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University of Minnesota Athletics
Postgame Notes
11/21/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
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Nov. 21, 2015
TCF Bank Stadium
Minnesota (5-6, 3-4 B1G) 32, Illinois (5-6, 1-6 B1G) 23
Team / Series Notes
• Today's game was the 68th all-time meeting in football between Minnesota and Illinois. The Gophers lead the series 36-29-3 and have won four of the past five matchups.
• Saturday's game was the first for Minnesota against an unranked opponent since Oct. 17 (Nebraska). Of Minnesota's past 15 games, nine were against ranked opponents. Minnesota is now 5-1 against unranked opponents this season.
• Head coach Tracy Claeys picked up his first official win as the lead man for the Gophers. He led the team to a 4-3 mark as the acting head coach during 2013.
• Minnesota's 15-play scoring drive, capped by a one-yard touchdown reception by freshman wide receiver Rashad Still with five seconds left in the first half, tied for the longest scoring drive by the Gophers this season. Minnesota's other 15-play scoring drive came at Colorado State that ended with a 35-yard field goal from Ryan Santoso.
• The Gophers rushed the ball 32 times for 255 net yards for a season-best average of 8.0 yards per attempt.
• Minnesota's offensive line did not allow a sack, which is the first time this season they have done that.
• Today's official temperature of 22 degrees is the third-coldest game to take place at TCF Bank Stadium. The two coldest temps were 15 degrees versus Ohio State (Nov. 15, 2014) and 18 degrees against Wisconsin (Nov. 23, 2013).
Individual Notes
• QB Mitch Leidner broke the program record for completions by a junior signal caller after completing 15 passes on the day. He now has 202 completions on the year, snapping the previous mark held by Cory Sauter (200) in 1996.
• Leidner set a new career mark with a 33-yard rush in the first quarter that set up a 5-yard touchdown run by first-year RB Shannon Brooks. For the game, Leidner finished with 10 rushes for 64 yards.
• With 88 passing yards, Leidner moved into 13th place all-time in Gophers history for passing yards in a single season. Leidner now has 2,255 yards this season.
• Brooks tied a career-high with a pair of touchdowns in the first half, and added a career-best third with his game-clinching and career-long 75-yard TD late in the fourth quarter. He now has 89 carries for 554 yards and six touchdowns against opponents in the Big Ten Conference.
• Brooks finished the game with 17 rushes for 174 yards, narrowly missing his career-best total of 176 yards at Purdue. In that game at Purdue, Brooks had a 71-yard TD run, which had been his longest until going 75 yards for a score this afternoon.
• KiAnte Hardin entered today's game having never returned a kickoff, but he finished the game with six kick returns for 165 yards (27.5 yards per return), including a 60-yarder that led to a field goal on Minnesota's first drive of the second half. Minnesota's longest kickoff return this season had been 29 yards by Jalen Myrick at Colorado State.
• Sophomore S Duke McGhee set a career-high with 12 tackles (nine solo). His previous high was four at Purdue earlier this year.
• McGhee became the 18th player on the Gophers defense to break up a pass this season. That mark ties Boise State and trails only Alabama, Marshall and Mississippi State, which all entered the weekend with 19 players with pass breakups.
• LB Cody Poock established a new career-high with 11 tackles (five solo), including one TFL.
