Kesich was three for three on field goal attempts and hit both of the PATs. All six of his kickoffs went for touchbacks, which prevented the Eagles from building any momentum with their special teams. Eli Mau<\/a>\u00a0also blocked a punt in the fourth quarter that went out of the endzone for safety. It was the first Gophers blocked punt since 2020 and the first safety since 2021.<\/p>\n

Solid Attendance\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n

The Gophers had 48,101 fans in attendance at the game, about 5,000 less than the Nebraska sellout. Through two home games, Minnesota has had 101,730 fans, an average of 50,865 per game. The Gophers wore their “Dark Mode” uniforms for the first time, which featured a black helmet, jersey, and pants.<\/p>\n

Players Making Plays<\/b><\/h3>\n