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University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Drop Border Battle Heartbreaker
11/16/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
Minnesota led 21-7 at halftime and 24-17 after three quarters but couldn't hold on over the final 15 minutes as Wisconsin used a huge rally to claim Paul Bunya’s Axe for the fifth straight season.
After a sterling second quarter that saw the Golden Gophers reel off three straight touchdowns, the Badgers outscored Minnesota 28-10 over the final 30 minutes.
Wisconsin capped a second-half rally with a pair of safeties and a touchdown off a Minnesota turnover in the fourth quarter, beating the Gophers 35-32 at Camp Randall Stadium on Saturday.
The loss was the third in a row for Minnesota (7-4, 3-4 Big Ten), while Wisconsin (6-5, 3-5 Big Ten) became bowl-eligible despite losing four straight to begin conference play.
The Badgers fell behind 21-7 at halftime, but rallied to tie the game at 24 on a 1-yard touchdown run by P.J. Hillhis second in the second half.
The ensuing kickoff was caught by Minnesota’s Troy Stoudermire, but a hit by Wisconsin’s Antonio Fenelus jarred the ball loose and sent it bounding backward. After a scrum in the end zone, the ball trickled out of bounds for a safety to give the Badgers a 26-24 lead.
Wisconsin punted on its next possession, giving the ball back to Minnesota on its own 7. Quarterback Adam Weber took a sack and threw an incomplete pass, and Minnesota was called for a false start to set up third-and-16 at the 1. Wisconsin’s Mike Newkirk sacked Weber in the end zone, giving the Badgers a 28-24 lead with 10:47 left in the game.
It was the first time Wisconsin had recorded two safeties in a game since Sept. 11, 2004, against UNLV.
Things continued to slide for the Gophers as running back Shady Salamon fumbled a pitch from Weber, and the ball was recovered by Wisconsin linebacker Jonathan Casillas at the Minnesota 11. Wisconsin’s John Clay scored on a 5-yard run two plays later, extending the lead to 35-24.
Salamon redeemed himself on the Gophers’ next drive, catching a 13-yard touchdown pass from Weber and running up the middle for a two-point conversion to cut Wisconsin’s lead to 35-32 with 4:15 left.
After a Wisconsin punt, Minnesota took over on its own 22 with 2:29 left. Facing fourth-and-4 on the 28, Weber threw an interception to Niles Brinkley to clinch the game for Wisconsin.
Minnesota was playing without injured star wide receiver Eric Decker, but that didn’t seem to matter in the first half. Weber threw for two touchdowns and ran for another to build a 14-point lead at halftime.
