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University of Minnesota Athletics
Gopher Game Day Blog - vs. Northwestern
11/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
It's game day for Minnesota Golden Gopher Football. Follow along with us here on GopherSports.com as Minnesota hosts an important Big Ten game vs. Northwestern. Garry Bowman and I (Andy Seeley) will give you some insight into the game, a bit of a running commentary and hopefully a look inside some of the things you might not get watching the game on television or listening on the radio. As always, feel free to send a note with a question or comment on the blog, send them to aseeley@umn.edu.
2:12 p.m.
Brendan Smith grabs an interception for the Wildcats, and returns it 48 yards for a touchdown with 12 seconds left on the clock. The pass had been intended for Decker, but was tipped by David Oredugba before Smith made the grab. Northwestern goes ahead 24-17.
2:09 p.m.
Weber connects with Decker for a first down on the 26 yard line. Minnesota gains three yards on their first down, but the Gophers take a time out to regroup. Twenty-six seconds remain.
2:06 p.m.
Kafka fumbles the ball, losing four yards for Northwestern, forcing the Wildcats to punt the ball. The Gophers take over on the 14 yard line with just 47 seconds left in regulation.
2:01 p.m.
Kafka runs again for the Wildcats, gaining 17 this time. He's amassed 222 yards rushing so far.
1:58 p.m.
The Gophers weren't as successful this time, as Weber's pass to Decker on third and two goes incomplete. Kucek punts a 33-yarder for the Gophers. Northwestern gets the ball on the 20 with 1:37 remaining on the clock.
1:54 p.m.
Weber just connected with Kuznia on third down once again. Kuznia caught a 14-yard pass, giving the Gophers a first down on the 39.
1:36 p.m.
Kafka's long run was harmless, as it turned out. The Wildcats were forced to attempt a 47-yard field goal, which was wide right. 11:36 to go, still knotted up at 17-17.
By the way, today's attendance is 54,112. It is the biggest crowd this season.
1:31 p.m.
The good news is Justin Kucek is still completing 100 percent of his passes. The bad news is his most recent completion was short of a first down on a fake field goal. One play later, Northwestern's biggest weapon in this game, Mike Kafka, rumbled for 39 yards to the Minnesota 31-yard line.
1:25 p.m.
The third quarter just ended with a 19-yard Adam Weber rush. The Gophers will have it first-and-10 at the Northwestern 37-yard line.
Speaking of quarterbacks running the ball, Northwestern QB Mike Kafka has set a Wildcat single-game rushing record with 15 carries for 149 yards.
1:22 p.m.
Big Play Traye just made another one. Simmons just intercepted Wildcat QB Mike Kafka and returned it 35 yards to the Minnesota 44-yard line. It is Simmons' second interception of the game and his fourth of the season. That's the most picks since Dom Barber had four in 2006. With 33 seconds remaining in the third quarter, we're still tied at 17-17, but hopefully the Gophers got some momentum back here.
1:15 p.m.
The Gophers just put together one of the most impressive non-scoring drives you will ever see. Minnesota drove from its own 5-yard line to the Northwestern 3-yard line. After going 92 yards in 8:07, Minnesota couldn't punch it into the end zone and settled for a 20-yard field goal attempt. Gopher kicker Joel Monroe missed the kick and we remain in a 17-17 deadlock with 2:59 remaining in the third quarter.
12:52 p.m.
Three-and-out to start the second half for the Gopher offense. Not what they had in mind, I'm sure. Weber looked for Decker deep on third-and-5. Decker thought he had been interfered with, but no call came. First-and-10 for Northwestern at its own 36.
12:49 p.m.
The second half is just about to start. Minnesota will receive and be moving from our left-to-right to start the third quarter. Let's see what adjustments each team has made. I'm assuming a big adjustment for Minnesota will be to work on containing Wildcat QB Mike Kafka.
12:37 p.m.
We've reached halftime at the Metrodome. Coach Brewster told the radio broadcast crew that the game is "a dogfight. A dogfight, just like we knew we were going to be in." It's now a 30-minute game. The Gophers get the ball to start the second half, a score would be huge for momentum after getting that field goal to tie things up at the end of the first half.
A couple statistical notes to pass along ...
Northwestern backup QB Mike Kafka has accounted for 202 of the Wildcats' 209 yards of total offense. He has rushed for 97 yards and passed for 105. The stat sheet is pretty even, with both teams recording nine first downs in the first half. Total offense is 209-193 in favor of Northwestern. Minnesot ahas had the ball for 15:56, compared to 14:04 for Northwestern. The penalties that killed a Minnesota drive in the first half are a difference on the stat sheet, as the Gophers have four infractions for 30 yards, while the Wildcats have not been flagged today. Northwestern has the only turnover of the ballgame and it was a big one, as Traye Simmons returned an INT 23 yards for a score.
12:28 p.m.
The drive stalls at the 4 and the Gophers have to settle for a 21-yard field goal by Joel Monroe to knot the score at 17-17. The field goal caps a 4 minute, 57 second drive. A hold her by the Minnesota defense will send the Maroon and Gold to the locker room in a much better place than they could have been after Northwestern scored on both of its opening two possessions. Coach Brewster certainly won't be happy with the start the Gophers got, but outside of one big run by Kafka, Minnesota dominated the final 18 minutes of the opening half.
12:24 p.m.
Weber has the Gophers on the move again, passing and running the Gopers to the Wildcats' 4-yard line as Minnesota looks to wrestle the lead back from Northwestern right before the half.
12:11 p.m.
Well, I guess we spoke too soon. Northwestern QB Mike Kafka, whose style honestly reminds us a lot of Adam Weber, just was able to avoid a sack and broke up the right sideline for a 53-yard run to set up another Wildcat touchdown. NU is now back in the lead, 17-14, and Kafka, who is making his first career start for the Cats in place of CJ Bacher looks quite comfortable. He has nearly 100 yards on the ground so far.
12:06 p.m.
As much trouble as Minnesota's defense had on Northwestern's first two possessions, the Gophers have seemingly figured Mike Kafka and the Wildcats out. Eric Small just notched his second sack of the season, helping to force a Wildcat punt. The Wilcats had 130 yards on their first two drives and have totaled just 26 since. The Gophers just went three-and-out, but during the possession Eric Decker set a new school record with his 68th reception this season.
12:00 p.m.
Traye Simmons' nickname is Big Play Traye. He just proved it! Simmons just picked off Mike Kafka and returned it 23 yards for a touchdown. The Gopher defense gets another turnover and turns it into points. That's 25 takeaways for the Gophers and the third TD scored by the Minnesota defense this season. 10:07 left in the first quarter, Minnesota 14 - Northwestern 10.
11:57 a.m.
Penalties just killed a Gopher possession that had some promise. The Gophers had a big run by Adam Weber called back on a holding penalty. A pair of five-yard penalties also killed another potential first-down gaining play. On third-and-long, Weber was sacked. Minnesota lost 12 yards on the possession before being forced to punt. 10:51 remaining in the first half, Northwestern will take over at its own 23-yard line. The Wildcats still lead by a 10-7 count.
11:48 a.m.
Sorry for the delay. In what seems to be a running issue for us the last few weeks, we had some internet access issues here at the Dome.
Minnesota offensive coordinator Mike Dunbar found the right combination to jumpstart the offense while we were away. It was QB Adam Weber passing to backup TE Nick Tow-Arnett. They had a pair of big hookups on back-to-back plays, getting the Gophers deep into Northwestern territory. On third down (and on the first play of the second quarter), Weber found Eric Decker for a seven-yard touchdown strike. It was Decker's first catch of the game and his 67th this season, tying his own single-season school record for receptions. As of now ... 14:02 remaining in the second quarter, Minnesota has it with a first-and-10 at its own 42-yard line and our score is Northwestern 10, Minnesota 7.
11:29 a.m.
One first down for the Minnesota offense. The Gophers are going to have to figure out a way to turn the field around soon. The Wildcats will take over at their own 30-yard line for their third possession. Here's another chance for the Minnesota defense to try to handle this fast-paced, no-huddle Northwestern offense. Minnesota, leading the nation in takeaways and turnover margin, could use a turnover here.
11:21 a.m.
Northwestern is going no-huddle and really snapping it in a hurry. It has given the Gophers some problems on this drive. Northwestern hit another big pass play to get inside the Minnesota 20-yard line. The defense finally held and forced a Amado Villareal field-goal attempt from 34 yards. It was good. With 6:55 remaining in the first quarter, Northwestern 10, Minnesota 0.
11:15 a.m.
Three-and-out for the Gophers. Northwestern will take over at its own 31-yard line after a 46-yard Justin Kucek. We'll have to see if the Gopher defense made any adjustments between the first and second series.
11:07 a.m.
Northwestern isn't missing C.J. Bacher so far. Mike Kafka just hit a 36-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Ebert to cap a six-play drive that gives Northwestern a 7-0 lead with 11:49 remaining in the first quarter. That is only the third first-quarter touchdown the Gophers have allowed this season.
It's early, but this game was a 49-48, double-overtime shootout last season in Evanston. We'll see if the Gopher offense can answer here.
11:04 a.m.
It doesn't look like C.J. Bacher, the injured Northwestern QB is going to play. Mike Kafka is on the field to start the Northwestern possession. The Wildcats are moving the ball very well through their first four plays. They already have three first downs and have reached the Gopher 41-yard line.
11:01 a.m.
The captains have reached midfield. Northwestern has won the toss and will receive.
10:55 a.m.
The band is playing The Rouser to a Homecoming crowd that is beginning to fill in fairly nicely here at the Dome. We're expecting around 50,000 for today's game, which would be the biggest home crowd this season. We'll see what the announced attendance is later on in the day.
Gopher head coach Tim Brewster was featured on ESPN College GameDay a few minutes ago. It was a well-done piece and some nice publicity for Brew and the program as we approach kickoff of today's game.
10:08 a.m.
We're a little more than one hour away from kickoff. Northwestern has some of its specialists on the field, as do the Gophers. The Wildcats will be in all-white uniforms, trimmed in their signature purple. For the second consecutive home game, Minnesota will wear its all-maroon combination.
As many of you know, Northwestern has suffered a couple injuries to key offensive players. Senior running back Tyrell Sutton has been lost for the rest of the regular season with a dislocated wrist. Quarterback C.J. Bacher is quesitonable for today's game with a leg injury (a hamstring if I'm not mistaken). We'll see if Bacher gets on the field today.
Here's an interesting story about Sutton's injury. Apparently, the t-shirt he has been wearing under his pads superstitiously for years somehow didn't make the trip to Bloomington last week for the Wildcats' game at Indiana. To hear the story, Sutton was very concerned about not going on the field without his lucky t-shirt. As it turns out, maybe he had a premonition or something, as he suffered the injury during the Indiana game.
I'm hearing Sutton may be able to return in time for a bowl game. Injuries are part of the game, but you hate to see a kid's career end that way. Here's hoping Northwestern gets to a bowl game and Sutton gets to play.
