Gophers defense shines in victory against Kent State

They set a goal this week to get a shutout and, technically, achieved it while holding the Flashes (1-2) to 142 yards on 59 plays.

Passing has been a work in progress for Minnesota for a while.

“I don’t have the magical answer right now, but I better get it”, Kill said, “or I don’t deserve to be here”. To make matters worse, the ball took a insane backwards bounce and Kent State’s special teams unit couldn’t corral bringing it from where it landed around the 25-yard-line all the way back to the 40.

Leidner ought to have more help, though, as the season gets going.

As the third-string kicker, Goss is unlikely to get in another game, but the feat of the former high school soccer player from Pennsylvania has been enhanced by the way she’s been embraced by the rest of the team.

The biggest defensive play of the game likely was on Kent State’s final drive when freshman linebacker Julian Huff sacked quarterback Colin Reardon for a 9-yard loss on third and 10. They didn’t cross the 50-yard line except for one time and that was on an interference call….

The Gopher offense, on the other hand, while amassing 288 yards of total offense, looked lost. So when the Golden Flashes traveled Saturday to face a Minnesota team many pundits considered a step ahead of Illinois, the result figured to be a laugher from start to finish.

The only time the Golden Flashes scored was when Minnesota was on offense, with the fumble return for a touchdown.

Presently the Kent State Golden Flashes have a record of 2-9, and have declared a corresponding slate of 5-6 against the spread.

Kent State ran 91 plays against Delaware State last week, gaining 493 yards to an nearly unfathomable net of minus-33 yards for the Hornets in a 45-13 victory. Probably not. But we still want that same type of attitude.

“We did win”, Kill said as he stood up to finish a postgame news conference capped by a question about frustration of the booing fans.