The Minnesota Gophers sure have a flair for dramatic Hollywood endings when it comes to facing the Big Ten's Los Angeles teams. After Max Brosmer's 1-yard keeper last week lifted the Gophers to a 24-17 upset win over the 11th ranked USC Trojans, the senior QB was entrusted to produce another late rally to defeat the UCLA Bruins. Once again, he delivered when it mattered most. On the final drive of the game, Brosmer completed five passes culminating in a 4-yard TD pass to RB Darius Taylor with 27 seconds left as the Gophers rallied to beat UCLA 21-17.
The first half was a half to forget. The Gophers offense struggled to move the ball, and when they did, kicker Dragan Kesich missed another field goal. Last season's Big Ten kicker of the year has been terrible this season. He is now 7 of 13 on the season. This is something that needs to get figured out for the rest of the season. On a positive note, the Gophers defense played solid enough in the first half to keep the game close. After the Bruins scored on their first drive, it looked as though they were driving to take a 14-0 lead before the defensive line tipped a pass right into the arms of LB Cody Lindenberg. The Gophers obviously didn't score off of this, but it helped stopped the bleeding for a bit. UCLA went into halftime with a 10-0 lead.
The second half was a completely different story. Brosmer and the Gophers offense came out of halftime on a mission. They opened the second half with a 46 yard drive capped by a 12 yard TD pass to Elijah Spencer to bring the score to 10-7, after the defense forced a quick 3 and out by the Bruins. On the next UCLA drive, freshman Safety Koi Perich (Big Ten defensive player of the week) made an incredible Superman interception leading to another 38 yard drive and 2 yard Darius Taylor rushing TD. After 2 long drives by the Bruins and Gophers that resulted in punts, the Bruins connected on a 42 yard passing TD with 7 minutes remaining to take a 17-14 lead. After the Gophers next drive stalled out, and only 3 minutes remaining, Fleck made the right choice to pin the Bruins deep with a punt to the 3 yard line and trust his defense to stop the Bruins offense. This worked out wonderfully as the Bruins decided to punt the ball back on 4th and 1 from their own 12 yard line. Side note: I think the 1-4 Bruins should have gone for it to end the game. They had lost 4 straight games up to this point and were still looking for their first Big Ten win. Plus the Gophers were out of timeouts. I know it would have been a ballsy call, but what would they have to lose? It was only 1 yard! Thanks for punting, though! The Bruins punter executed a massive 52 yard punt, putting the Gophers all the way back to their own 39 yard line with 2:26 left in the game. Brosmer and the offense immediatly completed passes for 13 yards to Geers, 27 yards to Jackson, 8 yards to Spencer, and 4 yards to Brockington leading to 1st and goal at the UCLA 9 yard line. After a couple more plays for no gain, a 5 yard penalty on UCLA, and a UCLA timeout with 32 seconds, Max Brosmer adjusted his cape and hit RB Darius Taylor on a delayed out route for a 4 yard TD to take a 21-17 lead with 27 seconds remaining! On the final hail mary attempt by UCLA, the Gophers defense came up with their 3rd interception to end the game by, guess who, freshman Safety Koi Perich!
Ever since the second half of the Michigan game, this Gophers team has completely turned things around. After the comeback against Michigan came up just short, PJ Fleck gave a each member of the team an "Antidote of Confidence." He had them all drink a capsule that was filled with Sprite, as a metaphor. Think "MJ's Secret Stuff" that Bugs Bunny gave to the Toon Squad in Space Jam when they were down at halftime to the Monstars. It was just water, but it gave the Toon Squad the extra belief that they could win against all odds. Fleck has a special way of motivating his team. I don't really care what rival fans think about his antics. He does things his own way, his players believe in him, and it's working.
A few game notes:
QB Max Brosmer went 26/37 for 193 yards and 2 TD. He's continuing to look more comfortable each week. He's a heck of a leader and has ice in his veins for the big moments.
WR Daniel Jackson had 10 receptions for 89 yards. Jackson will be playing on Sundays once his collegiate career is over. He makes some incredible catches that you don't see many college receivers make. Watch some of his plays from this game.
S Koi Perich had 2 more interceptions against UCLA. He now has 4 interceptions as a true freshman while also handling the punt and kick returning duties. Perich will also be playing on Sunday, eventually, as he is already proving to be at the level of Winfield and Nubin. Time will tell if he ends up passing them as he continues to create his own legendary legacy for his hometown school.
RB Darius Taylor was held to only 47 total yards, but was able to score 2 huge TDs in this game.
The Minnesota Gophers are now 4-3 (2-2 in the Big Ten) as they head into their bye week. Amazing how 2 weeks can completely change the narrative on what looked like a season that had been lost. After the bye week, the Gophers will take on a vulnerable Maryland Terrapin team as we look to secure our 5th win on the season. Go Gophers!
