PHOENIX — A part of Brian Urlacher must have appreciated the defensive rock fight the Rate Bowl turned into on Friday at Chase Field.
But the outstanding ex-New Mexico and Chicago Bears linebacker, who was on the Lobos’ sideline, wanted a better a better outcome.
The Gophers edged New Mexico 20-17 in overtime, with quarterback Drake Lindsey throwing a 12-yard touchdown pass to Jalen Smith on the last play of the game.
With the TD, the Gophers extended its bowl winning streak to nine straight games since 2015, including 7-0 under head coach P.J. Fleck.
Lindsey was not his finest on Friday, but he stepped up big when Minnesota needed him most, similar to how he did in comeback wins over Purdue, Rutgers and Michigan State during the regular season.
Lindsey was 18 for 28 for 147 yards and two TDs and both were hauled in by Smith.
The Gophers (8-5) were a 2.5-point favorite against New Mexico (9-4), a Mountain West Conference school in a bowl game for the first time since 2015.
The Lobos, which beat UCLA in September, were a handful for another Big Ten team on Friday. New Mexico held the Gophers to less than 230 yards in regulation and forced six punts. The Gophers had eight penalties, which set them back regularly.
“Not very clean by us, but we are the cardiac Gophers,” Fleck told KFAN postgame.
The Gophers took a 14-6 lead with Darius Taylor’s five-yard touchdown run to start the fourth quarter, but it was short lived as New Mexico’s kick returner Damon Bankston returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown.
With a two-point conversion, it was tied 14-14.
Bankston, who returned a kick for a TD against Boise State in October, didn’t have to make much of a cut nor break a single tackle on the return. An absolute stroll into the end zone.
Minnesota bounced back by keeping its starting defense on the field when New Mexico lined up for a punt on fourth-and-2. Fleck was yelling “Fake” on the sideline as the Lobos’ run play was stopped by Anthony Smith for lost yards.
To start the game, the Gophers offense was out of whack, with punts on its opening two drives and a turnover on its third possession.
On fourth-and-1, Minnesota attempted a gadget play. They lined up for a tush-push formation, but the snap intentionally went under Drake Lindsey’s legs. It unintentionally hit fullback Frank Bierman’s arm on its way to Taylor.
The ball bounced awkwardly, and Taylor couldn’t fall on it. New Mexico took over at Minnesota’s 46-yard line and added a field goal off the turnover for a 6-0 lead.
The Lobos took a 3-0 lead after a 15-play, 66-yard drive in the first quarter.
After cover-your-eyes offense well into the second quarter, Minnesota put together a 75-yard touchdown drive.
Taylor started it off with a nice spin move and burst around the left edge for a 38-yard gain. Lindsey capped it off with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Jalen Smith in the corner of the end zone.
For how much Minnesota struggled to star the rate Bowl, they led 7-6 at the half.
Minnesota punted on its opening drive against New Mexico on Friday, capping a wall-to-wall season of slow starts to games. They punted to open 11 of 12 games against FBS-level competition this season. Ironically, they somehow took a 3-0 lead to start their Big Ten game at then-No. 1 Ohio State on Oct. 4.
Minnesota made its fifth appearance in this Phoenix bowl, which ties Kansas State for the most visits. The Gophers were also here in 2006, ’08, ’09 and 2021, a 18-6 win over West Virginia.
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