The Minnesota Golden Gophers closed out the non-conference part of the schedule with a dominant 27-0 victory over the Nevada Wolfpack of the Mountain West Conference. Minnesota continued much of what they did in week 2, which was to operate a shutdown defense and a pass-first offense. Weeks 2 and 3 are what many fans expected to see from the Gophers coming into the season, and hopefully will be able to continue into BIG10 play as they face stronger opponents.
Nevada came into the game 1-2, as they were one of the few teams to play in week 0, but each of their games were decided by less than a touchdown. This was until they came into Huntington Bank Stadium, where their spread option offense was stifled by an aggressive defense. DC Corey Hetherman threw many different blitz packages at the Wolfpack, but the Gophers were able to get pressure even without them. The pressure that the D-Line was able to get on Brendon Lewis proved to be a difference maker, as they were able to get 3 interceptions on the day. Two of the interceptions came from Safety Kerry Brown, resulting in him taking home BIG10 Freshman of the Week for his performance. On offense, Brosmer was able to again efficiently utilize the quick passing game and hit checkdowns to the backs. Besides one interception on a miscommunication with Christian Driver, he was very efficient. As for star RB Darius Taylor, this was his best performance of the season, helped out by an 80-yard TD run. He finished the day with 161 total yards and 3 TDs. The O-Line looked slightly better, but will still need to find a way to improve against the elite matchups in the next few weeks. The Gophers will have a lot of momentum after two straight dominant performances as they host the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Battle for Floyd of Rosedale, now onto highlighting the “helmet sticker” individual performances.
Helmet Sticker Performances
For those of you who do not know what a Helmet Sticker is; it is the tradition of giving small decals to put on their helmet the week after a game for good individual plays or performances. Ohio State is most known for this practice, as their blank gray helmets are filled out continuously over the course of a season. Although Minnesota does not actually give out decals for good performances, I will just use it as a way to point out positive performances that happened during the course of a game. The Gophers had their second straight dominant performance, meaning many players will be moving up or onto the leaderboard of stickers.
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- Much like the Rhode Island game, Corey Hetherman’s crew was able to play great at all three levels. The Gopher’s D-line generated pressure on what seemed like every single passing play. Jah Joyner had one of his best games in maroon and gold, which seems like something that is being said on a weekly basis. It was his pressure that led to Lewis lobbing up the ball across the middle to be intercepted. With Joyner, Anthony Smith and Jalen Logan-Redding plugged up rushing lanes, but were also able to generate inside pressure. This inside pressure is pivotal against mobile QBs, as it closes lanes inside and makes running around to the outside the only option, where DEs and LBs are there to clean up. The guy who seemed to do much of the cleaning up was NB/LB Jack Henderson. Henderson seemed to be all over the field and in on every tackle against Nevada, and he is quickly becoming the swiss-army knife for this defense. Lastly for the defense, the defensive backs shined again. As mentioned before, Kerry Brown is getting real accolades for his performance, as well as the coveted “Helmet Sticker”. Along with Brown, Ethan Robinson also found himself creating a turnover, with his endzone interception to keep the shutout intact.
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- The Minnesota Golden Gophers’ offense is looking like it will be a pass-first offense for the entirety of the season, as Max Brosmer has looked extremely comfortable moving the ball through the air. His numbers were not quite as inflated as they were against Rhode Island, but his efficiency throughout the two games was evident. He successfully gets receivers, tight ends, and running backs involved in the passing game. Which can be very dangerous as opponents cannot focus on one guy to try and shut down. Although if they were going to try and shut one man down, their attention would likely go to Darius Taylor II. As stated before, this was his best game of the season. He was able to be strong on the ground and as a pass-catcher. If both can be consistently utilized, then he will only become more of a threat for opponents. His day was capped off by an 80-yard TD run, which alone would’ve got him a sticker for the week. Moving forward, Minnesota will need to keep the momentum that has built from this passing game, as well as working in more shots downfield to generate even more explosive plays.
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- As mentioned after the Rhode Island game, my expectations for Dragan Kesich are very high after his 2023 season. Therefore 2/3 on the day will not garner a sticker for the week. His leg proved to be the difference in the game against Iowa last season, and will be critical again this season. As for Mark Crawford, he had a solid day, but it is a good sign when a punter is not needed often. Lastly, the return game lost Quinten Redding for the season, leaving the duties for budding star Koi Perich. It is exciting that every punt by opponents has Gopher fans holding their breath, as Perich has the athleticism to house a punt at any time. His 22 return yards is solid, but fans can sense something explosive coming soon.
This was an all-around great performance and ending to the non-conference part of the schedule. There is clearly an identity that has been built over the last two games, as well as a significant amount of momentum. This will need to continue as the Hawkeyes come into town in what is sure to be a dogfight for the Floyd of Rosedale.
Season Leaderboard
- Justin Walley, Ethan Robinson, Anthony Smith, Jack Henderson (2)
- Za’Quan Bryan, Marcus Major, Deven Eastern. Aiden Gousby, Koi Perich, Cody Lindenberg, Elijah Spencer, Jah Joyner, Jalen Logan-Redding, Kerry Brown, Darius Taylor II (All with 1)
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