Minnesota’s chances to win the Big Ten West were shattered by back-to-back turnovers late in the fourth quarter against the Iowa Hawkeyes Saturday in Minneapolis.
Tied 10-10 with about five minutes left in the fourth quarter, Mohamed Ibrahim lost a fumble inside Iowa’s 10-yard line. After forcing a punt to get the ball back, still tied 10-10, with four minutes to go, the Gophers moved to the Iowa 33-yard line before Athan Kaliakmanis’s pass was tipped and intercepted.
Jack Campbell caught the deflection and appeared to return it for a touchdown, but the officials said he stepped out of bounds at the Minnesota 45. On the next play, Spencer Petras connected with tight end Luke Lachey for a 33 yards to the Gophers 12.
A few handoffs, a replay and a timeout later freshman kicker Drew Stevens snuck a 21-yard field goal just inside the left upright with 28 seconds to play and a 13-10 lead.
Ibrahim rushed 39 times for 269 yards and one touchdown.
The Gophers needed to beat Iowa and Wisconsin next week – and have Purdue lose to Indiana next week – to win the Big Ten West. But the loss eliminates the Gophers in the division and they’ll hope to earn their eighth win in Madison and then await their bowl game direction.
Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck is now 0-6 against Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz.
Iowa, meanwhile, can now win the Big Ten West if they beat Nebraska at home next Saturday. Purdue wins the division with a win over Indiana and an Iowa loss.
