P.J. Fleck after Gophers lose to Iowa 31-14: 'Don't give up on this team'

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Floyd of Rosedale’s time in Minnesota was short-lived. The prized 98-pound bronze pig was at the Gophers’ football facility for 335 days, to be exact.

It’s headed back to Iowa City after the Gophers lost their Big Ten opener to rival Iowa 31-14 Saturday night in front of a sellout crowd at Huntington Bank Stadium. Floyd might be sharing a seat on the bus ride down Interstate 35 with Kaleb Johnson.

P.J. Fleck is just 1-7 against Iowa, and the Gophers haven’t beaten the Hawkeyes on their home field since 2014. Iowa has won nine of the last 11 match-ups. The Gophers fall to 2-2 on the season, and 0-1 in Big Ten play.

"I told our team we played for 30 minutes. Simple facts about it, the job of the head football coach is to get his team to play hard for 60 minutes, and I failed to do that. I told them it’s unacceptable, and it won’t happen again," Fleck said after the loss. "Don’t give up on this team, this team has got a lot of football left, I promise you. We’re going to give you everything we have moving forward."

The Kaleb Johnson show

Kaleb Johnson is one of the best running backs in the country, and he showed why on Saturday. He had 173 of the Hawkeyes’ 266 total yards through three quarters, and three touchdowns. He finished with 206 of the Hawkeyes’ 264 rushing yards, and rarely went down on first contact. He averaged 9.8 yards per carry. The Hawkeyes total rushing attack had more than six yards per carry.

Johnson's two third quarter touchdowns went for 15 and 40 yards, and helped turned a 14-7 Gophers' lead at half into a 24-14 Iowa lead. 

The Gophers’ streak of not allowing a touchdown came to an end at 10 straight quarters, a total of 128 minutes and 41 seconds. 

All Iowa third quarter

The Hawkeyes out-scored the Gophers 17-0 in the third quarter. Iowa out-gained Minnesota 159-14 in the frame, including 116-8 on the ground. The Hawkeyes had the ball for 8:56 in the quarter. Minnesota’s two drives ended in punts.

That’s after Minnesota won the second quarter 14-0 to take a 14-7 lead into the half. Iowa out-scored Minnesota 24-0 in the second half.

"The word of the second half was space. They had space everywhere," Fleck said.

Hawkeyes' slow processional for Floyd

When the clock hit zero, Iowa players took the time to shake hands with the Gophers before lining up as a team. They made a slow walk towards the end zone before eventually grabbing Floyd of Rosedale. He's headed back to Iowa City.

"That’s one of the toughest things in any rivalry game. Knowing what’s on the line and coming out on the sad end of it, it’s not fun," Wide receiver Daniel Jackson said. "It’s going to make you hungrier, it’s going to motivate you to continue to grind and make it to where you don’t feel that feeling again."

"Every loss is tough. They’re taking it home, it bites," linebacker Cody Lindenberg said.

Elijah Spencer has Gophers’ big play

The Gophers’ biggest bright spot came from Elijah Spencer in the first half. With the game tied 7-7, it looked like Minnesota might settle for a field goal until Max Brosmer hit Spencer on a wide receiver screen. He got big blocks from Le’Meke Brockington and Jameson Geers, and Spencer spun and dove his way for an 11-yard touchdown and 14-7 Gophers’ lead at the half.

That was the last offensive highlight they would have. Brosmer was 17-of-26 for 165 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in the first half. He was just 5-of-11 for 44 yards and an interception in the second half.

What’s next

The Gophers head to Ann Arbor to face No. 18-ranked Michigan next Saturday. The Wolverines are coming off a win over USC.