Mohamed Ibrahim and the Gophers regained the form they had in a 4-0 start to the season as they dominated time of possession and the defense shut down Rutgers for a 31-0 win Saturday afternoon in Minneapolis.
An efficient running game and shutdown defense was missing in three straight losses to Purdue, Illinois and Penn State, which sagged Minnesota’s record to 4-3 and put them in a hole in the Big Ten West. Now at 5-3 overall, the Gophers are again moving in the right direction.
Here’s what stood out in the win over Rutgers…
1. Long touchdown drives
The Gophers’ first offensive possession of the day started at the 1-yard line and it lasted 19 plays, went 99 yards and ended 10 minutes, 27 seconds later on a one-yard run by Ibrahim.
Minnesota added a 13-play, 86-yard drive that ate 7 minutes, 3 seconds from the clock in the first half. Again, that drive ended on a Ibrahim touchdown run.
Minnesota had the ball on offensive for 41 minutes, 2 seconds.
2. Defense dominates
Rutgers was held to 58 yards in the first half and finished the day with just 134 yards of total offense. Minnesota forced three turnovers: two interceptions by Tyler Nubin in the fourth quarter and a fumble recovery in the first half.
The Scarlet Knights averaged 3.1 yards per play, though they only ran 45 plays to Minnesota’s 74 offensive snaps.
3. Back to form on third downs
Another reason the Gophers were on a three-game skid was because the offense couldn’t pick up first downs on third downs. They went 8-of-32 on third down during the three-game losing streak and then flipped the switch against Rutgers by going 12-of-17 on third down.
4. Dominant running game
Ibrahim finished the day with 159 yards and three touchdowns and 37 carries, including a 28-yard score two plays after Tyler Nubin made the first of his two interceptions while leading 14-0 early in the fourth quarter.
Trey Potts added 57 yards – 40 of them on one carry in the fourth quarter – and Minnesota racked up a combined 253 yards on 53 carries.
5. Where they sit in the Big Ten West
If the Gophers run the table and beat Nebraska, Northwestern, Iowa and Wisconsin they’ll finish the regular season 9-3 overall and 6-3 in the Big Ten. To win the West they need to chase down Illinois, who was leading Nebraska in the third quarter at the time this story was published. If they hold on to win they’ll be 7-1 overall and 4-1 in the conference.
That means to catch the Illini the Gophers would almost certainly have to win out and hope Illinois loses three of its final four against Michigan State, Purdue, Michigan and Northwestern.
Minnesota would also need Purdue to lose at least one game down the stretch, again under the hypothetical that the Gophers win out. If the Gophers don’t win out, they don’t have much of a chance to win the West and play in the Big Ten Championship game.
