Three takeaways from the Gophers' bowl win against West Virginia

The recap: The Gophers rode a stifling defense and second-quarter touchdown runs by massive offensive tackle Daniel Faalele and running back Ky Thomas to defeat West Virginia in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl on Tuesday night at Chase Field in Phoenix. Thomas rushed 21 times for 144 yards, and Mar'Keise Irving carried 19 times for 129 yards as the Gophers (9-4) beat the Mountaineers (6-7) for their fifth consecutive bowl win and third in a row under coach P.J. Fleck. Only Alabama's active streak of six straight bowl wins is longer.

Minnesota's defense forced four three-and-outs and limited the Mountaineers to three other possessions of only five plays. West Virginia's longest play went only 15 yards.

Gophers defensive players have nicknamed coordinator Joe Rossi "The Guru,'' and Rossi lived up to that reputation again. West Virginia rushed for only 66 yards, and quarterback Jarret Doege passed for 140 yards, only 4.5 yards per attempt. In three bowl games with the Gophers, Rossi has led defenses that have given up an average of 13.3 points.

Rossi has shown he can make his defense work against a variety of offenses. The Gophers held Wisconsin's potent running game to 62 yards on 22 carries and gave up no offensive touchdowns in a 23-13 win in the regular-season finale. This time, Minnesota shut down West Virginia's tempo game, posting five sacks and six pass breakups.

"Play like kids and have fun. That's all we said to each other all day,'' defensive end Boye Mafe said.

The 2-yard touchdown run by the 6-9, 380-pound Faalele had social media buzzing Tuesday night, and the Australian was relishing the spotlight after the game.

"I was ready. I was super-excited,'' Faalele said. "Last game, so I wanted to do something fun. I got a big-man touchdown. Everybody was happy.''

Faalele has had some practice in that role during the past two Gophers spring games. He ran for a TD in the 2019 spring game and passed for a score last spring.

Chase Field's roof was open twice Tuesday, the first time for a rehearsal a couple of hours before kickoff and the second during the pregame ceremony, which included paratroopers dropping into the stadium.

Problem was, a steady rain was falling on the temporary grass field in the retractable roof baseball stadium, and that produced several footing issues.

Gophers quarterback Tanner Morgan slipped while making a cut early in the third quarter, leading to a 10-yard loss. Late in the third quarter, Gophers wide receiver Mike Brown-Stephens slipped while trying to make a catch, and West Virginia's Charles Woods swooped in for an interception.

The skinny: Getcha popcorn ready for the opener, when Jerry Kill returns to Minneapolis with his new team. Kill coached the Gophers from 2010-15 before stepping down because of health reasons related to epilepsy. Kill has made critical comments about Fleck since Fleck was hired to replace Tracy Claeys, a longtime Kill confidant, in 2017.