Perfect no more: Iowa hands Gophers first loss of season
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Updated: 8 p.m.
Nine and... oh, no.
Minnesota's dreams of an undefeated season came crashing down Saturday, as Iowa maintained its recent football dominance over the Gophers with a 23-19 victory in Iowa City.
Nate Stanley threw for two touchdown passes and Tyler Goodson ran for a score for No. 23 Iowa, handing the No. 7 Gophers their first loss while hurting their playoff prospects.
The Hawkeyes (7-3, 4-3 Big Ten) struck quickly, scoring touchdowns on their first three possessions, then held off Minnesota’s charge in the second half for their first victory over a ranked opponent this season.
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The Gophers (9-1, 6-1, No. 8 CFP) haven’t won at Kinnick Stadium since 1999, losing nine straight on the road in the series and five overall in the annual battle for the Floyd of Rosedale Trophy. The loss will hurt them in the rankings, but they stay in control of their own fate in the Big Ten West Division race.
That, coach P.J. Fleck said, is something his team needs to remember.
“This is one game,” Fleck said. “Everything else is sitting right in front of us. If we can play a game that poorly, we can come back from it.
“This is not the end of the world. It hurts. It should hurt — it’s a rivalry game. This is what college football is all about. ... This is one game. That’s all that means.”
Minnesota made it 23-19 with 3:27 to play when Rodney Smith scored on a 1-yard dive. But Brock Walker’s extra-point attempt missed. Iowa’s Nate Wieting then recovered the onside kick.
The Gophers had a final chance. But quarterback Tanner Morgan was sacked by Joe Evans and A.J. Epenesa on back-to-back plays, then backup Cole Kramer’s pass was intercepted by Riley Moss on fourth down.
Stanley threw for 173 yards. Goodson rushed for 94 yards.
“We did a great job of controlling the first half,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said. “We knew we were going to have to score some points today. It’s no mirage how many points they’ve scored, the yards that they’ve had.”
“We had to open it up,” said wide receiver Nico Ragaini, who scored Iowa’s first touchdown on a 21-yard pass from Stanley.
Morgan threw for 368 yards for Minnesota. Tyler Johnson had nine catches for 170 yards. The Gophers had 431 yards of offense.
Minnesota plays at Northwestern next week and closes the season at home against Wisconsin, the second-place team in the division. The Badgers are one game behind the Gophers in the West Division.
The Hawkeyes' defense held the high-flying Minnesota offense to its lowest point total of the season.
