Minnesota vs. Mississippi State: The Elite, The Meh & The Ugly
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
The Minnesota Golden Gophers (1-1) suffered their first loss of the season in embarrassing fashion on Saturday, getting blown out 38-13 by the Mississippi State Bulldogs (2-0) at home.
The Ugly
The worst coordinator combo in the Big Ten. Offensive coordinator Greg Harbaugh Jr.’s salary this season is $845,000, and defensive coordinator Danny Collins is being paid $745,000. Among the offensive and defensive coordinators in the Big Ten, both salaries rank 17th out of 18 teams. They very well could rank 18th, but Northwestern is a private university and does not publicly disclose employee salaries.
In my experience, you get what you pay for.
On Saturday, the cost of head coach P.J. Fleck’s bargain bin shopping was on full display.
Danny Collins is not a Big Ten-caliber defensive coordinator. That much was painfully clear last season, especially after his defense allowed 220 rushing yards, 305 passing yards, and 38 points to Northwestern at Wrigley Field. Now it’s simply a question of when (or even if) Fleck is willing to admit his mistake.
Kamario Taylor is a very talented quarterback and the Bulldogs have playmakers at the skill positions, but the ease with which they moved the ball against the Gophers was unacceptable. All four of Mississippi State’s first half possessions were touchdown drives of 70+ yards. The Bulldogs walked into the locker room averaging 13.9 yards per pass and 5 yards per carry, and were 4-for-4 on third down.
I am sure the usual suspects in the comments section will disagree, but there is talent on this defense. The problem is not a lack of talent. What I saw on Saturday was a defense that looked collectively lost. Players were thinking too much, playing slow, and getting caught out of position. That is coaching.
Then there is Greg Harbaugh Jr.
Minnesota failed to score an offensive touchdown on Saturday, which even Louisiana-Monroe was able to do a week ago against Mississippi State. One of the biggest questions of the offseason was whether Harbaugh could fix a stalled ground game that has declined in production each of the last three seasons, and Saturday’s 13 total rushing yards delivered an emphatic answer: No.
This is Harbaugh’s fourth year as offensive coordinator and the story remains the same: A lack of creativity, not enough explosive plays, poor offensive line play, and a ground game going nowhere.
What more does Fleck need to see?
The defensive line. Where are you, Anthony Smith? Aside from the strip sack in the end zone in the third quarter that led to the Gophers’ only touchdown of the game, Kamario Taylor didn’t feel much pressure, often operating from a clean pocket. It was also disappointing to see how soft the defensive line was up front, frequently getting pushed around as the Bulldogs averaged 5.5 yards per carry on the ground.
The offensive line. If you want to succeed in the Big Ten, you have to be able to run the ball. And this offensive line just can’t find a way to do it. The longest run of the game was 5 yards.
Darius Taylor is not healthy. Even though Taylor dressed and participated in warm-ups, it was clear from the first drive that something was off, as Elon transfer T.J. Thomas got the bulk of the carries. Fleck admitted after the game that Taylor got banged up in the season opener and was limited this week. He finished the game with six carries for 15 rushing yards.
Penalties. I have thoughts and feelings about this game’s SEC officiating crew that I will keep to myself, because no likes to hear complaints about the refs after a blowout loss. But I will point out that Minnesota was flagged 12 times in the game, and Mississippi State only drew six flags. That’s a curious disparity, especially when you consider that the Gophers have routinely been one of the least penalized teams in the country under P.J. Fleck. Put simply, you’re not going to win a lot of games with a dozen penalties.
The Gophers’ Power 4 non-conference woes continue. Minnesota has now lost four straight regular season non-conference matchups against Power 4 opponents dating back to 2023. Two of the losses — North Carolina in 2024, and Cal in 2025 — are particularly embarrassing in hindsight, as Mack Brown was forced to step down as the Tar Heels’ head coach at the end of the 2024 season, and Justin Wilcox was fired as head coach of the Golden Bears at the conclusion of their season last year.
How many more blowout losses must fans endure? To be clear, I think Mississippi State is a good team this year, with the potential to be a very good team. I remember the 2014 TCU team that was coming off a 4-8 season when they manhandled Minnesota 30-7 in Week 2 on their way to a surprising 12-1 season and a Top 5 ranking. By the end of the year, that loss didn’t look so bad for the Gophers, and I’m curious if that will be the case here. But perception matters.
Historically, Mississippi State has been a mid- to bottom-tier SEC program. Getting blown out at home by a Top 25 team is one thing. But getting blown out at home by an unranked team that has largely been irrelevant in the SEC for some time now? That’s how you kill the morale of your fan base.
I know many Gopher fans look back on the 2024 season as a disappointment or a missed opportunity because four of their five losses were by 7 points or less. But I look back on that year as a fun season because Minnesota was competitive in every game, and even managed to spring two Top 25 upsets. Fans need to believe that when they show up to the stadium, their team has a chance to win. If the Gophers are going to get consistently blown out by any team with a pulse, fans will embrace apathy instead.
The Meh
Drake Lindsey. I don’t think it’s ever a good sign when a Minnesota quarterback racks up 48 pass attempts, and Saturday was no exception. Lindsey was 31-of-48 for 279 passing yards and essentially became the entire offense after the Gophers fell behind 21-3 in the second quarter and all but abandoned running the ball. He had some good throws, and he had some bad throws. Not much else to say here.
The Elite
Special teams. The one coordinator who is innocent in this mess is only two games into his tenure in the Twin Cities: Special teams coordinator Daniel Da Prato. Former New Mexico kicker Luke Drzewiecki made his Minnesota debut after being cleared to play by the compliance office, kicking a pair of field goals, both of which were from beyond 40 yards. Punter Tom Weston did the best he could to help the Gophers in the field position battle, twice pinning the Bulldogs inside their own 5-yard line. The return game was fine. Freshman kickoff returner Quad Hendryx turning an ill-advised decision to return a kickoff out of the end zone into a hard-earned 36-yard gain (with which the offense did nothing).
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos