Minnesota ekes out 10-7 win against Kent State

MINNEAPOLIS If Minnesota hoped to build a commanding lead so it could look at another quarterback option beyond Mitch Leidner, Saturday turned into a wasted opportunity.

Leidner and the offense struggled to score in an often-painful performance against Kent State.

Instead of a blowout, it turned into an upset watch, but the Gophers survived with a 10-7 victory before an announced sellout crowd of 52,823 at TCF Bank Stadium.

The Gophers (2-1), who entered as 24-point favorite, played terrific defense for the third straight game, but their fans booed Leidner and the offense several times.

Kent State (1-2) was just two weeks removed from a 52-3 loss at Illinois, though the Golden Flashes’ defense did hold Delaware State to minus yards last week.

Leidner finished 17-for-27 for 184 yards, with a touchdown and two interceptions. He completed 9-of-12 passes in the second half, but most of those produced short gains.

True freshman quarterback Demry Croft took all the reps with the second-team offense during warm-ups, but he never entered the game.

It wasn’t just Leidner. The banged-up Gophers offensive line struggled with the running game, as Rodney Smith gained just 73 yards on 30 carries a 2.4.-yard average, down from the 5.3 mark the redshirt freshman had entering the game.

Leading 10-0, the Gophers took the second half kick and put together a strong drive. But Leidner threw a pass to true freshman receiver Rashad Still, who had the ball stripped by cornerback Demetrius Monday.

Monday picked up the ball and raced 85 yards for a touchdown. Monday also had two first-half interceptions, so it was quite a day for the sophomore from Douglasville, Ga.

Just before halftime, the Gophers’ coaches designed a perfect third-down play. KJ Maye went in motion, and Kent State left him wide open for a screen pass. Leidner hit him, and Maye cruised 14 yards for a touchdown.

But Leidner had a rough half, completing 8-of-15 passes for 112 yards with two interceptions. He hadn’t thrown an interception since last year’s Ohio State game, a span of five games, but both of those came on underthrown balls.

The crowd groaned and booed when Leidner underthrew Drew Wolitarsky on a third-down play later in the second quarter.

(c)2015 Star Tribune (Minneapolis)

Visit the Star Tribune (Minneapolis) at www.startribune.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.