The three-week stretch of Iowa, No. 12 Michigan and No. 11 USC was the daunting assignment that the Gophers football team faced, and losses to the Hawkeyes and Wolverines left them in a tough situation: a 2-3 record, an 0-2 mark in the Big Ten and a team that had a lot of doubters.
Saturday night, though, the Gophers put all together, rallying with two fourth-quarter touchdowns to beat No. 11 USC in front of 50,913 at Huntington Bank Stadium.
It was Minnesota’s first victory over a ranked team since last year’s 12-10 triumph at No. 24 Iowa. And the Trojans were the highest-ranked team the Gophers (3-3, 1-2 Big Ten) have beaten since topping No. 9 Auburn 21-24 in the Outback Bowl following the 2019 season.
Koi Perich’s end zone interception with 9 seconds left sealed the victory, and fans rushed the field following one last kneel-down by quarterback Max Brosmer.
It was Brosmer who provided the late heroics, scoring his third tush-push touchdown of the night on a plunge from inside the 1-yard line with 56 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
That fourth-and-goal play originally was ruled short on the field, but a replay review showed that Brosmer had reached the end zone.
“It’s absolutely incredible for our team,’’ Brosmer said in a postgame interview on KFXN-FM.
During his halftime radio interview, Gophers coach P.J. Fleck emphasized that Minnesota’s defense had to find a way to get off the field on third. That was a problem most of the night. USC converted six of eight third-down chances in the first half, helping the Trojans put together 11- and 15-play drives. The picked up where they left off in the second half, marching 91 yards in 12 plays and taking a 17-10 lead on Marks’ 1-yard TD run. Marks had six carries for 41 yards on the drive and had a 7-yard reception.