Rutgers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis taunted the Gophers’ student section after throwing his second touchdown pass of the first half Saturday. The senior, who transferred out of Minnesota in 2023, cupped a hand to his ear after the Scarlet Knights quieted the crowd at Huntington Bank Stadium with a 14-0 lead.
Kaliakmanis’ counterpart, redshirt freshman Gophers quarterback Drake Lindsey, got the last laugh, replying with two second-half touchdown passes as Minnesota rallied for a 31-28 win in the Gophers’ Big Ten opener.
Down 31-28, Rutgers drove to Minnesota’s 26-yard line, but Kaliakmanis wasn’t ready for a shotgun snap that went between his legs. He recovered it, but had to eat a 15-yard loss.
Kicker Jai Patel 56-yard field goal attempt had enough leg but went wide right, and Minnesota went into victory formation.
Minnesota (3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) avenged last year’s 26-19 loss to Rutgers in Piscataway, N.J., while Rutgers (3-2, 0-2) dropped its second straight conference game after a loss to Iowa last Friday.
Lindsey finished with 324 passing yards, three TDs and no interceptions, while Kaliakmanis finished with 249 yards, two TDs and one interception.
The Gophers scored 10 points in the third quarter, holding the ball for more than 12 minutes and taking the lead at 24-21. Lindsey threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Jalen Smith, and Brady Denaburg made a 26-yard field goal.
But Minnesota’s cornerback Mike Gerald couldn’t grab interception, and at least three defenders missed tackles, as Rutgers picked up a third and 15. After Rutgers running back Antwan Raymond picked up 20 on that carry, he capped the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run to take a 28-24 lead.
Lindsey, a redshirt freshman, went 6 for 7 on the final touchdown drive, which was capped with Javon Tracy’s 4-yard touchdown pass.
After Kaliakmanis had early success, the Gophers defense sacked him seven times.
The Gophers trailed 21-14 at the half, after Rutgers went 63 yards over seven plays to score a touchdown with 18 seconds left in the second quarter.
Fleck lamented giving up points before the half in the 27-14 loss to Cal two weeks ago and it happened to his team again Saturday.
Yet the end of the half was trending Minnesota’s way. The Gophers’ final drive reached the Rutgers’ 44, but an apparent facemask on Ijeboi, which yanked off his helmet, was missed by Big Ten officials.
With the 15-yard penalty, the U failed to convert on fourth and short.
Then after a Rutgers touchdown, Koi Perich busted off a 56-yard return, but kicker Brady Denaburg missed a 50-yard field goal wide right. He also missed a 51-yarder at a pivotal time in the Cal loss.
Kaliakmanis started perfect, completing his opening nine passes for 115 yards. He took full advantage of tons of space to find open receivers in soft spots in the Gophers defense, with chunky completions of 29, 21, 18, 12 and 16 yards. He then threaded a pass into tight coverage on a 4-yard touchdown in the first quarter.
The inaccuracy Gophers fans were used to with Kaliakmanis showed up on the following drive with a couple of incompletions.
Gophers cornerback John Nestor couldn’t catch an interception in his hands and Kalaikmanis took advantage with a 14-yard touchdown pass. Kaliakmanis then cupped his hand to his ear, taunting the quieted Gophers student section.
Lindsey threw a 78-yard bomb to Jalen Smith on the next drive and Fame Ijeboi scored his first career rushing touchdown from 2 yards out to make it 14-7.
On the next drive, Kaliakmanis threw an interception to Kerry Brown, who returned it 28 yards to the Rutgers’ 8. Lindsey threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Le’Meke Brockington on the next play.
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