Gophers’ turnaround started in Michigan locker room

The Gophers football team had good reason to be mad — even bitter — in the visiting locker room at Michigan Stadium on Sept. 28.

Minnesota’s late upset push of then-No. 12 Michigan had just been thwarted by a too-close-to-call offside penalty on an onside kick. That call — which two days later was acknowledged to be incorrect by the Big Ten — was still raw as U players got ready to go home after a 27-24 loss.

With a rivalry game loss to Iowa the previous Saturday, the Gophers had fallen to 2-3 overall and 0-2 in conference. The season was going sideways, and it wasn’t even October.

But something happened in the Gophers’ smaller space in the Big House that day. Staring down the barrel of a losing season, the veteran-led team rallied around each other. Instead of in-fighting, fracturing or just falling apart, the scene was heartfelt.

Since then, the Gophers have won four straight games to reach 6-3 and 4-2 in conference play. The immediate U-turn has the U bowl eligible with three regular-season games to go.

The streak started with a 24-17 home win over then-No. 11 Southern California on Oct. 5 and continued with a 21-17 road victory over UCLA on Oct. 12. Trailing the Bruins 10-0 at halftime, the scene inside the Gophers locker room at the Rose Bowl Stadium wasn’t as, uh, tender as the postgame display in Ann Arbor, Mich.

After the bye week, Minnesota blew out Maryland 48-23 at home Oct. 26, and the streak hit four with a 25-17 win over then-No. 24 Illinois on Saturday.

Fifth-year defensive end Danny Striggow said the vibe in Michigan locker room was “one of those moments that will stick with me for a really long time.”

Striggow, who has played 48 games at the U, said it wasn’t just postgame. The turnaround began at halftime, when they faced 21-3 hole before outscoring the Wolverines, 21-6, in the…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/gophers-turnaround-started-michigan-locker-210700846.html

Author : Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.

Publish date : 2024-11-03 21:07:00

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