University of Minnesota Athletics

Saturday, October 5
2:30 PM

University of Minnesota

5-0 , 2-0

40
vs
17

Illinois

2-3 , 0-2

1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Illinois
7
3
7
0
17
Minnesota
3
13
14
10
40

Gophers Remain Unbeaten with 40-17 Win on Homecoming

10/5/2019 6:03:00 PM | Football

Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks combined for 322 rushing yards.

MINNEAPOLIS -- Rodney Smith ran for a career-best 211 yards and a touchdown, Shannon Brooks added 111 rushing yards and a touchdown in his second game back from injury and Minnesota totaled 332 yards on the ground against Illinois in a 40-17 win on Saturday afternoon.

Tanner Morgan was 9-of-17 passing for 155 yards and three touchdowns for the Gophers (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten), who have won seven straight games dating back to last season and rushed for more than 300 yards for the first time since tallying 409 yards against Nebraska in 2017.

Minnesota's defense allowed just three points and held Illini running back Reggie Corbin, the third-leading rusher in the Big Ten, to 68 yards on 14 carries.


Illinois (2-3, 0-2) scored two defensive touchdowns. Dele Harding returned an interception of Morgan for a touchdown in the first quarter to give the Illini an early lead and Milo Eifler returned a fumble for another score in the third after Jake Hansen stripped Morgan on a sack.

Illinois lost starting quarterback Brandon Peters in the first half after he hit the turf hard while being tackled. He walked off the field with assistance and was replaced by Matt Robinson, who was 15-of-29 passing for 125 yards.

Smith helped the Gophers grab momentum in the second after a slow start by both teams. He had a season-long 64-yard run to set up the Gophers first touchdown.

Minnesota put together its best rushing game of the season as it gets healthier in the backfield with the return of Brooks, who had played just two games in the past two seasons because of knee injuries.


THE TAKEAWAY

Illinois: Not being able to stop the run is a bad omen for continuing in on in the Big Ten. It's the second straight game the Illini have allowed more than 300 yards rushing. Nebraska ran for 346 yards on Sept. 21. Lovie Smith's defense has generated sacks (13th in FBS per game coming in) and turnovers (ninth in the FBS with 2.5 per game coming in). But if Illinois can't stop the run, it's going to be another long season.

Minnesota: The Gophers have taken advantage of back-to-back games against two of the Big Ten's worst defenses in terms of yards allowed. The schedule also sets up nicely for Minnesota to continue their run, at least through October. The Gophers host Nebraska next week before going on the road at Rutgers. The month finishes with a home date with Maryland. If Minnesota is still undefeated come November, home games against No. 12 Penn State and No. 8 Wisconsin sandwich games at No. 14 Iowa and Northwestern.


UP NEXT

Illinois: Returns home against Michigan on Oct. 12.

Minnesota: The Gophers host Nebraska On Oct. 12.

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Team Stats

ILL
MINN
Total Yards
248
487
Pass Yards
157
155
Rushing Yards
91
332
Penalty Yards
80
25
1st Downs
14
24
3rd Downs
5
2
4th Downs
0
1
TOP
24:16
35:44
1st Quarter
Logo

ILL 7, MINN 0

ILL - Harding,Dele 40 yd interception (McCourt,James kick)

Logo

ILL 7, MINN 3

MINN - Lantz, Michael 28 yd field goal 4 plays, 3 yards, TOP 1:27

2nd Quarter
Logo

ILL 7, MINN 10

MINN - Johnson, Tyler 12 yd pass from Morgan, Tanner (Lantz, Michael kick) 4 plays, 85 yards, TOP 2:02

Logo

ILL 7, MINN 16

MINN - Brooks, Shannon 21 yd run (Herbers, Jacob rushfailed), 6 plays, 75 yards, TOP 3:08

Logo

ILL 10, MINN 16

ILL - McCourt,James 46 yd field goal 9 plays, 47 yards, TOP 1:19

3rd Quarter
Logo

ILL 10, MINN 23

MINN - Autman-Bell, C 10 yd pass from Morgan, Tanner (Lantz, Michael kick) 4 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:07

Logo

ILL 10, MINN 30

MINN - Spann-Ford, B 12 yd pass from Morgan, Tanner (Lantz, Michael kick) 6 plays, 65 yards, TOP 2:59

Logo

ILL 17, MINN 30

ILL - Eifler,Milo 7 yd fumble recovery (McCourt,James kick)

4th Quarter
Logo

ILL 17, MINN 37

MINN - Smith, Rodney 8 yd run (Lantz, Michael kick), 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 4:39

Logo

ILL 17, MINN 40

MINN - Lantz, Michael 27 yd field goal 9 plays, 32 yards, TOP 4:50

Game Leaders

CMP
9
TD
3
YDS
155
INT
1

Players Mentioned

RB
/ Football
QB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
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