Gophers vs. Northwestern: 5 things you can count on
The Minnesota Gophers will return to Big Ten action as they travel to Northwestern Saturday night but there are plenty of questions after last week's loss to North Carolina.
With the Gophers looking to remain undefeated in conference play, here are five things you can count on when they battle the Wildcats.
1. Another big day for Darius Taylor
While the Gophers' offense has left a sour taste in everyone's mouth, a bright spot has been freshman running back Darius Taylor.
Taylor broke out with 193 yards and a touchdown in a Sept. 9 win over Eastern Michigan and built off that performance with 138 yards and a touchdown in last week's loss to the Tar Heels.
The reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week will have another opportunity on Saturday as he goes up against a Northwestern defense that ranks 89th in the nation but also has NFL prospects in linebackers Zander Mueller and Bryce Gallagher.
With the Wildcats prone to lighter boxes in David Braun's Cover 2 scheme, it should pave the path for another big game for the Gophers' freshman.
2. More turnovers from the Gophers secondary
The Gophers' secondary has been on point for the majority of this season as they've picked up six interceptions through the first three games – including two from Drake Maye, who is likely to go in the top five of next year's NFL Draft.
While the Gophers have been impressive so far, they could have a bigger night against Wildcats quarterback Ben Brown.
Brown comes into Saturday's game completing just 55 percent of his passes with two touchdowns and three interceptions but his real weakness has been passing downfield.
Brown's 13.3 percent turnover-worthy play percentage on passes more than 20 yards ranks last among Big Ten quarterbacks but he still goes downfield on just over 17 percent of his dropbacks.
With Northwestern's offensive line also a liability allowing 11 pressures per game, the Gophers should be able to force Brown into some mistakes and come up with some interceptions downfield.
3. Northwestern leaning on the running game
While Brown has made plenty of mistakes, the Wildcats would like to lean on their rushing attack which has a 52 percent success rate over the first three games.
Cam Porter is the Wildcats' current rushing leader with 147 yards on 33 carries but Northwestern also gets creative using a variety of jet sweeps and screens to turn short plays into big gains.
With a Wildcat package that saw Jack Lausch break off a 46-yard gain in last week's loss to Duke, Northwestern's rushing attack can't be ignored and should be a focal point of Joe Rossi's gameplan.
4. A better game from Athan Kaliakmanis
Kaliakmanis called last week's loss to North Carolina the worst game he's ever played and the numbers back that up. The redshirt sophomore completed just 11-of-29 passes for 133 yards and an interception but should be in for a better day against Northwestern.
While the Wildcats are better against the pass than they are the run, there are some areas that the Gophers can exploit. Northwestern has struggled to generate pressure up front with just 11 pressures per game and they also have issues tackling in space.
The Gophers will want to throw the ball downfield but it could lead to a lot of short passes early to get Kaliakmanis and rhythm and test the Wildcat defense.
5. A "Get Right" game in Evanston
The most frustrating part about the Gophers' loss last week was the slew of mistakes that were made that allowed the Tar Heels to break the game open.
Fleck lamented his team's mistakes from last week and even brought up his team's lack of hydration which resulted in several key players coming off the field due to muscle cramps.
Even with the mistakes, the Gophers were still in the game late in the second half and could have pulled off an upset in Chapel Hill if they hit on a couple of big plays.
Expect the Gophers to connect on those plays this week and lead to a better performance on offense which should make Minnesota the only team in the Big Ten West with a 2-0 record.
Prediction: Gophers 31, Northwestern 7
