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P.J. Fleck reacts after 27-24 loss to Michigan
Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck speaks after the 27-24 loss to Michigan Saturday afternoon in Ann Arbor.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The University of Minnesota football team left Michigan Saturday with a 27-24 loss after trailing 24-3 in the third quarter.
All anyone will be talking about after the game is the final penalty on the Gophers, and it appears to be a blown call. Max Brosmer hit Daniel Jackson for a touchdown with about 1:40 to play to get the Gopers within 27-24.
Minnesota tried an onside kick and recovered it, but Matt Kingsbury was flagged for being offsides. After a 5-yard penalty, Michigan recovered the next one and ran out the clock.
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Gophers players react to 27-24 loss to Michigan
Gophers players Ethan Robinson, Jah Joyner, Darius Taylor and Max Brosmer react to the 27-24 loss to Michigan Saturday afternoon.
"I haven’t seen the last play, nor does one play win or lose you the game. Everybody is going to focus on that, I’m not going to sit here and get fined and do all those other things," Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said after the loss. "I have more respect for my boss and the University of Minnesota and the Big Ten. That’s one play."
Why it matters
The Gophers would’ve had the ball in Wolverines’ territory, and one timeout left. Brosmer and the Gophers had scored 21 fourth quarter points to get back int the game. A slow-motion replay pretty clearly shows that when Dragan Kesich makes contact for the onside kick, Kingsbury is not across the 35-yard line.
It was a bad call, but is not reviewable and cannot be challenged. The FOX broadcasting crew and replay expert Mike Pereira agreed that after seeing the replay, it shouldn’t have been a penalty. Given Kesich’s ability to kick long field goals, the Gophers likely would’ve tried to score a touchdown and win the game. But they never got that chance.
"I didn’t hear anything, except he was offsides. I was 10 yards away, I was down where the ball was going to be received. I’ve got to get into the meat of where the ball is going to be. I didn’t see it," Fleck said. "The call was made, I asked, he said he broke the plane."
What’s next
The Gophers fall to 2-3 and host USC next Saturday night in a Stripe Out at Huntington Bank Stadium. Minnesota is 0-2 in Big Ten play and had first half leads against North Carolina and Iowa that finished with losses.