The press conference room at Huntington Bank Stadium is a short walk from the Gophers' locker room, and when the home team is victorious, media members can hear the raucous celebration when coach P.J. Fleck bodysurfs atop his players.
Late Saturday night, there was no bodysurfing or jubilation from the Gophers. Second-ranked Michigan had just administered a thorough and efficient dismantling of Minnesota, rolling to a 52-10 victory, a result that was inevitable 12 seconds into the game. A national TV audience on NBC watched as the Gophers suffered their largest margin of defeat since the Wolverines beat them 58-0 in 2011.
Fleck and a trio of players fielded questions after the game, and each credited Michigan for their dominance, lamented the Gophers' lack of execution and vowed to improve from the experience.
"We've got to draw a line in the sand and get after this next half of the season," Fleck said. "That was my whole message."
Halfway through the season, the Gophers are 3-3 overall and 1-2 in the Big Ten. They have a bye this week before returning to play Oct. 21 at Iowa. That game starts a six-week run that will determine whether they will contend for the Big Ten West title or even get to six wins to qualify for a bowl game.
The first half of their schedule included losses to a top-five team in Michigan and a top-15 squad in North Carolina. Among their remaining opponents, only No. 3 Ohio State is ranked, while Iowa and Wisconsin are expected to be favorites against the Gophers. Minnesota could be favored against Michigan State, Illinois and Purdue.
No matter what the oddsmakers say, the Gophers will need to improve in every facet of their game if they want to make the season a success. Their offense, particularly in the passing game, took a step back against Michigan, which ranks No. 2 nationally in passing defense. Athan Kaliakmanis threw two interceptions that were returned for touchdowns, the first coming 12 seconds into the game. He completed five of 15 passes for 52 yards, and in losses to North Carolina and Michigan, he went 16-for-34 (47.1%) for 185 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions.
"We're just ready to learn," Kaliakmanis said. "We're excited to learn and be hard on ourselves. And we're going to be ready for Iowa."