No. 4 Indiana Beats Minnesota 23-16 in Overtime After Matching 60-Yard Field Goals

With 19 seconds left at Memorial Stadium, Luke Drzewiecki made a 60-yard field goal that put Minnesota on the verge of a second straight upset of a ranked team. No. 4 Indiana answered from the same distance. Paddy McAteer hit a 60-yard field goal as time expired, Grant Wilson found Charlie Becker for a 25-yard touchdown on the first play of overtime, and the Hoosiers held on to beat Minnesota 23-16 on Oct. 31 in Bloomington.

It was the second straight overtime win for Indiana, which beat Michigan 13-6 in overtime a week earlier. This one came against a Minnesota team that arrived as a 20.5-point underdog and came within one kick of winning. Indiana improved to 8-1 and 5-1 in the Big Ten. Minnesota fell to 5-3 and 3-2.

Indiana outgained Minnesota 419 to 220 and had 21 first downs to the Gophers' 10. But two Indiana turnovers, a Minnesota defense that held the Hoosiers to one regulation touchdown and three long field goals from Drzewiecki kept the Gophers in the game until the final snap of regulation.

How the game unfolded

The early scoring came off short fields for both sides. Minnesota started deep in Indiana territory and opened the scoring on a four-play, 8-yard drive that ended with Drzewiecki's 37-yard field goal at 8:54 of the first quarter. Indiana answered almost immediately. Working with a short field, the Hoosiers needed just two plays and 14 yards, and Josh Hoover found Nick Marsh for a 9-yard touchdown at 6:42. Nico Radicic's extra point made it 7-3.

Points were scarce from there. Both defenses controlled the line of scrimmage through most of the first half, and the only other score before halftime came in an instant. With 4:15 left in the second quarter, Drake Lindsey hit Roman Voss for a 39-yard touchdown on the first play of a drive, and Minnesota took a 10-7 lead into the break.

Indiana spent the third quarter trying to grind its way back. The Hoosiers put together their longest drive of the day, 14 plays and 65 yards over seven minutes, and Radicic's 46-yard field goal at 2:13 tied the game at 10 heading to the fourth.

Minnesota went back in front early in the final quarter. A 10-play, 42-yard drive burned 5:24 and ended with a 51-yard field goal from Drzewiecki at 11:49 to make it 13-10. Indiana answered with a 10-play, 46-yard drive, and Radicic tied it with a 34-yarder at 3:05.

The turning point

The last three minutes of regulation turned into a kicking duel. Minnesota took over at its own 25 after the tie and moved into Indiana territory, with Darius Taylor breaking a 19-yard run to the Indiana 44. The drive stalled at the Indiana 42, and after a timeout with 24 seconds left, Drzewiecki lined up from 60 yards and made it with 19 seconds remaining. It was Drzewiecki's third field goal of the day, each longer than the last: 37, 51 and 60 yards.

Indiana took over at its own 25 after a touchback with 19 seconds left and needed a big gain just to get into range. It got one on the first snap. Wilson found Becker deep down the right side for 33 yards to the Minnesota 42, and Becker got out of bounds with 13 seconds left. After an incomplete pass to Marsh, Indiana sent out Paddy McAteer, who had handled its kickoffs all day, for a 60-yard try with two seconds to go. Minnesota called timeout before the snap. McAteer made it anyway as time expired, tying the game at 16.

Overtime did not last long. Indiana got the ball first at the Minnesota 25, and on the first snap Wilson went right back to Becker deep down the right side. Becker caught it in the end zone for a 25-yard touchdown, and Radicic's extra point made it 23-16. Minnesota's possession started at the same spot, and after two incompletions, Lindsey converted a third-and-10 with a 17-yard completion to the Indiana 8. A 5-yard Lindsey run set up second-and-goal at the 3. From there, Indiana's defense closed it out. Lindsey threw incomplete, linebacker Jeff Utzinger sacked Lindsey on third down, and on fourth-and-goal from the 4, defensive lineman Tobi Osunsanmi brought Lindsey down again to end the game.

Key stats

Becker was the difference for Indiana, catching eight passes for 149 yards. The two biggest came in the final 19 seconds of regulation and on the first play of overtime. Indiana split time at quarterback. Josh Hoover completed 8 of 19 passes for 119 yards with the touchdown to Marsh and an interception. Wilson finished 9 of 17 for 156 yards, and Wilson ran the offense on the late drives that tied the game and won it. Marsh caught four passes for 59 yards.

Lee Beebe Jr. led the Indiana ground game with 84 yards on 15 carries, and Turbo Richard added 34 yards on seven attempts. Indiana ran for 144 yards on 33 carries and threw for 275. The Hoosiers' kicking game was uneven until the end: Radicic made 2 of 4 field goal attempts, and McAteer went 1 for 1, with that one kick forcing overtime.

Minnesota's offense had little room to work. Lindsey completed 20 of 37 passes for 120 yards with the touchdown to Voss and no interceptions. Javon Tracy caught seven passes for 40 yards. TJ Thomas ran six times for 54 yards, including a 30-yard run, and Darius Taylor had 43 yards on seven carries. Minnesota converted just 3 of 15 third downs.

The Minnesota defense gave the Gophers every chance. Linebacker Maverick Baranowski led the team with 10 tackles, Kerry Brown added seven tackles and a pass breakup, and TJ Bush Jr. and Theorin Randle each recorded a sack. The Gophers forced two turnovers, an interception of Hoover and a fumble recovery, and Indiana converted only 2 of 13 third downs. Minnesota lost one fumble.

For Indiana, Preston Zachman made nine tackles, and Byron Baldwin Jr. had a sack. Utzinger and Osunsanmi each had a sack in overtime, and Mario Landino also brought down Lindsey. Each team was penalized eight times, Minnesota for 60 yards and Indiana for 48. Indiana held the ball for 31:33.

What it means

For Indiana, the result keeps a strong season on track, but the margin is a warning. The Hoosiers have now needed overtime in back-to-back weeks, and they scored six points in regulation at Michigan and 16 in regulation against Minnesota. The defense has carried the team through both games. At 8-1 and 5-1, Indiana is still in the thick of the Big Ten race, and it has an open date on Nov. 7 to sort out an offense that has stalled for long stretches.

For Minnesota, this one will sting. A week after a 13-10 walk-off win over No. 15 Iowa, the Gophers went into Bloomington as heavy underdogs and were 19 seconds from beating a top-five team on the road. Drzewiecki went 3 for 3 on field goals. The defense forced two turnovers. But the Gophers gave up 33 yards on one play with the game on the line, and Indiana's kicker matched theirs from 60 yards. At 5-3 and 3-2 in the Big Ten, Minnesota still has a chance to build a strong season, but it let a signature win slip away.

Up next

Minnesota hosts No. 7 UCLA, which is 7-0, at Huntington Bank Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 7. Indiana is off on Nov. 7 and returns to Memorial Stadium to host USC on Saturday, Nov. 14.

The bottom line

Minnesota did almost everything it needed to pull off the upset: it took the ball away, it kept Indiana out of the end zone for most of the day, and its kicker made a 60-yard field goal with 19 seconds left. Indiana needed a 33-yard catch, a 60-yard kick of its own and one more deep ball in overtime to escape. The Hoosiers are 8-1, but they will spend the off week knowing how close this one came to going the other way.

For full stats, see the ESPN box score (opens in a new tab) and game summary (opens in a new tab).

Sources: ESPN, Fox Sports. More college football coverage on Undrafted.

Photos: Indiana Athletics.