NCAAF

Minnesota Golden Gophers at Illinois Fighting Illini

· NCAA - Football
Final
25 - 17

Minnesota rallies to defeat No. 24 Illinois 25-17 for the Golden Gophers' 4th straight win

It was the fourth consecutive win for Minnesota (6-3, 4-2 Big Ten), while Illinois (6-3, 3-3) dropped its second straight.

Brosmer completed 22 of 37 passes for 213 yards and a TD. Darius Taylor ran for 131 yards and a TD on 22 carries and he was the Golden Gophers’ leading receiver with nine catches for 58 yards. Elijah Spencer had six catches for 67 yards.

“We knew there was going to be a great crowd and it would be hostile. So what?” Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck said. “Illinois is ranked. So what? We kept it all internal.”

Luke Altmyer was 20 of 33 for 226 yards and a TD for Illinois, but lost two fumbles.

Illinois coach Bret Bielema said Altmyer’s ball security is a problem that needs to be corrected. But he said the issue isn’t entirely Altmyer’s fault.

“When the QB position goes well, the QB gets a lot of credit,” Bielema said. “When things don’t go well, the QB gets a lot of blame. We need to help Luke out.”

Illinois’ final drive ended deep in Minnesota territory when Altmyer was sacked by Jah Joyner and his fumble was recovered by Danny Striggow on the Gophers 27.

Pat Bryant had five catches for 72 yards and Zakhari Franklin caught five passes for 71 yards and a TD for Illinois. Josh McCray rushed seven times for 71 yards and a TD.

Illinois took a 17-16 lead with 9:03 to go when Altmyer threw a 21-yard TD pass to Franklin after Minnesota punter Mark Crawford’s run on a fake came up short, giving the Illini the ball on their own 46.

Fleck said there weren’t any decisions his players made during the game that he didn’t like. Even the failed fake punt.

“It was the perfect call based on Illinois’ formation,” he said. "Mark has the green light to run when he thinks he has that opportunity. It didn’t work this time and it was risky, but it was the right call.”

The takeaway Illinois: The Illini are no longer perfect at home this season and Bielema is no longer perfect vs. Minnesota in his coaching career. The Illini fell to 5-1 at home and Bielema is 10-1 vs. Minnesota. He beat the Gophers seven times from 2006-12 while he was the coach at Wisconsin. This is his fourth season at Illinois.

Minnesota: The Gophers haven’t lost since they were defeated by Michigan on Sept. 28. During the four-game stretch, they’ve beaten then-No. 11 Southern Cal and now No. 24 Illinois. A big reason is a stingy pass defense. The Altmyer-to-Franklin touchdown pass was only the sixth TD pass allowed by Minnesota this season.

Poll implications After being ranked for seven straight weeks, the most since the 2001 Big Ten championship team was ranked for 10 consecutive weeks, Illinois probably will be booted next week. Minnesota could be a candidate to join the poll.

'Clown show’ Bielema twice referred to the officiating as a “clown show” while discussing a fourth-quarter targeting penalty on Illinois' Miles Scott and a possible late hit on Altmyer on the Illini's final drive that wasn’t called.

Injured Illini Illinois linebacker Dylan Rosiek, the team’s leading tackler, broke a leg making a tackle in the first quarter. Bielema said Rosiek will have surgery and is out for the season.

Up next Illinois: Hosts Michigan State on Nov. 16.

Minnesota: At Rutgers next Saturday.

How To Watch

How can I watch Minnesota Golden Gophers vs. Illinois Fighting Illini?
  • TV Channel: Golden Gophers at Fighting Illini 2021 College Football, week 10, is broadcasted on FS1.
  • Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.

Matchup Prediction

Fighting Illini: 45.7%
Golden Gophers: 54.3%
*According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index

Scoring Summary

MINN FG 1st Period 6:21 Dragan Kesich 20 Yd Field Goal
ILL FG 2nd Period 10:08 David Olano 25 Yd Field Goal
MINN TD 2nd Period 6:55 Darius Taylor 29 Yd Run (Dragan Kesich Kick)
ILL TD 2nd Period 3:28 Josh McCray 42 Yd Run (David Olano Kick)
MINN FG 2nd Period 0:19 Dragan Kesich 45 Yd Field Goal
MINN FG 3rd Period 4:36 Dragan Kesich 38 Yd Field Goal
ILL TD 4th Period 9:03 Zakhari Franklin 21 Yd pass from Luke Altmyer (David Olano Kick)
MINN TD 4th Period 5:14 Jameson Geers 1 Yd pass from Max Brosmer (Two-Point Pass Conversion Failed)
MINN FG 4th Period 1:52 Dragan Kesich 46 Yd Field Goal

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/ncaa/500/135.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originMINN https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/ncaa/500/356.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originILL
21 1st Downs 20
7-15 3rd down efficiency 7-13
0-1 4th down efficiency 0-1
361 Total Yards 352
213 Passing 226
22/37 Comp/Att 20/33
5.8 Yards per pass 6.8
148 Rushing 126
32 Rushing Attempts 29
4.6 Yards per rush 4.3
7-45 Penalties 2-13
0 Turnovers 2
0 Fumbles lost 2
0 Interceptions thrown 0
34:59 Possession 25:01

Game Information

Memorial Stadium (Champaign, IL)

Location: Champaign, IL
Attendance: 58,088 · Capacity:
Full Standings

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