The Gophers left Washington with more than a 27-24 upset win Saturday night. They also walked away with a moment that spread fast: P.J.
Fleck and linebacker Maverick Baranowski sharing a bloody on-field celebration after Minnesota opened Big Ten play with a road victory over No. 23 Washington.
Minnesota is now 3-1 overall and 1-0 in the league, and the postgame scene matched the chaos of the result. Fleck was moving around the field congratulating players after the win when he found Baranowski, who finished with seven tackles, two tackles for loss and an interception. The two hugged, Baranowski’s face was covered in blood, and Fleck wiped some of it with his hand before smearing it across his own face.
“That's my blood brother,” Fleck said. “When NFL scouts ask me about Mav, I say if you could take Blake Cashman, Robert Spillane and have a baby, you’d produce Maverick.
The kid loves the game, plays the game the right way. He is the heartbeat of our defense.
Back in the day I’m sure that’s what they did, frontiersmen out west, just throw a little blood on there I guess.”
Baranowski said, “It's a great moment. Winning is hard in the Big Ten.
When you get to win at a place like this, it’s just so exciting. My head coach having my back for the last five years, I love that guy.
Such an awesome opportunity to share that moment, he’s a crazy man.”
The celebration came after a game Minnesota controlled with defense and special teams. The Gophers sacked Washington quarterback Demond Williams seven times, kept constant pressure on him and picked him off twice. Washington finished with 279 total yards and went 1-of-10 on third down.
Drake Lindsey helped Minnesota build the cushion early, throwing for 204 yards and three first-half touchdowns as the Gophers took a 21-10 lead into halftime.
Special teams also delivered in a big way. Tom Weston downed four punts inside the 10-yard line, and his final one pinned Washington at the 1 with three seconds left to help seal the win. Luke Drzewiecki stayed perfect, hitting three extra points and two field goals, including a 51-yarder with 7:28 remaining that pushed Minnesota ahead 27-17.
Next up is Michigan, and the stakes bring a familiar piece of hardware back into view. The Gophers host the Wolverines at 11 a.m.
Saturday at Huntington Bank Stadium in the battle for the Little Brown Jug. FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff pregame show will be on campus, and Michigan is coming off a walk-off loss to Iowa.
In Other News...
West Virginia Faces A Bigger Defensive Concern Than One Bad Loss
West Virginias loss to Oklahoma State was not the kind you can pin on one bad quarter or one lopsided stat sheet. The Mountaineers actually had some encouraging numbers on defense and put up a strong rushing total, but the film still told a more troubling story. The new defensive scheme was supposed to help unsettle an opponent that likes to push the ball, yet Oklahoma State found too many ways to hit big plays and keep the pressure on.
What made the defeat sting was how often West Virginia let those chances slip through its hands. Missed tackles piled up, explosive plays came too easily, and the staff admitted the game plan simply did not work as intended. For a team trying to build momentum, the bigger concern is not just the result itself, but whether the defensive issues exposed in this one are tied to a deeper problem than a single rough afternoon. [Read more 🡒]
WVU Fans Get A Coal Rush Twist They Werent Expecting
West Virginias October 10 matchup with Arizona now has a start time and a national TV home, and it comes with an early kickoff that should give Mountaineer fans plenty of time to settle in. The Big 12 announced the game will kick at 12 p.m. ET in Morgantown and air on TNT, TruTV and HBO Max, adding another layer of visibility to a nonconference meeting that already carries some curiosity.
Arizona arrives with a little momentum after improving to 3-1 with a win over Washington State, while West Virginia will be trying to build on the familiarity of a series that has been played only once before. The Mountaineers won that 2021 meeting 31-26, and this years game lands in the middle of a busy stretch for the Wildcats, who will turn around and face Cincinnati in a late kickoff the following week. [Read more 🡒]
Rich Rod's Offense Is Giving West Virginia Fans A Real Concern
Rich Rodriguezs latest West Virginia offense is already drawing attention because it looks different from the ones fans remember from his earlier coaching stops. Through four games, the Mountaineers are throwing on just 22% of their offensive snaps, a notably lower rate than Rodriguez has typically used over the course of his career. For a coach long associated with pace and spread principles, that tilt toward the run has become one of the early-season talking points around the program.
The reasons are not hard to see, at least in broad terms. Pass protection has been an issue, and the receiver play has also factored into the equation, making it easier to understand why the offense has leaned so heavily on the ground game. Still, the bigger question hovering over West Virginia is whether a more balanced approach would make the attack harder to defend and more effective overall, even if the current numbers suggest Rodriguez is still searching for the right mix. [Read more 🡒]