Gophers football beats Iowa 12-10 in wild, controversial battle; first win in Iowa City since 1999

IOWA CITY – The announced crowd of 69,250 at Kinnick Stadium early Saturday evening had filed out, leaving only the empty seats and benches as P.J. Fleck paced around the field, the Gophers football coach scanning the scene with his cell phone to presumably share the moment.

Roughly a half-hour earlier, Dragan Kesich and Tyler Nubin engaged in a spirited sprint to the north end zone, both in search of Floyd of Rosedale, the bronze statue of a prized hog that goes to the winner of the Minnesota-Iowa game.

Kesich just edged out Nubin to hoist the pig, and it was fitting both got there quickly. Kesich's four field goals, including the winner with 8:33 left in the fourth quarter, provided just enough points for the Gophers to defeat the border rival Hawkeyes 12-10. Nubin led a defensive effort that pitched a second-half shutout and enabled the Gophers to end an eight-game losing streak to the Hawkeyes and win in Iowa City for the first time since 1999.

"This is one of those really good ones,'' Fleck said of his first victory over Iowa in seven tries. "And you never know what's gonna happen.''

In this series, Iowa had been the team making the key plays of late. The Hawkeyes' victories over the Gophers in 2019 and 2021 cost Minnesota trips to the Big Ten Championship Game. And last year, Iowa used two fourth-quarter turnovers to secure a 13-10 win in a game the Gophers territorially dominated.

Saturday, though, belonged to Minnesota, especially in the second half when the Gophers defense limited Iowa to 12 yards and the offense amassed 174 to peck away for the victory.

The Gophers (4-3, 2-2 Big Ten) tightened the Big Ten West Division race and prevented Iowa (6-2, 3-2) from taking another step toward the conference title game.

"We've had some really close games with them over the years, and sometimes it's harder than you think to beat a team you haven't beaten in a while,'' Gophers sixth-year senior center Nathan Boe said as victory cigar smoke from the visitors' locker room wafted into the interview area. "At halftime, we're like, 'We're not playing well. We're not being us.' We got back to that, and we won the game.''

Iowa, though, nearly got a victory for the ages.

Cooper DeJean appeared to give the Hawkeyes a 16-12 lead with a 54-yard punt return for a touchdown with 1:21 left in the fourth quarter. Instead, a replay review ruled that DeJean had given an invalid fair catch signal, which put the ball at the Iowa 46-yard line, where he gained possession.

Fans fumed over the ruling, throwing water bottles and beer cans on the field. The Gophers briefly moved from their bench onto the field as officials sorted things out.

Iowa had one last chance, but Justin Walley's third-down interception of Deacon Hill with 1:00 left in the fourth quarter ended the threat. The Gophers went into victory formation, and two kneel-downs plus an Iowa penalty and subsequent time runoff gave them possession of Floyd.

"I was preaching the whole game to just be in the moment, be ready for your opportunity and take advantage of it,'' said Nubin, who forced and recovered a fumble and had four tackles, one sack and one pass breakup.

The Gophers trailed 3-0 after Iowa's first possession before Kesich tied it with a 43-yard field goal with 17 seconds left in the first quarter with the wind — gusting from 20 to 30 mph — at his back. "It was probably the gnarliest wind I've had to deal with in my career here,'' he said.

Minnesota's defense got its first takeaway in the second quarter when Devon Williams strip-sacked Hill, and Nubin recovered at the Iowa 32. The Gophers couldn't cash in, and Kesich's 43-yard field-goal attempt into the wind was wide right.

Iowa took a 10-3 lead late in the second quarter on Hill's 1-yard keeper. The Gophers committed four penalties on the drive — Danny Striggow's third-down facemask, Walley's pass interference in the end zone, Jah Joyner's offsides and Nubin's unsportsmanlike conduct when he swatted the ball out of Hill's hands after the play was dead.

"Self-inflicted touchdown on four straight penalties,'' Fleck said. "That's so unlike us.''

The Gophers flipped the script in the second half, with the defense forcing four three-and-outs and two turnovers. Kesich's 44- and 28-yard field goals in the third quarter brought the Gophers within 10-9. Nubin set up the second one by sacking Hill and forcing a fumble that Williams recovered at the Iowa 11.

"I can't express the feelings I have for our defense. I'm just so proud of them,'' said Gophers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis, who had only 8 passing yards in the first half but went 7-for-18 for 118 yards after intermission.

Kaliakmanis threw his most important pass on the go-ahead drive. With the Gophers at their 44, he found Daniel Jackson (seven catches, 101 yards) on a deep crossing route for a 39-yard gain to the Iowa 17. Three plays later, Kesich nailed his 31-yarder for the lead.

From there, the defense took care of things, and Floyd took a ride northward.

"It's a win for this team, it's a win for the staff, it's a win for our state,'' Striggow said. "Just everything involved with Minnesota right now, it's a good feeling.''

Said Fleck, "I hope everybody celebrates that Floyd's coming home — safely and responsibly."