Three factors for Gophers football that could define the rest of their season

The pig is in his Dinkytown pen, the cigar smoke from the visitors' locker room at Kinnick Stadium has dissipated and the hubbub over wave-gate has calmed down, at least north of the Minnesota-Iowa border.

Last Saturday, the Gophers ended nearly a decade of frustration against Iowa, defeating the Hawkeyes 12-10 in Iowa City. Minnesota ended an eight-game losing streak in the Floyd of Rosedale series and brought the bronze statue of a prized hog back to Dinkytown for the first time since 1999.

As has been the case for much of the season, three facets of the Gophers' game — their passing offense, their play at linebacker and their special teams — played big roles in the outcome. Howthey develop in the final five games will say a lot in how the season is judged.

Starting with Saturday's home game against Michigan State, improvement in each area would go a long way in the Gophers (4-3, 2-2 Big Ten) beginning to string together victories they'll need to compete for the West Division title.

Minnesota's passing offense, which ranks 129th of 133 FBS teams at 131.9 yards per game, has been a concern all season, and its up-and-down tendencies played out at Iowa.

Athan Kaliakmanis endured a difficult first half, completing three of eight passes for eight yards as the Gophers mustered only a field goal.

In the second half, however, the staff showed more trust in Kaliakmanis, who went 3-for-6 for 40 yards on a 13-play drive that cut the Iowa lead to 10-6 on a Dragan Kesich field goal. That set the tone for two more field-goal drives. Kesich's 31-yard winner in the fourth quarter was set up when Kaliakmanis hit Daniel Jackson on a deep route for a 39-yard gain to the Iowa 17.

"We had to do whatever it took to win, and we wanted to come out attacking," Kaliakmanis said. "'Put the ball in my hands, Coach, and I'll go do it.' That's the mentality I kind of have."

Kaliakmanis went 7-for-17 for 118 yards in the second half, and his stats would've been better without two dropped passes by Corey Crooms Jr. and one by Brevyn Spann-Ford.

"Honestly, it was one of his most complete games," offensive coordinator Greg Harbaugh Jr. said of Kaliakmanis. "The reason why I say that is because the ball was never not going to the right spot."

With a banged-up running back group, passing will become more important for the Gophers. And they should have more opportunities to pass. Their next three opponents — Michigan State (13th), Illinois (11th) and Purdue (14th) — have among the worst pass defenses in the Big Ten.

A puzzling development with the Gophers offense is the lack of production from Spann-Ford, the sixth-year senior tight end. Spann-Ford, who led the Gophers with 42 receptions in 2022, caught five passes for 45 yards in the opener against Nebraska but has only two receptions in the past three games. He caught no passes against Iowa and couldn't haul in a third-and-6 pass from the Iowa 13 in the fourth quarter that was broken up.

"He's gonna get an opportunity again this week," Harbaugh said. "He has to make the play. I have full confidence that he will make the play."

All season long, the Gophers defense has missed the talents and on-field leadership of Cody Lindenberg, who has yet to play because of a leg injury. The absence forced the Gophers to use a pair of inexperienced players, third-year sophomore Devon Williams and redshirt freshman Maverick Baranowski, who've taken their lumps.

Saturday, though, linebacker play was a strength against Iowa. Williams had his best game as a Gopher, collecting four tackles and one sack, forcing a fumble and recovering a fumble. Pro Football Focus gave Williams an 82.3 grade, the highest of his career. Baranowski tied for the team lead with six tackles, including one for loss.

"Devon Williams played his best football game — one of the better linebacker performances I've seen since I've been here," coach P.J. Fleck said. "Two weeks ago, I couldn't say that. You're watching growth."

An improving Williams could help come Saturday against Michigan State, which features the Big Ten's third-leading rusher in Nate Carter (80.7 yards per game).

The Gophers special teams have received outstanding play from kicker Dragan Kesich, who's 14-for-16 on field goals and has touchbacks on 28 of his 33 kickoffs. The return and coverage units, however, did not have great games at Iowa. The wind played a factor as two Iowa kickoffs landed short of Gophers return man Sean Tyler and had backspin, forcing Tyler to scramble to the ball before the Hawkeyes could recover. The Gophers made fair catches on five of Tory Taylor's nine punts, and the Hawkeyes downed four inside the Minnesota 20-yard line, as Taylor averaged 49.3 yards per punt.

Because of Kesich, Minnesota's kick coverage team has faced only five returns, but the Gophers are allowing an average of 28.2 yards on those returns, the most in the Big Ten.

The Gophers' punt coverage nearly cost the team the game late in the fourth quarter when Cooper DeJean spun out of an attempted tackle, took advantage of an open lane down the sideline, then cut across the field for an apparent 54-yard TD return and 16-12 Iowa lead. However, replay officials ruled that DeJean had given an invalid fair catch signal, wiping out the return.

Fleck saw much to correct in that episode.

"When you punt, everybody has their lane or their gap. One of our players, when DeJean spins, jumps inside and out of his gap, and that's how DeJean goes down the sideline," Fleck said. "Our special teams specialists have played really well this year. We've had some big-time plays in our coverage units. We've also had some mistakes. Nothing's gonna be perfect."