Athan Kaliakmanis leads Rutgers to 26-19 victory over Gophers

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – The Gophers were on a four-game winning streak, bookended by victories over teams that were ranked at the time.

They were riding high with an offense that’s embraced the passing game, playing to the strengths of their graduate transfer quarterback, Max Brosmer, leader of fourth-quarter comebacks.

And they were enjoying an improving defense that seemingly was swiping the ball from opponents at will.

Saturday, somewhere in the swamps of Jersey, the Gophers’ feel-good story added a negative chapter. Rutgers, which entered with a four-game losing streak, left SHI Stadium with a 26-19 comeback victory of its own, a triumph led by a quarterback who was wearing maroon and gold a year ago.

Athan Kaliakmanis, Minnesota’s starter in 2023 and half of 2022, passed for 240 yards and three touchdowns, the last score putting Rutgers ahead for good midway through the fourth quarter in front of an announced 44,210. Kaliakmanis was sizzling in the first half, going 14-for-20 for 216 yards and two TDs.

The Gophers (6-4, 4-3 Big Ten) had been the team owning the fourth-quarter moments. Instead, Rutgers (5-4, 2-4) played that part Saturday with its defense forcing a turnover that led to the winning score.

“With Big Ten football on the road, you’ve got to play really well,” Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said. “We have, at times, but today we did not.”

The winning touchdown — a 4-yard pass from Kaliakmanis to Ian Strong that made it 21-16 with 7:41 left — came after Gophers tight end Jameson Geers caught a pass, made a move and lost the ball following a hit from Tyreem Powell. Scarlet Knights defensive back Shaquan Loyal recovered at the Minnesota 12.

“That fourth quarter, we had the lead, but we never could get enough going on offense to flip the field and get some points,” Fleck said.

On the Gophers’ next possession, Brosmer was sacked in the end zone by Jordan Walker for a safety, making it 23-16 with 6:51 left. Jay Patel’s 22-yard field goal with 2:45 left boosted Rutgers’ lead to 26-16.

The Gophers’ Dragan Kesich kicked a 30-yard field goal with 1:10 left, but Strong safely fielded Kesich’s onside kick attempt.

“We didn’t earn it,” Fleck said. “We didn’t make enough plays and didn’t coach well enough.”

Brosmer, who’d led three fourth-quarter comeback victories this season, completed 27 of 45 passes for 262 yards and one touchdown, a 17-yarder to Marcus Major that put the Gophers up 16-14 on their first possession of the third quarter.

The Gophers defense started to apply pressure to Kaliakmanis in the second half and forced the Scarlet Knights to punt on four consecutive possessions. The offense, however, couldn’t get any separation.

“The overall feeling in the [locker] room is that we kind of shot ourselves in the foot a little bit,” Brosmer said. “We didn’t execute to the best of our ability. It was the small details that we didn’t execute very well today, and that’s why we lost the game.”

Rutgers had a lot to do with the Gophers losing, and Kaliakmanis was front and center.

After the Gophers took a 6-0 lead on Darius Taylor’s 18-yard TD run in the first quarter, the Scarlet Knights responded with Kaliakmanis’ 1-yard TD pass to Dymere Miller for a 7-6 lead.

Minnesota got a 51-yard field goal by Dragan Kesich to make it 9-7 before Kaliakmanis hit Miller on a 17-yard TD pass for a 14-9 early in the second quarter. On the two first-half TD drives, Kaliakmanis was 9-for-10 for 115 yards.

“Athan did a heck of a job,” Rutgers coach Greg Schiano said. “He’s been doing a heck of a job. He’s getting better and better.”

Fleck credited Kaliakmanis, who entered the transfer portal last November after Fleck told him the starting job would be a competition in 2024.

“Athan made some really good throws, and they made some nice catches,” he said.

Afterward, Fleck was left to assess what went wrong and how he will correct it during next week’s bye ahead of the home finale on Nov. 23 against Penn State.

“We had our opportunities, but we did not play winning Gopher football,” he said. “... We will get better.”