Gophers football gave themselves too much of a mountain to climb in the second half as Michigan staved off their furious comeback and won 27-24.
Minnesota trailed 21-0 in the first half, but in the final 32 minutes, the Gophers outscored the Wolverines 24-6 making the final minutes dependent on an onside kick, recovered by the Gophers but ultimately ruled offsides.
Gophers kicker Dragan Kesich teed up the kick. The ball, hit with perfection and bounded by every Wolverine, was recovered by the Gophers, but there was a flag.
Offside was called on Gopher Matt Kingsbury, erasing a game-changing play. The Wolverines recovered the second kick and ran the clock out to end the game.
The Fox broadcast rules analyst Mike Pereira disagreed with the offside call.
“If you take a look at the high shot, like the all-22, I don’t think he’s breaking the plane,” Pereira said. “It’s so technical, but to me, he’s not.”
Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck said he was 10 yards downfield where the ball was recovered.
“I didn’t hear anything except he was offsides,” Fleck said. “I didn’t see it. We practice that every day, time it up right there on the edge because you have to be if you’re going to recover one of those.”
The Wolverines dominated most of the game, but a sliver of hope entered the hearts of Gophers fans with two minutes left to play. Gophers quarterback Max Brosmer rifled a pass to the back of the endzone where a spinning Daniel Jackson pinned the ball to his chest and got a foot down for the touchdown to bring the score within three.
The Gophers’ second-half surge ended there but began with a frantic final two minutes in the opening half.
Minnesota maneuvered down the field on third-and-23 near midfield and Brosmer launched a hail mary toward the endzone that tight end Nick Kallerup grabbed.
The 44-yard connection left two seconds on the clock which stopped for a first down allowing Minnesota’s field goal unit to sprint onto the field. Kesich had enough time to set up and drill the field goal and cut Michigan’s lead to 21-3 at the half.
Michigan methodically moved the ball down the field, but Minnesota held the Wolverines to a 53-yard field goal to open the second half, reclaiming their three-touchdown lead.
After a three-and-out, Michigan aired the ball out. Following a first down, Wolverines quarterback Alex Orji targeted Colston Loveland down the seam, but Gophers cornerback Ethan Robinson ripped the ball away for an interception.
The Gophers offense responded with a 12-play, 76-yard drive finished with Darius Taylor’s three-yard rushing touchdown.
Minnesota’s defense forced a three-and-out and handed the ball back to the offense.
Freshman Koi Perich took things into his own hands on the punt. Perich found a seam, sprinted straight through it and scampered inside the Michigan red zone for a 60-yard return.
Minnesota scored three plays later, gashing the Wolverines’ lead trailing 24-17 with 11:05 in the fourth quarter.
Minnesota’s defense stood tall against the Wolverines’ drive and forced another field goal, but Michigan killed six and a half minutes and pushed their lead to 10 points.
The Gophers could not recover the second onside kick and the Wolverines won despite a late surge from Minnesota.
Wolverines Head Coach Sherrone Moore said he was not happy with his team’s performance, especially in the second half.
“We got a lot of cleaning up to do as a team as a group to get better,” Moore said. “They came out with a lot of energy and we didn’t.”
The Gophers fell to a 2-3 record Saturday (0-2 in the Big Ten). Minnesota hosts Southern California for the University’s parents’ weekend on Oct. 5. The Gophers are still searching for their first Big Ten win.