A "GOvember"" to Remember
November is traditionally the cruelest month of Golden Gopher Football. Swoon time. Trophy Game defeats. It's like the air just oozes out of the Gophers in Hindenburg fashion. Collapse. Reality sets in. Swaths of open seats are visible at The Bank. Teeth gnashing as you read the Sunday morning game headlines.
It's been a Minnesota Football reality. EXCEPT THIS YEAR.
November was truly glorious for me and my mini Gopher entourage this season. I'm going to dub it GOvember. We took it all in. Yes, unlike most Gopher fans, my sister and I went to ALL the Gopher football games. And we truly enjoyed a football THANKSGIVING like no other.
After taking the first weekend off to recharge after the debacle that was our road loss at Illinois, a large segment of my family -- a couple sons, my sister, I and a bunch of friends -- erected a stellar tailgate at our usual spot just south of the massive, former ADM grain bins in southeast Minneapolis.
November 8th was IOWA day. Floyd Time. The Gophers were coming off a pretty good first two months at 6-2 and the our fan base was amped, yet angst ridden. It was NOVEMBER. The weather was awesome (45 and sunny) and the usual Hawkeye faithful were on hand in droves, hoping to keep possession of the prized Pig Trophy that symbolizes the Minnesota-Iowa Rivalry.
At first glance it looked like we'd be experiencing our November swoon. On Iowa's first possession, the Hawks drove 76 yards on 12 plays for a TD. You could feel the energy almost ooze out of The Bank. After all, we'd been every BIG team's "get well" game in recent Novembers. And with Iowa, Ohio State, Nebraska and Wisconsin on the schedule, going 0-4 looked like a real possibility.
However, this November would be unlike any recent one. The Gophers answered with their own 64-yard touchdown drive. And then the Minnesota defense put on a clinic. An interception. Two punts. Two fumble recoveries. Hell, Mitch Leidner engineered a 1-play 44-yard scoring drive -- a TD pass to Donovahn Jones. We led 35-7 at the half.
We stood and clapped till our hands hurt. We were hoarse (in a good way). I haven't sang the Rouser nine times in one game, well, ever. We'd high-fived all fellow fans in a three-yard reach of our seats. It was glorious. This was Iowa. And we destroyed them 51-14. We stayed in the stadium, watching our team parade Floyd of Rosedale all around. Fans stormed the field. We tailgated even harder AFTER the game. It started GOvember.
The following week's November 15th showdown with Ohio State had us hoping for a miracle on ice. The Buckeyes were rolling -- led by a newly-minted Heismann quarterback candidate JT Barrett. It was so cold that we shelved our usual tailgate (and that's cold) in favor of pregame at Sensor's and a shuttle ride to The Bank.
Again, the Gopher defense was dented early. Barrett sprinted for an 86-yard TD to open the scoring and he tossed a 55-yard bomb for a quick 14-0 lead. Snow fell. Almost sideways. And then David Cobb and the Gopher offense got rolling, tying the score 14-14 late in the first half. The Gophers would go on to lose a hard-fought 31-24 game to the BIG's best team. We left the stadium firmly believing that our squad to give the Huskers a good game the following week. We were 1-1 in the month and optimistic.
And we weren't disappointed. When the fog finally lifted in Lincoln (third quarter) and the sun came out over Memorial Stadium, 91,186 fans watched the Gophers climb back into the game after trailing 21-7. Broderick Williams' 19-yard TD scamper around right end near the close of the third quarter made it 24-21. We could sense he momentum shift from our nosebleed section in the endzone, corner upper-deck that boasted 3,000-plus Gopher faithful.
A 10-play 78-yard drive, capped by a Mitch Leidner 2-yard TD run, put Minnesota up 28-24 and a noticeable hush transcended the stadium. Nebraska had 3:25 left to go the distance for the win. Just being in this position in a place where the Gophers had not won since 1960 was exhilarating. We were speechless, hoarse and HOPEFUL. Could we really be a part of this kind of history?
Or would another Mason-esque, last-second loss be in the cards? It looked as much as Nebraska drove the field and with 1:19 left Tommy Armstrong hurled a right corner pass near the goal line. And then the Gopher GOVEMBER MIRACLE happened.
Minnesota corner Brian Boddy-Calhoun saved the TD by stripping Demornay Pierson-El at the 2-yard line and stumbled forward for two more yards, giving Minnesota the ball at the 4 with 1:13 left. The rest is history as the Gophers ran out the clock after third-string tailback Donnell Kirkwood burst for a first down and the Gophers were able to run out the clock and seal a 28-24 win -- Minnesota's biggest road win in more than a half century. Haymarket in Lincoln will never be the same. A upscale bar/restaurant area where fans gather before and after games was lit up by Gold-clad Gopher fans. Nebraskans, were, well, embarrassed.
That setup a showdown for the BIG West title the following weekend in Madison. The 8-3 Gophers needed to beat the 9-2 Badgers for a chance to go to Indy and face the Buckeyes for the conference title the following week. Yes, GOvember had been good to us. Minnesota, actually 2-1 and a chance for a BIG title game appearance?
Again, a large Gopher contingent followed the team. We took a four-pack (sister, I, son, niece) to the game and started our day at festive Buckingham's near Camp Randall and more than 200 Gopher fans piled in. It was the Goal-Line Club headquarters, Minnesota's booster club, and it gave us a chance to mingle with Badger fans, who were leery of the Gopher run. After a four-hour pre-game celebration, we trudged to the stadium in anticipation of the Battle for the Axe.
The game couldn't have started off better for Minnesota. After a 3-and out after taking the opening kick, the Gophers recovered a Kenzell Doe's fumbled punt and scored 43 seconds later on a Leidner run. Cobb put us up 14-3 with a 20-yard scamper late in the first quarter and again, these Gophers silenced another soldout venue. We were stunned.
Ryan Santuso kicked a 37-yard field goal to make it 17-3 and Minnesota fans near and far were busy thinking AXE. But at this point, momentum shifted for the game. The Badgers finally got untracked and made it 17-13 at the half as Melvin Gordon began to make Heismann-type runs. The second half proved to be the ONLY typical Gopher November element. The massive Badger offense line asserted itself and the Badger run game went wild as Corey Clement and Gordon piled up yards and put the game away. Final: 24-24 Wisconsin.
Despite the loss, Gopher fans left the stadium in a sort of revelry. We went 2-2 in November, losing close games to a pair of the BIG's best teams. We didn't wilt in the final month. We actually improved. We won big games. We crushed Iowa. We won on the road at Nebraska (and probably got Pelini fired). We took the next step in the proverbial "Brick-by-Brick" theme that Minnesota Football has embraced. GOvember! Remember it!
Gophers Schedule, November 2015: at Ohio State (Nov 7), at Iowa (Nov 14), vs Illinois (Nov 21), vs Wisconsin (Nov 28). We're going to be at all those games, too.
It's been a Minnesota Football reality. EXCEPT THIS YEAR.
November was truly glorious for me and my mini Gopher entourage this season. I'm going to dub it GOvember. We took it all in. Yes, unlike most Gopher fans, my sister and I went to ALL the Gopher football games. And we truly enjoyed a football THANKSGIVING like no other.
After taking the first weekend off to recharge after the debacle that was our road loss at Illinois, a large segment of my family -- a couple sons, my sister, I and a bunch of friends -- erected a stellar tailgate at our usual spot just south of the massive, former ADM grain bins in southeast Minneapolis.
November 8th was IOWA day. Floyd Time. The Gophers were coming off a pretty good first two months at 6-2 and the our fan base was amped, yet angst ridden. It was NOVEMBER. The weather was awesome (45 and sunny) and the usual Hawkeye faithful were on hand in droves, hoping to keep possession of the prized Pig Trophy that symbolizes the Minnesota-Iowa Rivalry.
At first glance it looked like we'd be experiencing our November swoon. On Iowa's first possession, the Hawks drove 76 yards on 12 plays for a TD. You could feel the energy almost ooze out of The Bank. After all, we'd been every BIG team's "get well" game in recent Novembers. And with Iowa, Ohio State, Nebraska and Wisconsin on the schedule, going 0-4 looked like a real possibility.
However, this November would be unlike any recent one. The Gophers answered with their own 64-yard touchdown drive. And then the Minnesota defense put on a clinic. An interception. Two punts. Two fumble recoveries. Hell, Mitch Leidner engineered a 1-play 44-yard scoring drive -- a TD pass to Donovahn Jones. We led 35-7 at the half.
We stood and clapped till our hands hurt. We were hoarse (in a good way). I haven't sang the Rouser nine times in one game, well, ever. We'd high-fived all fellow fans in a three-yard reach of our seats. It was glorious. This was Iowa. And we destroyed them 51-14. We stayed in the stadium, watching our team parade Floyd of Rosedale all around. Fans stormed the field. We tailgated even harder AFTER the game. It started GOvember.
The following week's November 15th showdown with Ohio State had us hoping for a miracle on ice. The Buckeyes were rolling -- led by a newly-minted Heismann quarterback candidate JT Barrett. It was so cold that we shelved our usual tailgate (and that's cold) in favor of pregame at Sensor's and a shuttle ride to The Bank.
Again, the Gopher defense was dented early. Barrett sprinted for an 86-yard TD to open the scoring and he tossed a 55-yard bomb for a quick 14-0 lead. Snow fell. Almost sideways. And then David Cobb and the Gopher offense got rolling, tying the score 14-14 late in the first half. The Gophers would go on to lose a hard-fought 31-24 game to the BIG's best team. We left the stadium firmly believing that our squad to give the Huskers a good game the following week. We were 1-1 in the month and optimistic.
And we weren't disappointed. When the fog finally lifted in Lincoln (third quarter) and the sun came out over Memorial Stadium, 91,186 fans watched the Gophers climb back into the game after trailing 21-7. Broderick Williams' 19-yard TD scamper around right end near the close of the third quarter made it 24-21. We could sense he momentum shift from our nosebleed section in the endzone, corner upper-deck that boasted 3,000-plus Gopher faithful.
A 10-play 78-yard drive, capped by a Mitch Leidner 2-yard TD run, put Minnesota up 28-24 and a noticeable hush transcended the stadium. Nebraska had 3:25 left to go the distance for the win. Just being in this position in a place where the Gophers had not won since 1960 was exhilarating. We were speechless, hoarse and HOPEFUL. Could we really be a part of this kind of history?
Or would another Mason-esque, last-second loss be in the cards? It looked as much as Nebraska drove the field and with 1:19 left Tommy Armstrong hurled a right corner pass near the goal line. And then the Gopher GOVEMBER MIRACLE happened.
Minnesota corner Brian Boddy-Calhoun saved the TD by stripping Demornay Pierson-El at the 2-yard line and stumbled forward for two more yards, giving Minnesota the ball at the 4 with 1:13 left. The rest is history as the Gophers ran out the clock after third-string tailback Donnell Kirkwood burst for a first down and the Gophers were able to run out the clock and seal a 28-24 win -- Minnesota's biggest road win in more than a half century. Haymarket in Lincoln will never be the same. A upscale bar/restaurant area where fans gather before and after games was lit up by Gold-clad Gopher fans. Nebraskans, were, well, embarrassed.
That setup a showdown for the BIG West title the following weekend in Madison. The 8-3 Gophers needed to beat the 9-2 Badgers for a chance to go to Indy and face the Buckeyes for the conference title the following week. Yes, GOvember had been good to us. Minnesota, actually 2-1 and a chance for a BIG title game appearance?
Again, a large Gopher contingent followed the team. We took a four-pack (sister, I, son, niece) to the game and started our day at festive Buckingham's near Camp Randall and more than 200 Gopher fans piled in. It was the Goal-Line Club headquarters, Minnesota's booster club, and it gave us a chance to mingle with Badger fans, who were leery of the Gopher run. After a four-hour pre-game celebration, we trudged to the stadium in anticipation of the Battle for the Axe.
The game couldn't have started off better for Minnesota. After a 3-and out after taking the opening kick, the Gophers recovered a Kenzell Doe's fumbled punt and scored 43 seconds later on a Leidner run. Cobb put us up 14-3 with a 20-yard scamper late in the first quarter and again, these Gophers silenced another soldout venue. We were stunned.
Ryan Santuso kicked a 37-yard field goal to make it 17-3 and Minnesota fans near and far were busy thinking AXE. But at this point, momentum shifted for the game. The Badgers finally got untracked and made it 17-13 at the half as Melvin Gordon began to make Heismann-type runs. The second half proved to be the ONLY typical Gopher November element. The massive Badger offense line asserted itself and the Badger run game went wild as Corey Clement and Gordon piled up yards and put the game away. Final: 24-24 Wisconsin.
Despite the loss, Gopher fans left the stadium in a sort of revelry. We went 2-2 in November, losing close games to a pair of the BIG's best teams. We didn't wilt in the final month. We actually improved. We won big games. We crushed Iowa. We won on the road at Nebraska (and probably got Pelini fired). We took the next step in the proverbial "Brick-by-Brick" theme that Minnesota Football has embraced. GOvember! Remember it!
Gophers Schedule, November 2015: at Ohio State (Nov 7), at Iowa (Nov 14), vs Illinois (Nov 21), vs Wisconsin (Nov 28). We're going to be at all those games, too.
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