Gophers still golden
Minnesota holds off No. 4 Penn State to remain undefeated
MINNEAPOLIS — The progress made by Minnesota in coach P.J. Fleck's third season had been met by natural skepticism outside the long-languishing program, with even the most ardent fans in full prove-it mode for this game of unbeaten teams against Penn State.
From start to finish, the Gophers matched the moment. They took down the Nittany Lions with a narrative-altering performance.
Jordan Howden picked off Sean Clifford's pass in the end zone with 1:01 left, the third interception thrown by Penn State's quarterback, and 13th-ranked Minnesota held on for a 31-26 victory on Saturday afternoon for its first win over a top-five team in 20 years.
“I'm just so proud to be a Gopher, and I speak for our whole team when I say that,” said Fleck, who declared the game ball he handed afterward to the school president for the entire state.
Tanner Morgan passed for 339 yards and three touchdowns in a dismantling of fifth-ranked Penn State's staunch defense, as Minnesota (9-0, 6-0, No. 17 CFP) stayed on track for its first trip to the Big Ten championship game. For a program has not won the conference since a shared title in 1967, this is a whole new world.
“As an athlete and just in life,” Morgan said, “you should want pressure because that means your life is significant.”
The first sellout crowd for the Gophers at home in four years swarmed the field after the clock ran out, reveling in the first win at home over a top-five team since a shutout of No. 1 Michigan in 1977. The Gophers scrambled the College Football Playoff picture a bit, too, after Penn State (8-1, 5-1, No. 4 CFP) emerged with a top-four spot in the first edition of the rankings.
“We knew they were a good football team,” Nittany Lions coach James Franklin said. “It's hard to be undefeated.”
Rashod Bateman got the Gophers going with a 66yard score on their first possession that covered 95 yards. He finished with seven catches for 203 yards, the second-most in program history. Tyler Johnson had seven receptions for 104 yards and a touchdown, too, as Morgan found opening after opening in the Penn State zone to produce enough early gains the Gophers could bank for the inevitable late rally by the Nittany Lions. Morgan went 18 for 20, his second game of the season with a 90% or better completion rate.
I l l i n o i s 3 7, Mi c h i g a n State 34: Brandon Peters threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Daniel Barker with five seconds left, completing an incredible Illinois comeback.
Illinois (6-4, 4-3 Big Ten) trailed 28-3 in the second quarter and 31-10 entering the fourth. Down 34-30, they converted fourthand-17, then drew a pass interference flag in the end zone on another fourthdown pass. It was secondand-goal when Peters patiently rolled out to his right and found Barker open in the back of the end zone.
Peters threw for 369 yards and three touchdowns.
The Illini are now bowl eligible for the first time since 2014. They've done it by forcing turnovers all season long, including four Saturday.
No. 3 Ohio State 73, Maryland 13: Justin Fields threw for three touchdowns and ran for another in the first half Saturday, and No. 3 Ohio State hardly missed suspended defensive star Chase Young in a 73-14 romp over Maryland.
A team that gave the Buckeyes (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten, CFP No. 1) headaches last season was no trouble this time, even without the fierce pass rushing of Young. The preseason AllAmerican was suspended Friday while Ohio State investigates a possible NCAA violation involving a loan.
J.K. Dobbins rushed for 90 yards and two touchdowns as the Buckeyes built a 42-0 halftime lead and the backups added to it in the second half.
No. 16 Wisconsin 24, No. 18 Iowa 22: Jonathan Taylor rushed for a season-high 250 yards and Danny Davis ran for a touchdown and caught another as No. 16 Wisconsin outlasted No. 18 Iowa.
Taylor became the first running back this season to rush for more than 100 yards against Iowa as Wisconsin (7-2, 4-2 Big Ten, No. 13 College Football Playoff ) held on to the Heartland Trophy, given each year to the winner of this game. Wisconsin has beaten Iowa four straight times.
Quintez Cephus caught five passes for 94 yards and a score to help Wisconsin stay in contention for the Big Ten West crown.