Max Brosmer completed a 1-yard touchdown pass to Jameson Geers, and Dragan Kesich made his fourth field goal in the last five minutes, helping Minnesota win 25-17 against No. 24 Illinois on Saturday.
This was Minnesota’s fourth win in a row (6-3, 4-2 Big Ten), while Illinois (6-3, 3-3) lost its second game in a row.
Brosmer completed 22 of 37 passes for 213 yards and a touchdown. Darius Taylor ran for 131 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries, and he was also Minnesota’s top receiver with nine catches for 58 yards. Elijah Spencer caught six passes for 67 yards.
“We knew there was going to be a great crowd and it would be hostile. So what?” said Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck. “Illinois is ranked. So what? We kept it all internal.”
Luke Altmyer completed 20 of 33 passes for 226 yards and a touchdown for Illinois, but he lost two fumbles.
Illinois coach Bret Bielema mentioned that Altmyer’s ball security is an issue that needs fixing, but he also noted that it’s not entirely Altmyer’s fault.
“When the QB position goes well, the QB gets a lot of credit,” Bielema said. “When things don’t go well, the QB gets a lot of blame. We need to help Luke out.”
In Illinois’ last drive, Altmyer was sacked by Jah Joyner, and his fumble was recovered by Danny Striggow on the Gophers’ 27-yard line.
For Illinois, Pat Bryant had five catches for 72 yards, and Zakhari Franklin caught five passes for 71 yards and a touchdown. Josh McCray ran seven times for 71 yards and a touchdown.
Illinois took a 17-16 lead with 9:03 left when Altmyer threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Franklin after Minnesota punter Mark Crawford’s run on a fake punt fell short, giving the Illini the ball at their own 46.
Fleck said he liked all the decisions his players made during the game, even the failed fake punt.
“It was the perfect call based on Illinois’ formation,” he said. “Mark has the green light to run when he thinks he has that opportunity. It didn’t work this time and it was risky, but it was the right call.”
