Gophers fall just short of another upset of Penn State

The Gophers did several things right on Saturday that could have served as building blocks for an upset of fourth-ranked Penn State but were canceled out by miscues in key moments.

They bolted to a 10-point lead early in the second quarter, only to see the Nittany Lions quickly tie the score.

They pulled off a trick play for a touchdown, only to try another that fell flat at an inopportune time.

And they blocked a punt and returned a blocked extra-point attempt for two points, only to see Penn State play the trump card with a successful fake punt with the game on the line.

It all added up to a 26-25 escape from Huntington Bank Stadium for the Nittany Lions, who took another step toward a berth in the 12-team College Football Playoff and denied the announced 44,266 in attendance a chance to storm the field.

“There’s a lot of tears in that locker room because of how hard they played,” Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said of his players. “But Penn State found a way to make one more play than we did.”

By getting that one more play — be it on offense, defense or special teams — the Nittany Lions improved to 10-1 overall and 7-1 in the Big Ten while dropping the Gophers to 6-5 and 4-4. The Gophers held Penn State to seven points fewer than its scoring average and scored nearly 12 more than what the Nittany Lions give up, but the result was a second consecutive loss with Friday’s regular-season finale at Wisconsin upcoming.

“I’ve had seasons before where you [win] the one-possession games and other seasons sometimes you don’t,” said Gophers quarterback Max Brosmer, whose team fell to 3-4 in such contests. “That’s how football works. The ball can bounce your way, or it may not.”

Brosmer completed 15 of 23 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown — a double-reverse flea-flicker to tight end Jameson Geers late in the second quarter for a 17-10 lead. But Brosmer also threw an interception and lost a fumble that Penn State converted into two field goals. Daniel Jackson caught six passes for 90 yards, and Darius Taylor rushed 17 times for 58 yards.

Minnesota also got a blocked punt from Derik LeCaptain and a two-point defensive conversion when Jack Henderson blocked a PAT and Ethan Robinson returned it 89 yards to the opposite end zone.

For Penn State, quarterback Drew Allar was 21-for-28 for 244 yards and a TD. Tyler Warren, the nation’s top tight end, caught eight passes for 102 yards.

“It was very emotional, especially for all the seniors,” Gophers junior defensive end Anthony Smith said of the team’s Senior Day.

The game came down to some key moments in the fourth quarter.

The Nittany Lions went ahead 23-22 on Nicholas Singleton’s 12-yard run with 3:43 left in the third quarter and turned a lost fumble by Brosmer into a 32-yard field goal by Ryan Barker to make it 26-22.

“I can be way better than that and put my team in a better situation,” Brosmer said.

Brosmer drove the Gophers deep into Penn State territory with a 23-yard pass to Jackson and a 30-yarder to Elijah Spencer to the Nittany Lions 7. The drive stalled on a 2-yard loss by Marcus Major, an incomplete throwback to tackle eligible Aireontae Ersery and an incompletion intended for Spencer. Kesich’s 26-yard field goal with 5:48 to play cut the Penn State lead to 26-25.

The trick play to the 6-6, 330-pound Ersery failed when Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter was there with the coverage. “It just didn’t come together how it came together in practice,” Fleck said.

Getting only three points there ended up haunting the Gophers, who did not touch the football again.

Minnesota’s defense had the Nittany Lions in a fourth-and-1 situation from their 34 with 3:47 to play. Penn State coach James Franklin called a fake punt, and tight end Luke Reynolds rambled 32 yards to the Gophers 34.

“We’ve been working on it since training camp, and we’ve called it in other games this year, but unless you have the right look, you can’t run it,” Franklin said. “… They ran their punt return team out, so I thought we had a chance. … With Thanksgiving coming up, it’s been cooking, it’s been marinating for a while.”

Said Fleck, “That’s a heck of a call by James — a heck of a call.”

Penn State converted two more fourth-and-1 plays on that drive and ran out the clock, sending the crowd home disappointed and the Gophers seeking answers to another tight loss.

“That was back and forth. That was a heavyweight fight right there,” Fleck said. “And I’m just proud of our team, how hard they fight. But you come up short, and it’s really disappointing.”