University of Minnesota Athletics
GOLDEN GOPHERS LOSE HOMECOMING HEARTBREAKER TO NORTHWESTERN, 41-35
10/28/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Minnesota took a 35-14 lead with 5:34 remaining in the third quarter when Asad Abdul-Khaliq ran seven yards for a touchdown. Northwestern proceeded to storm back, scoring 27 unanswered points. Kustok completed a 13-yard touchdown pass to Simmons with 2:08 left in the third to pull within 35-21. After a three and out possession by the Golden Gophers, Northwestern went on a 10-play, 67-yard drive that ended in a Kustok three-yard scoring run to pull the Wildcats to 35-28.
After trading punts, Minnesota drove to the Northwestern 15-yard line after Travis Cole completed a 70-yard pass to Jack Brewer. However, after two penalties that pushed the Gophers back to the 27-yard line, Dan Nystrom missed a 43-yard field goal attempt. Northwestern capitalized, going on a 12-play, 73-yard scoring drive to tie the game at 35-35 with 1:24 left. The key play on the drive came on a fourth-and-20 when Kustok completed a 34-yard pass to Kunle Patrick. On the next play, Kustok rushed 12 yards for his third scoring play of the day.
The Wildcats forced Minnesota to punt with 43 seconds remaining, giving Northwestern the ball with no timeouts. After three plays, Kustok heaved a hail mary as time expired. The ball was deflected and caught by Simmons for the winning score.
After Northwestern took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, the Gophers dominated much of the first half. Tellis Redmon returned a punt 83 yards for a touchdown toward the end of the quarter, the longest return for a TD in school history. Minnesota took a 14-7 lead when Preston Gruening faked a punt and completed a 45-yard touchdown pass to Elvin Jones. Travis Cole tossed a 32-yard scoring pass to Ron Johnson to put Minnesota ahead 21-7. After a Damien Anderson one-yard TD run, the Gophers took a 28-14 halftime lead on an Abdul-Khaliq six-yard touchdown run.
Cole ended the game 18-of-33 for 251 yards and a touchdown. Jack Brewer caught six passes for 120 yards while Elvin Jones caught a career-high six passes for 102 yards. Anderson led Northwestern with 230 yards on 34 carries and two scores. Kustok completed 18-of-32 passes for 209 yards and two scores. He also ran for 90 yards on 29 carries and two TDs, all career highs. Justin Hall (below) led the Minnesota defense with 12 tackles.
The Golden Gophers will look for their sixth victory of the season next Saturday at Wisconsin. The game starts at 11:10 a.m.
