Gophers' O-line, running backs 'put the team on their backs' against USC

Last week's win over the Trojans was the first time Minnesota leaned on the run all season.

Oct 5, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers offensive lineman Aireontae Ersery (69) celebrates quarterback Max Brosmer's (16) touchdown against the USC Trojans during the first half at Huntington Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images / Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

Gophers star running back Darius Taylor ran for a season-high 144 yards in last week's upset win over No. 11 USC. Minnesota ran for 193 yards as a team, only two yards shy of the season-high 195 yards they ran for against Nevada.

Highlighted by preseason All-American left tackle Aireontae Ersery, the Gophers' offensive line was expected to be a strength of their team. Saturday's win over the Trojans was the first time all season that they dominated the line of scrimmage against a major conference opponent.

"Having that senior O-line, kind of carry that group throughout the whole game, it was impressive. It was fun to watch, it was fun to play behind," quarterback Max Brosmer said. "I know the running backs had a blast playing behind them the whole game. Their energy was outstanding the whole game. It was fun to be in the huddle with them. It was a great game."

Since P.J. Fleck took over the program in 2017, Minnesota has been one of the most run-heavy teams in the country. But, last week's game looked like the first time they leaned on the run all season. They set a season-high with 40 carries as a team.

"I went into the USC game and we really took a great approach on Tuesday's practice of working on certain runs and really working on it," offensive coordinator Greg Harbaugh Jr. said. "The guys know I am going to call those in the game. My message to them was obviously the pre-snap penalties, the holdings, the things like that, that were hurting us. The other thing was, let's make sure we execute these runs on Tuesday, so it gives me the confidence to be able to call it in the game."

The Gophers running backs ran harder than they have all season, evidenced by136 (70.4%) of the 193 rushing yards coming after contact. Taylor averaged 4.6 yards after contact and he broke a season-high six tackles on his 25 carries.

Minnesota had a clear advantage at the line of scrimmage against USC and they leaned on it. When you face powerful teams like Iowa or Michigan, it's hard for a program like the Gophers to find a difference in the trenches, but Saturday showed that they're at their best when they play through Taylor, Ersery and the rest of the offensive line.