The Gopher football team was stunned on Saturday as their 21-game non-conference winning streak was snapped in a 14-10 loss to Bowling Green.
The Gophers entered Saturday’s game as 30.5-point favorites after shutting out Colorado last week but came out flat in front of a homecoming crowd. Although they forced an early interception from Matt McDonald, they had to settle for a Matthew Trickett field goal and a 3-0 lead.
From there, the Gophers were dominated by the Bowling Green defense. With Chris Autman-Bell leaving the game with a first-quarter injury, the Gopher passing game was non-existent with Tanner Morgan held to 59 yards passing.
The Falcons took advantage when McDonald scored on a one-yard option run to put Bowling Green ahead 7-3. The lead held into the third quarter when the Gophers came out inspired and unleashed a seven-play, 54-yard drive that ended with a 19-yard touchdown run by Cole Kramer.
Kramer puts the Gophers back 🆙 @ctkramer5 // @GopherFootball pic.twitter.com/Sf1BpiDBl0
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) September 25, 2021
While the Gophers were able to regain the lead, they never could get in sync despite 141 yards rushing from Trey Potts. With the offense silenced, the Falcons took the lead back with a three-yard run by McDonald at the end of the third quarter.
The Gophers would drag through the fourth quarter before getting the ball back twice within the final 2:19 for a potential game-winning drive. But against a defense that ranked 59th in total defense coming into the game, Morgan heaved a pair of interceptions to end the longest non-conference winning streak in the nation.
The loss was the Gophers’ first non-conference defeat since falling to TCU in 2015. Conversely, that was the last time Bowling Green beat a Big Ten opponent with a victory over Purdue. The Falcons also won back-to-back games for the first time since 2018, capping off a miserable day for the Gophers.
The Gophers (2-2, 0-1 Big Ten) will try to rebound with a trip to Purdue next week.
