5 things that stood out in the Gophers' loss to North Carolina

The Gophers' passing game was bad from start to finish.

Author:
Joe Nelson
Publish date:
Sep 16, 2023 7:06 PM EDT

The main headlines from the Gophers' 31-13 loss to North Carolina on Saturday are that Drake Maye is outstanding and Minnesota's passing attack is a work in progress. There was a lot to the game. Here are five things that we felt really stood out...

1. Interceptions kept Minnesota in the game early

Down 14-0 in the second quarter and fresh off a three-and-out on offense, Gophers hybrid linebacker/safety Jack Henderson made a leaping catch for an interception to put the Gophers at North Carolina's 16-yard line.

The Gophers failed to turn the great field position into a touchdown, but they did put three points on the board to stop the bleeding.

North Carolina was marching down the field on their next drive before Maye was hit by defensive lineman Jah Joyner while throwing and Minnesota's Chris Collins picked him off. Collins is a sixth-year grad-transfer who played for the Tar Heels the previous five years.

Again, the Gophers' offense failed to move the ball and punted with five minutes left in the first half.

The Gophers defense gave up a lot of passing yards but other than the blown coverage on UNC's second touchdown, they played well enough to give the Gophers a chance. The offense just didn't show up.

2. Drake Maye is a gamer

Maye was awesome. He was blasted on a third-down run by Minnesota's Devin Williams on the opening drive and then three players later he fired a touchdown pass into a small window.

He showed toughness on the second drive when Minnesota's Kyler Baugh drove his helmet into Maye's back, only for Maye to stagger to feet and scramble for a first down on the next play.

After tossing interceptions on back-to-back drives in the second quarter, Maye rebounded on his next series by completing all four of his passes for 74 yards, including hits of 39 and 19 yards, respectively.

Maye at the half: 18 of 23 for 287 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Maye's final stats: 29 of 40 for 414 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT

3. Darius Taylor starting at RB over Sean Tyler

Taylor, a true freshman, appears to have stolen the No. 1 running back job from veteran transfer Sean Tyler. Tyler had 33 carries in the opener against Nebraska but Taylor's 193-yard outburst in Week 2 led to him getting the start against the Tar Heels, and he continued to produce.

Taylor was the lone bright spot for a Gophers offense, finishing with 22 carries for 138 yards and a touchdown. The rest of the Gophers offense produced less than 200 yards.

Taylor appears to have secured the No. 1 RB job going forward.

4. Turnovers in enemy territory

The Gophers were driving on their first offensive series when Kaliakmanis threw under pressure and the ball sailed high and was tipped by tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford and picked off by the Tar Heels at the 16-yard line.

Kaliakmanis threw an interception in the red zone in Minnesota's Week 1 win over Nebraska, so that's two killer turnovers deep in enemy territory by Kaliakmanis through three games.

The second deadly turnover deep in UNC territory ended Minnesota's drive while trailing 21-13 in the third quarter. Cole Kramer, who entered the game for Kaliakmanis after Kaliakmanis was limping a few plays earlier, lofted a deep ball that was easily intercepted in the end zone.

5. Minnesota's passing game disappeared

It was never pretty. Kaliakmanis finished 11 of 29 passing for 133 yards and one interception, though he threw about five other passes that could've easily been intercepted.

The failures came against a North Carolina defense that gave up 350 passing yards to Spencer Rattler and South Carolina in Week 1, and then got torched for 275 passing yards (and nearly 500 total yards) by Appalachian State in Week 2.

The fact that Kaliakmanis and Minnesota's passing game was this dismal is cause for concern as the schedule is going to get very difficult with games against Michigan, Iowa, Ohio State and Wisconsin still to come.

The wide receivers didn't get many accurate passes thrown their way and the result was a major dud in the box score.