Stats Don't Lie: No. 1 Ohio State defeats Minnesota, 42-3
The Minnesota Golden Gophers fell to the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes 42-3 on Saturday night in Columbus. Here’s a look at the most important numbers behind Minnesota’s second loss of the year.
Stats Don’t Lie
341: The Minnesota Golden Gophers defense allowed 341 passing yards in the loss. It was the third straight game that the Gophers surrendered 249 passing yards or more. Ohio State starting quarterback, sophomore Julian Sayin, was 23-for-27 in the game for 326 yards and three touchdowns.
183: Wide receiver Carnell Tate was nearly unstoppable for the Gophers’ defense. The junior had nine receptions for 183 yards and one touchdown in the game across 10 targets. It is the third most receiving yards by an opposing receiver in the P.J. Fleck era, behind Northwestern’s Bryce Kirtz (215) and Ohio State’s K.J. Hill (187).
162: Minnesota had just 162 yards of total offense in the game. After totaling 66 yards on their first drive of the game, the Gophers had just 96 yards of total offense the remainder of the game. The 162 yards is the third least by a P.J. Fleck-coached Gophers team.
70%: The Gophers allowed Ohio State to convert on 70% of their third-down attempts in the game. From start to finish, Minnesota struggled to get off the field on Saturday.
52: Fame Ijeboi led all Minnesota tailbacks with 52 rushing yards in the game, averaging four yards per carry. The redshirt freshman continues to be impressive, and considering the opponent, this was his most impressive performance.
50.9: Minnesota punter Tom Weston averaged 50.9 yards per punt across seven punts. The transfer continues to be highly impressive this season.
42: Ohio State scored 42 unanswered points on Saturday night after Minnesota took an early 3-0 lead.
41: Minnesota kicker Brady Denaburg missed a 41-yard field goal late in the game. It was the third straight game that the Syracuse transfer has missed a kick. For the season, he’s now 6-for-9, including 6-for-6 within 40 yards but 0-for-3 on kicks of 40+ yards.
20%: Minnesota held Ohio State to a power rushing percentage of just 20%. The Gophers were able to successfully stop the Buckeyes on eight attempts that were two or fewer to go for a first down or touchdown. While the Buckeyes did have success on the ground, it’s a promising development in the trenches.
12: Ohio State averaged 12 yards per first-down play on Saturday night. Julian Sayin was 14-for-15 for 274 yards on first-down passing plays.
11: Ohio State had 11 plays that were either passing plays of 15+ yards or rushing plays of 10+ yards. They had seven passing plays that made up 232 of their 341 passing yards, and four rushing plays that totaled 66 of their 133 rushing yards.
9.09%: Minnesota was 1-for-11 on third-down attempts in the game. After successfully converting on their first third down of the game, the Gophers failed on each of their next 10 attempts.
7: Minnesota starting quarterback Drake Lindsey completed each of his first seven pass attempts in the game. After those first seven passing attempts, he completed just 8-of-19 attempts.
3.2: Minnesota averaged just 3.2 yards per play in the game.
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