Minnesota falls to No. 2 Michigan at home, with a final score of 52-10. This marked the 105th matchup between Minnesota and Michigan, and is the first time the schools have met since the 2020 season opener.
Notably absent from the lineup was Michigan native, running back Darius Taylor. Also out in last week’s game against Louisiana, Taylor’s absence left Minnesota’s offense turning to redshirt-freshman Zach Evans to fill the gap.
Hosting a sold-out stadium with 52,179 in attendance, the action started right away. Only 12 seconds into the game, Gophers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis threw a 26-yard interception, returned for a touchdown.
After a second drive attempt, the Gophers only advanced seven yards and did not reach the first down.
Minnesota’s defense held back Michigan, forcing a fourth down. Michigan’s kicker, James Turner, was good for a 31-yard field goal, bringing the score to 10-0 in favor of Michigan. Michigan’s sole field goal occurred with 7:33 remaining in the first quarter.
With Minnesota in possession again, the Gophers started their drive at the 25-yard line. Evans stood out with three consecutive rushes, gaining a total of 34 yards. Evans ended the game with the most rushing yards with 12 carries for 45 yards.
The drive ended with a 54-yard field goal from kicker Dragan Kesich. Fifty-four yards marked a career-high for Kesich as well as the longest Gopher field goal since 2007. Kesich’s one and only miss was an attempted 54-yard field goal during the season opener against Nebraska where he was wide left.
The first quarter concluded with the Gophers trailing the Wolverines by a score of 10-3.
Michigan scored back-to-back touchdowns, bringing the score to 24-3 and sandwiching a poor Minnesota offensive effort in which Kaliakmanis was sacked.
Minnesota responded with a 67-yard drive, with Evans contributing an additional six yards on the ground and 13 yards through the air, while Bryce Williams gained 21 rushing yards.
Receiver Daniel Jackson scored Minnesota’s only touchdown of the night. Kaliakmanis’ 35-yard pass with just six seconds left in the second quarter marked Jackson’s 12th career touchdown as a Gopher.
“It was a one-on-one match-up,” Kaliakmanis said. “Give Daniel the ball … I was excited because I knew he was going to make the play, it was just up to me to put the ball in the right place, and it worked.”
Jackson scored two touchdowns last weekend against Louisiana and was the leader in targets, receptions, receiving yards and touchdown catches last season.
With the addition of Jackson’s touchdown, the score sat at 24-10 at the end of the second quarter. This would be the last time the Gophers scored.
In the third quarter, the Wolverines scored back-to-back touchdowns yet again, followed by another pick-six, bringing the score to 45-10.
Gophers defensive lineman Jalen Logan-Redding knew some areas needed to be worked on in the defensive zone.
“We just didn’t execute upfront. They took advantage of the holes that were there. Not only that, they got good backs,” Logan-Redding said. “We gotta do a better job of executing. They are one of the better O-lines that we play. So we’ve got to learn from that and grow.”
To round out the last quarter, Michigan scored one final touchdown, bringing the score to 52-10, a season-high for Michigan.
Kaliakmanis ended the night with 52 yards and a 31% pass completion rate.
After the blowout, the Gophers will look ahead to the second half of the season.
“Now we have to learn from those six games, draw a line in the sand and play way better in the second half,” said Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck. “But part of that is that we got to get healthy … It’s a player’s game. I’ve got to coach better … We’ve got to do everything in every department better.”
The players understand what they have to do for the second half of the year.
“When it comes to drawing a line in the sand, everybody has to make a decision that this is not gonna happen again,” Logan-Redding said. “As we continue to talk about rowing the boat, continue to move forward and just see what continues to press forward into the future, always live in the now but always be optimistic about the future.”
Fleck ended the night with a note to the fans.
”I want to say this, thanks to all of our fans. Thanks for the sellout,” Fleck said. “I know we didn’t do our part, but that wasn’t because of our fans … So thanks for creating that, thanks for showing what Minnesota could be, and we’ll do better.”
The Gophers look for a more positive outcome as they face Iowa in two weeks.
“We’re excited to learn,” Kaliakmanis said. “We’re gonna be hard on ourselves, and we’re gonna be ready for Iowa.”
The Gophers enter a bye week and look to face the Hawkeyes in Iowa on Oct. 21.
