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University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Dominate in 37-3 Victory
9/20/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
The Golden Gophers concluded their non-conference schedule for the 2008 season with a dominating performance in a 37-3 victory over Florida Atlantic at the HHH Metrodome in Minneapolis on Saturday. Minnesota, 4-0, opens Big Ten Conference play at Ohio State next week.
Head coach Tim Brewster stated the obvious after a recent victory saying that having an opportunistic defense forcing turnovers coupled with an efficient offense that takes care of the ball could take a team a long way. The Gophers, coming into the game with Florida Atlantic ranked third in the nation in turnover margin, improved on that statistic on Saturday grabbing four more interceptions turning those opponent miscues in 21 points.
The Gophers have forced 13 turnovers and committed just two in the 2008 season. The result is Minnesota’s perfect 4-0 record. Today’s game is perhaps as significant an indicator of a program’s improvement from a year ago as one could hope for. The Gophers suffered a disheartening 42-39 loss at Florida Atlantic last season, a game marred by seven Minnesota turnovers including four interceptions by then redshirt freshman quarterback Adam Weber.
This year, Minnesota dominated. The Gopher defense attacked Owl quarterback Rusty Smith, who torched the Minnesota secondary for five touchdowns and 463 yards in 2007, picking off the 2008 Sun Belt Player of the Year four times. Linebacker Simoni Lawrence’s interception and 50-yard touchdown return of a Smith fourth-quarter pass serving as an exclamation point. Smith ended the game this time around with just 153 yards passing.
Offensively, Minnesota moved the ball consistently up the field behind the arm of Weber, the legs of young rookie running back DeLeon Eskridge and the reliable hands of standout wide receiver Eric Decker.
Weber finished his day completing an impressive 19 of 24 pass attempts for 235 yards and a touchdown. Decker was on the receiving end of seven of those completions, including the touchdown, finishing the game with 122 receiving yards. Eskridge made his first collegiate start going for 79 yards on 19 carries and scoring a pair of touchdowns.
The Gophers fired out of the blocks scoring on their first two possessions of the game to grab a 10-0 lead. Junior Traye Simmons snared an interception off FAU quarterback Rusty Smith to put a quick end to the Owls’ game-opening drive. Simmons broke on the throw intercepting the ball at the FAU 42-yard line and setting up the Gophers’ first offensive drive with a 15-yard return.
Minnesota needed just four plays to cover 27 yards and push in for the score. Freshman Shady Salamon took the quick hitter up the middle for a 3-yard touchdown to give the Gophers a 7-0 lead.
Joel Monroe added a 34-yard field goal, his second of the season, in Minnesota’s second drive to increase the Gopher advantage to 10-0.
Florida Atlantic broke into the scoring column on the second play of the second quarter when Warley Leroy booted a 35-yard field goal. The Owl scoring drive was aided by a Minnesota penalty for having 12 men on the field. It would turn out to be FAU’s only tally of the day.
The Gophers answered the Owls’ scoring drive with a long march of their own. On the ninth play of the drive and a third down from the FAU 3-yard line, Weber’s pass was intercepted by Tavious Polo in the ezd zone, significant in the sense that the interception not only ended the Gopher scoring threat, but it was also Weber’s first interception of the season in 96 pass attempts and the only time Minnesota failed to score a touchdown in the red zone this season.
The Owls used the momentum off the turnover to execute a drive into Minnesota territory. The Gopher defense, however, rose to the occasion on an important 4th-and-1 from the Minnesota 28. Deon Hightower and Lawrence stuffed Owl back Dilvory Edgecomb for no gain on the play.
After the defensive stand, the Gopher offense converted the next possession into points. Weber found a wide-open Decker on a post route. Decker caught the ball at the 8-yard line and dashed in for his fifth touchdown of the season, the 31-yard reception extending his streak to six consecutive games with a scoring reception. Monroe’s extra point attempt sailed wide right. The Gophers maintained their 16-3 lead into intermission.
The Gophers added 21 points in the second half with Eskridge pounding the ball into the end zone on 1-yard plays to punctuate drives in both the third and fourth quarters. Lawrence’s interception return capped gave Minnesota its 34-point margin of victory, its largest of the four victories to start the 2008 season.
Head coach Tim Brewster stated the obvious after a recent victory saying that having an opportunistic defense forcing turnovers coupled with an efficient offense that takes care of the ball could take a team a long way. The Gophers, coming into the game with Florida Atlantic ranked third in the nation in turnover margin, improved on that statistic on Saturday grabbing four more interceptions turning those opponent miscues in 21 points.
The Gophers have forced 13 turnovers and committed just two in the 2008 season. The result is Minnesota’s perfect 4-0 record. Today’s game is perhaps as significant an indicator of a program’s improvement from a year ago as one could hope for. The Gophers suffered a disheartening 42-39 loss at Florida Atlantic last season, a game marred by seven Minnesota turnovers including four interceptions by then redshirt freshman quarterback Adam Weber.
This year, Minnesota dominated. The Gopher defense attacked Owl quarterback Rusty Smith, who torched the Minnesota secondary for five touchdowns and 463 yards in 2007, picking off the 2008 Sun Belt Player of the Year four times. Linebacker Simoni Lawrence’s interception and 50-yard touchdown return of a Smith fourth-quarter pass serving as an exclamation point. Smith ended the game this time around with just 153 yards passing.
Offensively, Minnesota moved the ball consistently up the field behind the arm of Weber, the legs of young rookie running back DeLeon Eskridge and the reliable hands of standout wide receiver Eric Decker.
Weber finished his day completing an impressive 19 of 24 pass attempts for 235 yards and a touchdown. Decker was on the receiving end of seven of those completions, including the touchdown, finishing the game with 122 receiving yards. Eskridge made his first collegiate start going for 79 yards on 19 carries and scoring a pair of touchdowns.
The Gophers fired out of the blocks scoring on their first two possessions of the game to grab a 10-0 lead. Junior Traye Simmons snared an interception off FAU quarterback Rusty Smith to put a quick end to the Owls’ game-opening drive. Simmons broke on the throw intercepting the ball at the FAU 42-yard line and setting up the Gophers’ first offensive drive with a 15-yard return.
Minnesota needed just four plays to cover 27 yards and push in for the score. Freshman Shady Salamon took the quick hitter up the middle for a 3-yard touchdown to give the Gophers a 7-0 lead.
Joel Monroe added a 34-yard field goal, his second of the season, in Minnesota’s second drive to increase the Gopher advantage to 10-0.
Florida Atlantic broke into the scoring column on the second play of the second quarter when Warley Leroy booted a 35-yard field goal. The Owl scoring drive was aided by a Minnesota penalty for having 12 men on the field. It would turn out to be FAU’s only tally of the day.
The Gophers answered the Owls’ scoring drive with a long march of their own. On the ninth play of the drive and a third down from the FAU 3-yard line, Weber’s pass was intercepted by Tavious Polo in the ezd zone, significant in the sense that the interception not only ended the Gopher scoring threat, but it was also Weber’s first interception of the season in 96 pass attempts and the only time Minnesota failed to score a touchdown in the red zone this season.
The Owls used the momentum off the turnover to execute a drive into Minnesota territory. The Gopher defense, however, rose to the occasion on an important 4th-and-1 from the Minnesota 28. Deon Hightower and Lawrence stuffed Owl back Dilvory Edgecomb for no gain on the play.
After the defensive stand, the Gopher offense converted the next possession into points. Weber found a wide-open Decker on a post route. Decker caught the ball at the 8-yard line and dashed in for his fifth touchdown of the season, the 31-yard reception extending his streak to six consecutive games with a scoring reception. Monroe’s extra point attempt sailed wide right. The Gophers maintained their 16-3 lead into intermission.
The Gophers added 21 points in the second half with Eskridge pounding the ball into the end zone on 1-yard plays to punctuate drives in both the third and fourth quarters. Lawrence’s interception return capped gave Minnesota its 34-point margin of victory, its largest of the four victories to start the 2008 season.
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