P.J. Fleck said before kickoff that if Minnesota beat Michigan, the Little Brown Jug would not be treated like a museum piece.
“We would drink out of that Little Brown Jug a lot,” he shared on FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff pregame show set up across the street from Huntington Bank Stadium.
By the end of Saturday’s rivalry game, the Gophers had earned the right to celebrate with it. Minnesota beat Michigan 20-14, taking the Jug in the 100th meeting for the trophy and ending a 49-year wait to win it at home. The Gophers had not claimed it on their own field since 1977.
The win also snapped a five-game losing streak against the Wolverines, dating to Minnesota’s rare 2014 victory in Ann Arbor under Jerry Kill. Minnesota improved to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in Big Ten play, while Fleck picked up his 100th career win and 60th at Minnesota.
The story of the second half was simple: Minnesota took advantage of Michigan’s mistakes and kept cashing in. The Wolverines turned it over three times after halftime, and those giveaways directly fueled 13 Minnesota points as the Gophers surged to a 20-14 lead early in the fourth quarter. Minnesota finished with a roughly 38-28 edge in time of possession.
Michigan’s first big slip came early in the third quarter, when punt returner Andrew Marsh muffed a kick and Minnesota long snapper Alan Soukup recovered at the Wolverines’ 17-yard line. The Gophers couldn’t finish with a touchdown, but Luke Drzewiecki converted a 31-yard field goal to trim the deficit to 14-10.
Then came another break. Cornerback Aydan West came down with a juggling interception near the sideline, setting up a Drzewiecki 26-yard field goal that pulled Minnesota within 14-13. West’s pick was his first career interception.
The next takeaway flipped the game. Zach Harden intercepted a pass, and Minnesota turned it into a 3-yard touchdown from Drake Lindsey to Darius Taylor for a 20-14 lead. That was Harden’s first career interception, too.
Minnesota’s defense was the difference after halftime, but the first half belonged to Michigan’s takeaways. Lindsey threw two interceptions before the break, and both ended up costing Minnesota 14 points in a 14-7 Michigan lead at halftime.
Minnesota had opened the game well enough to tie it 7-7 late in the first quarter. The Gophers put together a long drive that leaned on the run game and chewed clock as they moved into Michigan territory.
Lindsey started the possession 3 for 3 for 66 yards, including a 33-yard throw to Taylor on a wheel route. Taylor finished the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run for the early lead.
But the next drive turned ugly. Michigan’s pressure got to Lindsey on third down, and after he was hit as he threw, cornerback Smith Snowden picked off the wobbling pass. The Wolverines started at Minnesota’s 34 and answered with a five-play scoring drive, capped by Jordan Marshall’s 5-yard touchdown run to make it 7-7 early in the second quarter.
Michigan later took advantage of another Minnesota miscue in the first half when Lindsey’s throwback pass into an edge blitz was read cleanly by linebacker Nathaniel Staehling, the Brainerd native. Staehling intercepted it and returned it 79 yards for a touchdown.
Minnesota’s defense settled in from there, especially against Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood, the No. 1 recruit in the 2025 class. The Gophers finished with three sacks, four additional tackles for lost yards and five pass breakups. TJ Bush, a transfer from California, led the way with two sacks and a battled pass.
Underwood finished 10 for 21 for 101 yards and two interceptions and was held to 20 yards on 10 carries. Fleck summed up the game afterward on KFXN-FM: “Thought the best team dominated the game; all the things they got we gave got them.”
In Other News...
Gophers Beat Michigan But The Polls Still Sent A Message
Beating Michigan should have been the kind of result that changes a teams standing in a hurry, especially for a Minnesota group with so much history working against it in that matchup. Instead, the latest AP and Coaches Polls delivered a more modest verdict on the Gophers, who sat just outside the top 25 after the win and had to settle for being an also-considered team in both rankings.
Minnesota collected 19 votes in the AP Poll, tied for 32nd, and 40 in the Coaches Poll, which placed it 33rd. For a program that finally banked a signature victory over the Wolverines, the message from the voters was clear enough: the win mattered, but not enough to fully change perceptions yet. [Read more 🡒]
PJ Fleck Had A Wild Postgame Moment Gophers Fans Will Love
P.J. Fleck has never been shy about turning a Minnesota football win into a full-blown moment, and his latest postgame celebration fit right into that reputation. After the Gophers recent victory, the coach celebrated by drinking from the Little Brown Jug, the old trophy tied to the programs rivalry with Michigan and one of the more recognizable symbols in Big Ten football.
It also came with the kind of edge and theatrics that have long defined Flecks sideline style in Minneapolis. Fans have seen him lean into the emotion before, including the memorable moment after the Washington win when he wiped a players blood on his face, and those scenes help explain why his tenure keeps drawing attention beyond the box score. With his coaching record and contract status always part of the broader conversation, Fleck remains one of the most distinctive figures in the sport, especially when the wins start piling up. [Read more 🡒]
Gophers Waste Strong Start In Frustrating Season Opener Loss
A delayed start and a promising opening quickly gave way to a frustrating night for Minnesota, which opened its 2026-27 season with a 3-2 loss to Michigan Tech at John MacInnes Student Ice Arena. The Gophers did enough early to put themselves in position, getting goals from Tate Pritchard and Beckett Hendrickson while Luca Di Pasquo turned aside several dangerous chances in net.
Michigan Tech still found a way to finish the job, scoring the winner late in the third period and sending Minnesota home with a loss in its first game of the year. For a team trying to set the tone right away, the mix of a slow rink, a strong start and a late collapse made this one feel like a missed opportunity. [Read more 🡒]