Tyler Nubin sat at the news conference table wearing his Gophers letter jacket with his No. 27 embossed on the front. To Tyler's right was his younger brother, Jordan, sporting a Gophers hoodie.
Jordan Nubin breaks through as Gophers make it two in a row with 27-12 victory over Michigan State
Following a rocky start, the Gophers settled in after halftime in a big way. Running back Jordan Nubin rushed 40 times for 204 yards and two touchdowns to put away the Spartans.
October 29, 2023 at 3:18AM
Together, the Nubin brothers put their stamp on a 27-12 victory over Michigan State on Saturday at Huntington Bank Stadium, and in a surprising development, it was the younger Nubin who had the majority of the spotlight over his All-America candidate brother.
"I told him he was going to have like 200 yards, and we were going to get interviewed at the end of the game," Tyler said, with a sly smile, of their Friday night hotel room conversation.
With the Gophers backfield missing both Darius Taylor and Zach Evans on Saturday because of injuries and Bryce Williams out for the season, Jordan Nubin was expected to be the 1B in a committee with 1A senior Sean Tyler. Instead, the redshirt sophomore walk-on who converted from safety to running back stole the show, rushing 40 times for 204 yards and two fourth-quarter touchdowns as the Gophers pulled away to beat the Spartans in front of 47,392.
"It was just great,'' said Jordan Nubin, who entered the game with 15 carries in his career and six this season. "The coaching staff put a great game plan together, the O-line was blocking great, and the receivers were blocking their brains out. It just feels good to be out there with my team.''
Said Tyler Nubin, "All he does is put his head down and work hard. I'm just so proud of this kid, man, so proud.''
While the younger Nubin led a Gophers offense that wore down the Spartans, scoring 17 fourth-quarter points to stretch a 10-6 halftime nail-biter into a comfortable victory, it was Minnesota's defense making sure the Spartans didn't pull an upset.
Tyler Nubin made five tackles and contributed a pass breakup as the Gophers held Michigan State to 80 yards in the first half and forced the Spartans to settle for two field goals after Minnesota turnovers in the Gophers' side of the field on the game's first two possessions.
"Our defense was outstanding,'' Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said. "They play Joe Rossi defense. They kept us in the game long enough to where we could finally start executing.''
With the victory, the Gophers (5-3, 3-2 Big Ten) ran their win streak to two games, moved within one win of gaining bowl eligibility and stayed in contention in the Big Ten West Division race.
Athan Kaliakmanis completed 14 of 22 passes for 200 yards, including a 22-yard TD pass to Daniel Jackson. He also threw an interception and lost a fumble. Jackson caught seven passes for 120 yards.
Michigan State (2-6, 0-5) lost its sixth consecutive game as the Gophers limited the Spartans to 23 minutes, 45 seconds in time of possession.
The game didn't start well for the Gophers. On the second play from scrimmage, Tyler fumbled, and the Spartans recovered at the Minnesota 26-yard line, resulting in Jonathan Kim's 38-yard field goal. On the next series, Kaliakmanis lost a fumble while being sacked, and the Spartans added a 42-yard field goal for a 6-0 lead less than six minutes into the game.
"It couldn't get any worse than how we started,'' Kaliakmanis said.
The Gophers, though, rallied with a 25-yard field goal by Dragan Kesich and Kaliakmanis' 22-yard TD pass to Jackson with 19 seconds left in the first half for a 10-6 lead. The third-down play was the Gophers' first touchdown in eight quarters, dating to late in the second quarter of the 52-10 loss to Michigan on Oct. 7.
"The ball is going to be in his hands when it matters the most,'' Kaliakmanis said of Jackson. "And that was a big moment.''
More big moments came in the second half, mostly because Jordan Nubin and the Gophers offensive line wore down the Spartans. Nubin scored his first touchdown to make it 17-6 early in the fourth quarter on an 18-yard run set up by a crunching block by wide receiver Chris Autman-Bell. On the drive, Nubin carried eight times for 69 yards, while Kaliakmanis had an 18-yard option keeper.
Spartans backup QB Sam Leavitt replaced starter Katin Houser in the fourth quarter and led a TD drive that cut the lead to 17-12 with 8:37 to play. Jordan Nubin followed with the dagger, a 2-yard TD run with 4:11 to go, and Kesich capped the scoring with a 31-yard field goal with 3:25 to play.
"I'm really proud of our team, really proud of our family,'' Fleck said. "Those were the words of the week. We had to play as a family."
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