Gophers football back on track with 31-0 romp over Rutgers

Body blows, Gophers offensive linemen like to call them. They're the repeated physical pounding of the opponent's midsection with the running game, aimed to tenderize and demoralize the foe into submission.

Saturday at Huntington Bank Stadium, Minnesota's offensive line did the tenderizing and running back Mohamed Ibrahim covered the demoralizing as the Gophers ended a three-game losing streak with a 31-0 victory over Rutgers. Ibrahim rushed 36 times for 159 yards and three TDs for his 16th consecutive 100-yard game. The Gophers rolled to 375 yards of offense and held the ball for 41:02.

"Really tough coming back from four weeks without a win," Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said, "but I saw us keep getting better and better and better and better in practice. … We've had our challenges, but I think everybody understands how important a healthy Mohamed Ibrahim is."

Also featured Saturday: the return to action of Gophers quarterback Tanner Morgan, who missed the previous week's game at Penn State after suffering a concussion on Oct. 15 at Illinois. Morgan completed 14 of 21 passes for 122 yards.

The Gophers (5-3, 2-3 Big Ten) used 99- and 76-yard touchdown drives in the first half that took a combined 17:30 for a 14-0 lead in front of an announced crowd of 49,368.

"That's our kind of football," Morgan said. "One play at a time, being able to dominate the line of scrimmage and then obviously if you have a running back like Mo, we can do some really special things."

Minnesota's defense was key, too, posting its second shutout of the season, along with the 38-0 blanking of New Mexico State in the opener. Rutgers (4-4, 1-4) gained 134 yards and went 2-for-10 on third downs. Scarlet Knights quarterback Gavin Wimsatt completed only six of 17 passes for 68 yards before being knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter.

"We just got back to the details and got back to being us," said Gophers safety Tyler Nubin, who intercepted two passes.

The Gophers faced a challenge the first time they had the ball because Rutgers punter Adam Korsak pinned them inside their 1-yard line. However, Minnesota went on a methodical, 19-play, 99-yard march capped by Ibrahim's 1-yard run for a 7-0 lead 40 seconds into the second quarter. The drive took 10:27, and Ibrahim's TD was the 44th of his career, breaking a tie with Darrell Thompson for the Gophers record.

"It means a lot," Ibrahim said. "I know how much it takes to get that type of record."

On the drive, Ibrahim carried 12 times for 45 yards and converted three third-down situations. Morgan completed four of five passes for 32 yards and had a 15-yard scramble to the Rutgers 46 on third-and-8.

After the Gophers defense forced a three-and-out, Korsak flipped the field by getting off a 77-yard punt that rolled dead at Minnesota's 14.

No matter. The Gophers drove 86 yards in 13 plays, with Ibrahim scoring on a 1-yard run on fourth-and-goal with 5:14 left in the second quarter. Key on the drive, which took 7:03, was Bryce Williams' second effort on a swing pass for an 11-yard gain on third-and-10 from the Minnesota 32. Ibrahim carried seven times for 33 yards on the drive.

"I'm willing to do whatever for the team," said Ibrahim, who was lost for the 2021 season in the opener because of a torn Achilles' tendon and missed the Oct. 1 loss to Purdue because of an ankle injury. "Two weeks ago it was 15 carries. Before that, it was like 20. I don't have a pitch count now. I'm ready to go."

While the Gophers didn't add to their lead in the third quarter, they did hold the ball for 11:36, continuing to wear on a Rutgers run defense that entered the game as the sixth best in the country, allowing 87.4 yards per game.

"I did feel like we were denting them," Fleck said. "And those 3- to 4-yard runs, come the end of the game you saw what happened."

Ibrahim's 28-yard TD run with 10:19 left in the fourth quarter, set up by Nubin's first interception, made it 21-0. A 40-yard run by Trey Potts led to Matthew Trickett's 31-yard field with 2:06 to play.

Nubin's second interception and return of 32 yards to the Rutgers 3 set up Williams' 3-yard run to set the final score.

In the end, Fleck credited his whole team but left a little extra for one player.

"I'm not afraid to say that I'm a way better coach when Mohamed's healthy.''