Minnesota Falls to No. 22 Cal

The

University of

Minnesota football team fell 42-17 to the 22^nd-ranked California Golden Bears on Saturday night in

Berkeley, Calif. A week after putting 44 points on the board at

Kent

State, the Golden Gopher offense struggled to find their rhythm as they were outgained 531 to 352 yards in total offense.

Bryan Cupito (

Cincinnati, Ohio) was 21 of 33 for 243 yards and senior tight end Matt Spaeth (

St. Michael, Minn.) led the Gopher receiving corps with six catches for 91 yards. Alex Daniels (

Columbus, Ohio) rushed for 78 yards on 21 carries, but it was not enough against a

California team that came into the game with something to prove after a crushing 17-point defeat at the hands of

Tennessee last weekend.

DeSean Jackson had three touchdown catches and Marshawn Lynch rushed for 139 yards and two scores to lead the Bears.

Sophomore Dominic Jones (

Columbus, Ohio) provided the highlight of the game with a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the second quarter. It was

Minnesota's first kickoff return for a touchdown in three years.

After holding the Bears to a three-and-out on the opening possession of the game, the Golden Gophers wasted little time in jumping out to an early lead on their first drive, going 71 yards on six plays to score just 3:39 into the game. On

Minnesota's first play from scrimmage, Cupito ran a misdirection play and hooked up with a wide open Matt Spaeth on the left side of the field for a 48-yard gain. Daniels finished off the drive with five straight runs, the last a one-yard plunge for the touchdown, giving the Gophers a 7-0. It was the only lead the Gophers would have the entire game.

The Bears responded with a 67-yard scoring drive on their next possession to tie the game.

Cal quarterback Nate Longshore connected with Robert Jordan in the middle of the field for a 24-yard touchdown reception to even the score at seven apiece with 7:11 remaining in the first quarter.

Two drives later,

Cal took its first lead of the game on a 59-yard scoring drive that took just 39 seconds. Set up by a 42-yard pass play from Longshore to Lavelle Hawkins, the Bears took a 14-7 lead on

Jackson's first touchdown catch of the game. Dominique Barber (

Plymouth, Minn.) appeared to have initially broken up the long play by tipping the pass, but the ball fell into the hands of Hawkins. Longshore then connected with

Jackson on a two-yard slant into the end zone to give the Bears a 14-7 lead.

The lead was shortlived, however, as Jones took the ensuing kickoff 99 yards to paydirt to tie the game at 14 apiece. After receiving the kick at the one-yard line, Jones burst through

Cal's first line of coverage and raced untouched up the right sideline for the score.

On the Bears next possession, Lynch put the ball on the ground in an effort to stay on his feet. Willie VanDeSteeg (

Silver Lake, Minn.) pounced on the fumble at the

Cal 41-yard line to get the

Minnesota offense back on the field. The Gophers were unable to convert, however, as they were forced to a three-and-out.

Justin Kucek pinned the Bears deep with a punt that was downed at the three-yard line, but the Bears drove 96 yards in eight plays to take a 21-14 lead, a lead they would not relinquish the rest of the game. Longshore found

Jackson again, this time for a 48-yard scoring strike for the

Cal touchdown.

On the first play of

Minnesota's next possession, Daymeion Hughes picked off a Cupito pass that was intended for Logan Payne (Lutz,

Fla.), giving the ball back to the

Cal offense. The Bears marched down the field again on a drive that culminated in yet another Longshore to

Jackson touchdown connection, this time on an 11-yard slant route to give

Cal a two-touchdown advantage.

Minnesota cut into the Bears' lead at the end of the half with a 12-play, 65-yard drive that ended with a 35-yard Jason Giannini field goal. Cupito connected with Ernie Wheelwright for 21 yards to move the Gophers into scoring position inside the red zone, but the drive stalled, and the Gophers were forced to settle for three points to cut the lead to 28-17 as the first half clock ran out.

The Gophers were unable to generate much offense early in the second half. Facing third down on its first possession,

Minnesota set up a beautifully designed screen play, but with two

Cal defenders in his face, Cupito's pass was just out of the reach of Spaeth and the Gophers were forced to punt.

Cal put a dagger in the heart of the Gophers with 14-play, 79-yard drive that resulted in its fifth touchdown of the game. After a critical conversion on fourth-and-inches at the 34-yard line, Lynch scored from five yards moments later to give the Bears a 35-17 lead.

The Gophers were driving on their next possession, but Hughes ended the threat with his second interception of the game to give the ball back to the Bears at the 22-yard line.

The Bears were unable to convert on the turnover and

Minnesota got the ball back early in the fourth quarter. However, a false start penalty on a fourth-and-one situation forced the Gophers to punt.

Cal proceeded to put the game out of reach by wasting over eight minutes of clock on a 16-play, 78-yard drive. Lynch closed out the scoring with his second touchdown run of the game, this time from two yards out to make the final score 42-17 .

Minnesota will host the Temple Owls next Saturday, Sept. 16, in its 2006 home opener at the Metrodome, with the opening kickoff scheduled for 1 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

Dominique Barber

Bryan Cupito

Alex Daniels

Jason Giannini

Dominic Jones

Justin Kucek

Logan Payne

Matt Spaeth

Ernie Wheelwright

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University of Minnesota Athletics