article

Kaleb Patterson #22 of the Illinois Fighting Illini tackles Elijah Spencer #11 of the Minnesota Golden Gophers during the first half at Memorial Stadium on November 2, 2024 in Champaign, Illinois. ((Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images))

MINNEAPOLIS – The University of Minnesota football team is 6-3 and has won four straight after a 25-17 win over Illinois at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.

It took everyone from Dragan Kesich scoring field goals to a big day from Darius Taylor and key turnovers from the defense. Kesich had his best game of the season, making four field goals.

What this means

The Gophers earned bowl eligibility after needing a high APR score last year to earn a bowl game. There are still three regular season games remaining and PJ Fleck earns his first victory against Bret Bielema in eight tries. It’s also a win against a ranked team, the sixth for the Gophers under Fleck. Illinois entered the game ranked 24th in the country.

2 big calls for Fleck

The Gophers faced a 4th-and-2 with less than two minutes left in Illinois territory, up 22-17. They could go out there and run out the clock with a conversion, or kick a field goal to make it an 8-point game and lean on the defense for a stop. Fleck went for the field goal and Dragan Kesich converted from 46 yards out.

Minnesota sealed the game with a Jah Joyner strip-sack that Danny Striggow recovered with 29 seconds left.

Earlier in the fourth quarter, the Gophers faced a 4th-and-12 at their own 44-yard line with just over 12 minutes left. They attempted a fake punt, and it almost worked. Mark Crawford ran 10 yards before fumbling the ball out of bounds for a turnover on downs. Illinois capitalized, with Luke Altmyer hitting Zakhari Franklin for a 21-yard touchdown to give the Illini a 17-16 lead with 9:03 left.

Gophers respond to Illinois TD

The Gophers responded with the go-ahead run and an eventual game-winning touchdown. Max Brosmer hit Jameson Geers after faking a run for a 1-yard touchdown and a 22-17 lead with 5:14 to play.

Big day for Darius Taylor

Darius Taylor is the Gophers’ best offensive player, and he had another huge day with a big workload. He had 22 carries for 131 yards and a 29-yard touchdown. He was also the leading receiver, with nine catches for 58 yards.

A great day for defense

The Gophers sacked Luke Altmyer four times, had eight tackles for loss and seven assists. Maverick Baranowski recovered an Altymyer fumble that Justin Walley and Striggow forced. Joyner’s strip-sack fumble that Striggow recovered sealed the victory. Illinois averaged 27 points per game, but only scored 17 against the Gophers.

What’s next

The Gophers will travel to Rutgers next Saturday and face former quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis.