The Gophers don’t need a lecture on what went wrong at Purdue. They lived it.
Minnesota came out of its 41-13 loss to the Boilermakers with an extra week to think about it, and the damage went beyond the final score. The defense took plenty of heat after missing 19 tackles, according to Pro Football Focus, but the offense didn’t do its part either. The Gophers found the end zone just once, and that was nowhere near enough to cover for the problems on the other side of the ball.
That puts the spotlight right where it usually lands: on the quarterback. Drake Lindsey, a third-year sophomore with 19 starts, has taken real steps forward since his freshman year and looks more comfortable running the offense than he did last season.
He has completed 127 of 196 passes for 1,335 yards with nine touchdowns and five interceptions, good for a 64.8% completion rate. Last year, he completed 63.2% of his throws, finishing with 2,382 yards, 18 touchdowns and six interceptions.
But the recent trend is the part that has to grab P.J. Fleck’s attention.
Lindsey has thrown five interceptions in the last four games, and that’s a dangerous place to be heading into Saturday’s matchup with No. 15 Iowa at Huntington Bank Stadium.
The Hawkeyes already showed what they can do against him last season, picking him off three times in a 41-3 win in Iowa City.
If Minnesota wants a shot at Floyd of Rosedale, the margin for error has to shrink fast.
“We just can’t turn the ball over. And a throwaway is a really good play,” Fleck said.
“We’ve got to help him on the outside with spacing and all these other things. Our whole pass game’s got to get better.
It’s not just Drake.”
Lindsey echoed that sentiment, making clear he knows the stakes of protecting the ball.
“I never want to throw an interception - that’s my goal. I never want to put the ball in harm’s way but just let my playmakers make plays. … I can’t let one play define me.”
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