5 things that stood out in Gophers' destruction by Ohio State
Minnesota has moved to 5-6 on the season after a 37-3 hammering by Ohio State in Columbus. Here are the five key takeaways from the game:
1. Fleck's punting decisions
If you've seen "P.J. Fleck" trending on social media Saturday afternoon, it's because of the punts.
Fleck opted to punt on fourth down while in Ohio State's half on consecutive drives in the first half, punting on 4th and 5 at the OSU 40 while down 0-7, and then on 4th and 5 at the OSU 42 at 0-10.
There was more criticism for Fleck on the final drive of the half when OSU were on their own 21-yard line with just over a minute remaining. Fleck opted not to use any timeouts, and time was allowed to run out despite his defense stopping the Buckeyes offense and sacking Kyle McCord.
2. A disastrous start to the second half
The Gophers went in at halftime down 13-0, not great but not insurmountable, but lost the game within a minute of the restart.
On the first play of the second half, TreVeyon Henderson broke through the Gophers defense to run in a 75-yard touchdown to make it 20-0.
On the very next play, Gophers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis fumbled and handed the ball right back to Ohio State, who converted a few plays later with a pass to receiving phenom Marvin Harrison Jr.
3. A whole heap of unsportsmanlike conduct penalties
An amusing moment in the second half after OSU picked off Kaliakmanis, with the defense proceeding to celebrate by posing to the point of unsportsmanlike conduct.
Cue the referee proceeding to call out of the six or seven players by number as he dished out the penalties.
4. Dropped catches keep costing the Gophers
It's been a common refrain throughout the Gophers season, but the dropped passes continue to be a killer for the offense.
Athan Kaliakmanis has not exactly set the world alight this season but his stats line would look a whole lot more positive had the receiving corps. held on to a few more makable catches.
The quarterback mustered only 89 passing yards on Saturday, completing only 11 passes on 19 attempts.
Nov 18, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Emeka Egbuka (2) runs past Minnesota Golden Gophers defensive back Tre'Von Jones (2) tackle attempt during the first half of their game on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023 at Ohio Stadium.
© Clare Grant/The Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
5. An expected loss, but no less demoralizing
Ohio State are the No. 1 ranked team in the country, of course the Gophers weren't going to win on Saturday. But given the deeply dispiriting nature of recent defeats – namely Illinois and Purdue – fans were looking for something to give them hope.
But an offense showing no end product, a head coach making questionable play calls, and a defense up against one of the country's best offenses led to another depressing afternoon for fans.
P.J. Fleck has one more chance to salvage the season next week at home to Wisconsin. It won't make up for the low points, but a season in which Minnesota beats both Wisconsin and Iowa could be worse.
