Coming off of the bye week, the Minnesota Golden Gophers looked healthy, aggressive, and juiced up on P.J Fleck’s “capsules of confidence” as they routed the Maryland Terrapins by a score of 48-23. The Gophers jumped out to an early 21-0 and never looked back. From the jump they were pushing the ball downfield, against a poor Maryland pass defense. Getting up two scores early, then tacking on a pick 6, it seemed like a blowout was in place early in this game. The second half saw the defense bend a bit at times, but keeping Maryland QB Billy Edwards Jr. uncomfortable made it very difficult for any sort of an attempted comeback to come to fruition.
This victory was the first necessary step, post-bye, at achieving bowl eligibility. As it sets Minnesota up with needing just one more win across their final four games. With this, it also continues the momentum that has been building for weeks, setting up an exciting finish to the season. Their next matchup will be in Champaign, Illinois, as P.J and company will get another chance to defeat Bret Bielema and the Fighting Illini.
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. Strap in because there will be plenty of love to give out after a performance like this one.
Defense
Billy Edwards Jr. and Tai Felton came into this game as one of the top duos in all of the BIG10, but were largely held in check by Hetherman’s crew on Saturday. The main reason Minnesota was able to force Billy Edwards Jr. to make mistakes was the consistent pressure they forced. Jah Joyner, Anthony Smith, Jalen Logan-Redding, and Danny Striggow (to name a few) were able to hurry the QB consistently, even if it resulted in zero sacks on the day. On two occasions, it resulted in plays that were better than sacks. The first was Justin Walley’s pick 6 in the first quarter. Walley was able to get a great jump on a quick pass attempt and quickly take it to the house. The second was Anthony Smith bull-rushing the LG into the lap of Billy Edwards Jr., which resulted in, yet another, Koi Perich interception. This group was able to slow down a very hot Maryland passing offense. This was made possible by the bye week, as it gave extra time to get back key pieces such as; Jalen Logan-Redding, Aiden Gousby, Kerry Brown, and Maverick Baranowski. All of the pieces came together for a great performance on the defensive side of the ball.
Offense
Game by game, Minnesota fans have witnessed Max Brosmer become more and more comfortable playing against high level opponents. Well last Saturday against Maryland, everything came together for him. From the first snap there was another level of confidence for Brosmer this week. He was getting through his reads efficiently and pinpointing passes throughout the game. This level of play got him rewarded with BIG10 Offensive Player of the Week. This efficiency could not have been possible without Daniel Jackson, Elijah Spencer, and Darius Taylor II playing at a very high level. Daniel Jackson has been the go-to target recently for Brosmer and has been playing like an All-BIG10-caliber player. As for Spencer, this was likely his best game in Maroon and Gold. His work since transferring in from Charlotte has been paying off this season, and resulted in nearly 100 yards and 2 TDs against the Terrapins. For Darius Taylor, his rushing was largely ineffective throughout the game, until one outside zone broke for a 51-yard TD in the second half. It was once again his ability to be a reliable checkdown option that kept Brosmer comfortable in the pocket. Lastly, after allowing zero sacks and giving ample time for Brosmer to make his reads, the entire offensive line deserves some accolades for the day they had on passing plays.
Special Teams
Hopefully this week from Dragan Kesich is a sign of things to come for the remainder of the season, as he was perfect on the day. He was 2/2 on FGs and 6/6 on PATs. The bye week may have been a time to reset for Kesich and hopefully will put him back into Kicker of the Year form.
Season Leaderboard
- Ethan Robinson, Koi Perich, Max Brosmer, Jah Joyner (5)
- Justin Walley, Anthony Smith, Daniel Jackson (4)
- Darius Taylor II, Aireontae Ersery, Mark Crawford (3)
- Kerry Brown, Jack Henderson, Aiden Gousby, Deven Eastern, Cody Lindenberg, Elijah Spencer, Jalen Logan-Redding, Danny Striggow, Tyler Cooper, Greg Williams, Ashton Beers, Quinn Carroll, Dragan Kesich (2)
- Za’Quan Bryan, Marcus Major, Jameson Geers, Devon Williams, (1)
