The Daily Northwestern

MINNEAPOLIS — All Northwestern coach Randy Walker could do was smile, clap and stare at the sky.

Minnesota put together a 10-minute drive full of short rushes and quick passes that looked designed to run out the clock. Then, with the Golden Gophers up 19 points and just three minutes remaining, Walker watched as running back Marion Barber III threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to the Gophers’ Jared Ellerson — a halfback pass to run up the final score to 43-17.

But the problems started much earlier for the Wildcats (1-3, 0-1 Big Ten). NU failed to bounce back after Minnesota (4-1, 1-0) took a 7-3 lead on a 50-yard touchdown run by Laurence Maroney with 8:15 to play in the first quarter in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Saturday night.

“We got outplayed and outcoached by a better football team tonight,” Walker said. “In this league you have to bring your ‘A’ game every week, and I’m not sure we had our ‘A’ game tonight. The better team won tonight.”

Referred to as the Twin City train by ESPN2 broadcasters during the game, the Gophers one-two punch at running back racked up 231-yards on the ground. Maroney ran over the Cats’ defense, picking up 145 yards and one touchdown on 24 carries. The Gophers’ starting running back, Barber, added 86 yards on 22 carries.

One week after holding Kansas to 46 yards rushing, NU’s defensive line was unable to control Minnesota’s two most dangerous backs, who came into the game averaging 270.3 yards per game.

“Guys played hard,” NU defensive tackle Luis Castillo said. “It’s just we couldn’t make plays that we needed to. We didn’t get anything unexpected, anything we didn’t practice for. It’s just we couldn’t make the plays.”

The Cats scored first, driving 44 yards and converting a field goal after Minnesota went three-and-out in its first offensive series.

But the Gophers came back strong, gaining 80 yards in just a little more than three minutes.

Maroney capped the drive with his 50-yarder. The running back took off up the middle, spun to the left and sprinted down the left sideline for the first touchdown of the game and his fourth of the season.

NU also gave up 203 yards passing, including two touchdown passes in the first half by Minnesota quarterback Bryan Cupito. The sophomore finished 12 for 21 with 155 yards.

“We know if we really get down to it, we can stop the run,” Castillo said. “But to give up some of the plays in the pass, it just kept going off, and we got beat off of our toes. We kind of laid back and were waiting for things, and that hurt us really bad in the beginning of the game.”

NU saw hope with 3:51 remaining in the first quarter when Jeff Backes returned the Gophers’ kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown and made the score 14-10.

But three unanswered Minnesota touchdowns in the second quarter, including two rushing by fullback Justin Valentine, gave the Gophers a 33-10 halftime lead.

“I don’t want to say it’s meaningless, but one big play is not enough to win a game,” Backes said.

Minnesota’s first two touchdowns came on drives in which cornerback Marvin Ward committed pass interference. Walker said the pass interference calls were the “turning points” in the game.

“I thought those two pass interference calls were huge,” Walker said. “We had them off the field, and you can say what you want, but you get called for that, and it takes your stinger off of you as a defense.”

The second call came on second-and-nine, with Minnesota leading 7-3. Cupito threw long to Ellerson down the right sideline, and Ward was called for the interference. Walker ran onto the field to argue the call.

“I’m not going to comment because I don’t have enough money to cover the fine,” Walker said. “I’ll look at it tomorrow, and I’ll make my feelings known to the right people.

“They played a good game. It wasn’t just that. Losers say it was about the officials or about the calls, but we didn’t execute well enough.”

NU’s only offensive touchdown came in the third quarter, on the Cats’ first drive of the second half. Basanez ran to the left side of the end zone and dived for the corner, scoring on a 15-yard keeper.

Basanez suffered a stinger in his right shoulder, and redshirt freshman Chris Malleo took over at quarterback for three of the Cats’ final four possessions.

Basanez finished 13 for 26 with just 121 yards passing, the one rushing touchdown and one interception.

“Every play is drawn out to be a touchdown, and obviously we’re missing key players making key plays in key places,” Basanez said. “I had a delay of game that got us behind the chains and that pick, so those are two key plays right there.”

NU starting running back Noah Herron gained 78 yards on 11 carries. But after running for three consecutive first downs in the Cats’ first possession of the game, Herron got just one more carry that drive and five that half.

NU’s other running back, Terrell Jordan, got nine carries and finished with 19 yards.

“We just wanted to play Terrell,” Walker said. “That’s going to be the plan for us. I think it’s important for us to play both backs, and there was nothing into that any more so than any other night.

“We’ve kind of tried to give those guys split time, and that’s probably going to be our approach the rest of the year.”

Reach Teddy Kider at [email protected].