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University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota-USC Postgame Notes
9/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
POSTGAME NOTES
#18 USC (3-0) 32, Minnesota (1-2) 21
September 18, 2010 - TCF Bank Stadium - Minneapolis, Minn. - Attendance (50,442)
Series Notes
- Minnesota is now 1-5-1 in its history versus USC.
- Minnesota opens next season with a game at USC's Memorial Coliseum (93,607) on September 3, 2011.
- Today's game was Minnesota's 50th all-time versus an opponent from the Pac-10 Conference, with the Gophers having a record of 24-24-2 (.500) in those contests.
Team Notes
- USC is the second nationally-ranked opponent to visit TCF Bank Stadium, with fellow Pac-10 member California being the other. The eighth-ranked Bears posted a 35-21 win on Sept. 19, 2009.
- Minnesota is 4-5 at TCF Bank Stadium, with two of the losses coming to nationally-ranked Pac-10 foes.
- The Gophers are now 9-14-2 all-time against teams from the state of California.
- Minnesota was held scoreless on its opening drive for the first time this season.
- Prior to today's game, Minnesota and USC had not met on the gridiron since September 27, 1980, when the fifth-ranked Trojans posted a 24-7 win over the Golden Gophers at Memorial Stadium.
- USC was the second of nine 2009 Bowl participants the Gophers will face this season.
- Minnesota took a 7-0 lead on a one-yard TD run by DeLeon Eskridge with 7:15 remaining in the first quarter, marking the first time this season that the 18th-ranked Trojans have trailed in a game.
Individual Notes
- Senior quarterback Adam Weber connected on a 31-yard TD pass to Da'Jon McKnight in the third quarter, giving Minnesota a 14-13 lead. It was Weber's 56th career touchdown pass to establish a new school record and move past Bryan Cupito (2003-06) and Asad Abdul-Khaliq (2000-03), who each tossed 55 career TDs.
- Weber added a late touchdown pass to sophomore MarQueis Gray to increase his career total to 57.
- Weber's TD pass to McKnight was his 10th career scoring strike of 30 or more yards.
- Gray finished with four catches for a career-high 98 yards and the late TD. Through three games, Gray has team-leading totals of 14 receptions for 211 yards, an average of 15.1 yards per catch.
- Junior Da'Jon McKnight's touchdown reception was the third of his career, and his second this season. He had a 26-yard touchdown catch last week.
- Junior running back DeLeon Eskridge scored his first touchdown this season, and the 11th rushing TD of his career, to open the scoring for the Gophers.
- Junior linebacker Gary Tinsley led the team with 10 tackles (seven solo), tying his career-best effort for tackles in a game. Tinsley's seven solo stops was also a career-high. He registered 10 tackles (four solo) in last season's loss at Iowa on Nov. 21, 2009.
- Freshman strong safety James Manuel swatted down a USC pass in the end zone for his first career pass breakup late in the first quarter. In the third quarter, he added his first career interception.
- Freshman defensive end Kendall Gregory-McGhee recorded his first career sack, dropping USC's Matt Barkley for an 11-yard loss in the second quarter.
- Senior free safety Kyle Theret, who returned to the lineup after serving a two-game suspension, intercepted his first pass of the season in the second quarter. It was the 10th career pick for Theret, who ranks sixth on Minnesota's all-time interceptions list. Theret also finished with seven solo tackles.
- With four kickoff returns today, junior wide receiver Troy Stoudermire now has 96 for his career, breaking Melvin Anderson's (1983-86) previous career record of 93.
--Michael Molde, Athletic Communications Assistant
Players Mentioned
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