Indecision works in Gophers' favor, results in safe call

Coach P.J. Fleck faced a key fourth-down decision late in Saturday's 20-13 victory at Nebraska and was asked about it in the postgame news conference.

"Which decision? The decision to punt then go for it, then punt, then go for it, then punt again?'' Fleck said, laughing. "Oh, my goodness.''

Here's what transpired:

With the Gophers facing third-and-7 from their 41 with 3:12 left in the fourth quarter and Nebraska out of timeouts, running back Mohamed Ibrahim appeared to salt the game away with a 7-yard gain on third-and-7. A video review of the spot, however, interestingly ruled that Ibrahim was about a half-yard short, leaving the Gophers at their 47 with 2:32 to play.

Fleck originally sent out the punt team, but Ibrahim implored his coach to go for it.

"I was ready to punt. All signs say to punt. Then there's this guy about this tall,'' Fleck said, lifting his hand to the 5-foot-10 level, "who comes off the field saying, 'We're going for it! I got it!' That's Mohamed. Then we're going for it. How am I going to not listen to Mo?

"As we're on the headset, there are two plays we want,'' Fleck continued. "… Half our staff wants one play, half likes the other, and they just keep going back and forth. … Because we didn't have a decisive decision, at some point … I just have to make that call. Besides Mohamed Ibrahim and [center] John Michael Schmitz, who did a death stare at me, there wasn't one call where everyone was like, 'This is it.' ''

Fleck decided to punt, reasoning that it would be more difficult for Nebraska to go 90 yards in less that 2:30 that it would be for the Huskers to march 46 yards if the Gophers didn't get the first down.

Mark Crawford's punt left Nebraska at its 12 with 2:25 to play. The Huskers reached their 47, but Gophers safety Tyler Nubin broke up a fourth-down pass intended for Trey Palmer with 1:13 to play.

"It worked out,'' Fleck said. "I've made calls that haven't worked out. One looks smart. The other ones look stupid.''

Backup quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis led the Gophers back from a 10-point deficit after taking over for the injured Tanner Morgan in the second half. Afterward, he met with the media for the first time this season and gave his teammates credit for his development and poise in pressure situations.

"I have Tanner Morgan being able to teach me. Every day I learn from him,'' Kaliakmanis said. "I have an All-America running back and a center like John Michael [Schmitz]. With guys like that, what's there to freeze over? They're really good guys, really good teammates.''

Said Ibrahim: "When it was his turn to go in, we didn't lose a beat. The guy stepped in, played his style of football and he knows what he had to do.''

It appears that Kaliakmanis, presumably the starting quarterback in 2023, will have a familiar face to throw to: Chris Autman-Bell.

The wide receiver, who suffered a season-ending knee injury on Sept. 17 against Colorado, told broadcaster Mike Grimm and GopherIllustrated.com that he's planning to return in 2023 for a seventh season. Autman-Bell played in less than 30% of the team's games, so he likely would be eligible for a medical waiver from the NCAA.

Autman-Bell has 125 career receptions for 1,970 yards and 13 touchdowns. Before his injury, he caught 11 passes for 214 yards and a TD this season.

The Star Tribune did not send the writer of this article to the game. This was written using a broadcast, interviews and other material.