Gophers looking to grow from season-opening loss with Rhode Island up next

Since 2012, the Gophers have opened their football season 12 times on a Thursday night, with the only exception being the 2020 season that opened on an October Saturday because of the coronavirus. With the second game of the season typically falling nine days later, a team that wins a Thursday opener has a couple of extra days to bask in the victory.

The flip side is true, too, and because of their 19-17 loss to North Carolina on Thursday night at Huntington Bank Stadium, the Gophers had to stew in the aftermath of the defeat.

“We just didn’t do enough to win that football game, and the margin [for error] is really small,” Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said Monday, reflecting on Thursday’s developments. “… You can’t wait to get it back out there again. The whole team was like: ‘Let’s just ask them if they’ll go play one more time. Let’s just see if they’ll reset it, 60 on the clock, will count for another game. Let’s do it again.’ ”

Turns out, there will be no immediate mulligan. Instead, Fleck and his Gophers will wait until Saturday against visiting Rhode Island to show they’ve cleaned things up from the error-filled opener. From two missed field-goal attempts by the usually reliable Dragan Kesich to an offensive line that couldn’t consistently handle North Carolina’s stunting defensive front; from a passing game that produced only 53 yards through three quarters to a run defense that allowed the Tar Heels to keep the ball for 13:39 in the third quarter, the Gophers spread around the mistakes against North Carolina.

This week, they face an FCS-level opponent that’s in town to collect a paycheck and inflict some embarrassment if the Gophers allow them to do so. For Fleck and his coaching staff, a mere victory over Rhode Island won’t obscure the issues that arose against North Carolina. Rather, the Gophers need to have all three phases of their game operating efficiently and dominantly just to show themselves they can.

That starts on offense with the line opening more holes for running back Marcus Major, who rushed 20 times for 73 yards in place of the injured Darius Taylor. Fleck didn’t have an update on Taylor’s status, saying the medical staff will decide. The line, too, can help quarterback Max Brosmer, who was sacked five times. Brosmer completed six of 12 passes for 53 yards through three quarters before leading a go-ahead field goal drive in the fourth quarter and the final march that set up what could have been the winning kick.

“He’s competitor, so I don’t know if I necessarily learned a ton, except verified exactly what he is and who he is,” Fleck said. “Now we just got to be better.”

On defense, Fleck considered the Gophers’ tackling a mixed bag that must improve.

“We tackled really well in some areas, and then other areas, we didn’t tackle so well,” he said. “But I love the effort, the way we play, and the fearlessness we played with the tackling.’’

On Friday, the Gophers practiced and reviewed the breakdowns of their performances — tough-love film sessions that Fleck said often requires players to put on their “leather vests’' to build a thicker skin while taking criticism.

“This team cares, so they had a really good sense about them,” Fleck said. “They knew that that was really hard to swallow, but they also knew that there’s a lot of season ahead and there’s a lot of games to be played. They were going to learn a lot from this football game, and they couldn’t wait to learn.”