2008 REVIEW GAME-BY-GAME
game ONE
Minnesota Northern Illinois
31 27
Aug. 30 - Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (44,029) Minneapolis, Minn. - Big 10 Network
MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota’s Duane Bennett scored on a one-yard run with 22 seconds remaining and Northern Illinois’ last-second pass in the end zone was batted down as the Golden Gophers claimed a 31-27 win over the Huskies in the 2008 season-opener. Northern Illinois nearly completed a miraculous comeback. Redshirt freshman quarterback Chandler Harnish, who completed 17-of-29 passes for 326 yards in his NIU debut, drove the Huskies to the Minnesota 30 before a pair of passes to the end zone fell incomplete. Down 27-24 with 5:15 remaining, Minnesota quarterback Adam Weber marched the Gophers 74 yards in 10 plays on the game-winning drive. He completed four passes to take UM to the 11 yard-line. After a seven-yard Weber run, Bennett rushed three straight times before crossing the goal line. Northern Illinois had taken its first lead, 27-24, with 8:09 remaining when Harnish hooked up with Nathan Palmer on a 52-yard touchdown pass. Palmer caught three passes for 170 yards and two scores to notch the 13th-best receiving day in Huskie history. With NIU facing third and 10 from its nine-yard line, he caught a pass over the middle and sprinted to the end zone to pull Northern Illinois within four at 24-20 with 6:59 left in the third quarter. The 91-yard pass play was the fifth-longest ever at NIU. Defensively, Northern Illinois was led by linebacker Tim McCarthy and safety Mike Sobol with eight tackles each. Larry English and Brandon Bice notched sacks while McCarthy and English each had two tackles for loss. Minnesota took a 7-0 lead after opening the game with an 18-play, 90yard drive that consumed nearly nine minutes on the clock. Northern Illinois tied the score at seven in the second quarter when Justin Anderson scored after a nine-play, 74-yard drive highlighted by a 26-yard pass play from Harnish to Matt Simon. After the Golden Gophers regained the lead on a 40-yard field goal, the Huskies responded. Chad Spann blocked a punt and Tracy Wilson
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recovered at the Gophers’ 27, setting up Mike Salerno’s 39-yard threepointer. The half ended in a 10-10 tie. In the second half, Salerno added a 49-yard field goal, the longest by a Huskie kicker since 2005 and the eighth-longest in school history.
game STATISTICS SCORING BY QUARTERS Northern Illinois Minnesota
1 0 7
2 10 3
3 10 14
4 7 7
-
Total 27 31
SCORING SUMMARY UM - Decker 8 pass from Weber (Monroe kick), 1st 6:03 (18-90, 8:57) NIU - Anderson 2 run (Salerno kick), 2nd 10:45 (9-74, 4:54) UM - Monroe 40 FG, 2nd 6:02 (7-26, 2:29) NIU - Salerno 39 FG, 2nd 0:55 (4-5, 1:45) UM - Simmons 53 pass from Weber (Monroe kick), 3rd 11:25 (3-64, 1:17) NIU - Salerno 49 FG, 3rd 8:27 (8-40, 2:58) UM - Bennett 61 run (Monroe kick), 3rd 8:07 (1-61, 0:20) NIU - Palmer 91 pass from Harnish (Salerno kick), 3rd 6:59 (3-91, 1:08) NIU - Palmer 52 pass from Harnish (Salerno kick), 4th 8:09 (6-80, 2:03) UM - Bennett 1 run (Monroe kick), 4th 0:22 (10-74, 4:53) INDIVIDUAL STATISTICAL LEADERS Rushing NIU: Anderson 13-34, Clanton 5-17, Brown 4-11, Harnish 8-10, Crider 1-0. UM: Bennett 18-92, Weber 12-30, Eskridge 1-5. Passing NIU: Harnish 17-29-0, 326; Team 0-1-0, 0. UM: Weber 24-37-0, 298. Receiving NIU ........... UM NIU: Davis 4-24, Palmer 3-170, First Downs (R-P) 15 (5-10) .....18 (6-12) Simon 3-49, Cunningham 31-72 ........ 31-127 2-35, Crider 2-30, Skarb 2-13, Rushes-Net Yards Passing Yards 326 ............. 298 Cox 1-5. Passes (C-A-I) 17-30-0 .......24-37-0 UM: Decker 10-89, Tow-Arnett Plays-Total Yards 61-398 ........68-425 4-66, Bennett 4-25, Simmons Fumbles-Lost 1-1 .............. 1-1 Penalties-Yards 2-14 ............3-20 3-77, Spry 2-25, Kuznia 1-16. Kickoff Returns-Yds 5-96 ..........5-142 Tackle Leaders Punt Returns-Yds 1-9 .............. 0-0 NIU: McCarthy 8, Sobol 8, 3rd Down Conversions 6-14 ............ 5-14 Bryant 7, Allen 5, Hanson 5. 4th Down Conversions 0-0 .............. 2-2 UM: Brock 5, Theret 5, Punts-Average 6-40.7 .........6-36.0 Hightower 5, Davis 4, Sherels Possession Time 29:49 .......... 30:11 4, Campbell 4. Sacks By-Yards 2-20 ............ 2-16
team STATISTICS