Athan Kaliakmanis gets his revenge as Gophers lose at Rutgers, 26-19

P.J. Fleck reacts after Gophers lose at Rutgers, 26-19

Gophers coach P.J. Fleck met with reporters after a 26-19 loss at Rutgers on Saturday to fall to 6-4 on the season and end a four-game win streak.

MINNEAPOLIS - The University of Minnesota football team’s four-game win streak is over, and Athan Kaliakmanis got revenge on his former team.

Kaliakmanis threw for 240 yards and three touchdowns as the Gophers lost to the Scarlet Knights 26-19 on Saturday. Minnesota drops to 6-4 on the season, 4-3 in Big Ten play and misses out an opportunity to grab sole possession of fifth place in the league with two games to play. The Gophers were predicted to take 12th in preseason polls.

Kaliakmanis was P.J. Fleck’s starting quarterback last season, but entered the transfer portal and landed at Rutgers. After the game, several Gophers' players formed a line on the field and shook hands with Kaliakmanis.

Gophers players react to 26-19 loss at Rutgers

Gophers players Max Brosmer, Ethan Robinson and Cody Lindenberg react after a 26-19 loss at Rutgers on Saturday to end a four-game win streak and fall to 6-4 on the season.

"At the end of the day football is what we do. He was still a friend from the team, we had connections and that had nothing to do with what was going in the game. It’s a football game at the end of the day," Gophers linebacker Cody Lindenberg said. "Shook his hand, said what’s up, it was good to see him."

Rutgers entered the day on a four-game losing streak after starting the season 4-0.

"When you’re in the Big Ten it doesn’t matter who you play. You better bring it every single week. You just never know what’s going to happen. Sometimes it’s just not your day," Fleck said after the loss. "Everything starts with me, I wasn’t a very good head coach today. I didn’t prepare them very well. We had our opportunities, we did not pay winning Gopher football."

The big play

Jameson Geers had eight catches for 73 yards Saturday, but fumbled deep in Rutgers territory with about nine minutes to play. The Scarlet Knights recovered, and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 7:41 left. Kaliakmanis hit Ian Strong on a 4-yard touchdown. Minnesota sent pressure, didn’t get home and the middle of the field was wide open.

On the next possession, Max Brosmer was sacked for a safety to give the Scarlet Knights a 23-16 lead over the Gophers with 6:53 to play. They added a field goal with 1:59 to play. The Gophers were out-scored 12-3 in the fourth quarter after having a 16-14 lead.

"We didn’t make the next best play, the next available play. That fourth quarter we have the lead, but we could just never get enough going on offense to flip the field and get some points," Fleck said.

Aidan Gousby injured

Gophers’ safety Aidan Gousby left Saturday’s game in the first half with a right leg injury. Running in coverage, Gousby grabbed his hamstring and went down to the turf. He did not return, leaving Minnesota’s safety duties to Kerry Brown and Koi Perich.

Kaliakmanis strikes early

It was a revenge game for Rutgers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis, Minnesota’s starter last year. He came out hot, going 14-of-20 for 216 yards and two touchdowns to Dymere Miller. His only mistake of the first half was an interception to Ethan Robinson for a touchback.

Offensive line issues

The Gophers’ offensive line had a very rough day against Rutgers. Brosmer was sacked four times, faced constant pressure in the second half and the Scarlet Knights had eight tackles for loss. They ran for just 35 yards on less than two yards per carry.