Akron Zips at Minnesota Golden Gophers

Drake Lindsey's three TD passes lead Minnesota past Akron 41-7

Lindsey completed 17 of 31 passes as Minnesota bounced back from a 38-13 loss to Mississippi State last week.

Two of Lindsey's touchdown passes were NFL caliber. In the second quarter, he hit Noah Jennings on a short post pattern, zipping the ball just past the fingertips of a defender for a 6-yard touchdown pass. Then in the third quarter, Jalen Smith hauled in an 18-yard scoring strike when Lindsey put the perfect touch on a fade route in the corner of the end zone.

Akron got on the board in the fourth quarter when Marcellus Williams scored on a 10-yard run, making it 41-7.

The Zips, who used a fan to call plays on its first drive last week as part of a promotion, didn't fare much better with their regular coaches running the show. Starting quarterback Cibastian Broughton injured his right leg on a run early in the second quarter and did not return. Backup Brayden Roggo moved the team to the Gophers 11 midway through the second, but personal fouls on consecutive plays set the Zips back 30 yards and they turned it over on downs.

Oops! Minnesota’s Javon Tracy is one of the nation’s top punt returners through the first two games this year, with a 34.2-yard average and two touchdowns on his first five returns. He almost added a third score in the second quarter when he broke out of the pack with a clear path to the end zone. However, while looking back to ensure no Zips had an angle on him, he inadvertently stepped out of bounds at the 7-yard line. The 64-yard return did set up Minnesota’s second touchdown, a 6-yard pass from Lindsay to Jennings.

“We had a little discussion,” said Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck, who went on to praise Tracy despite the mistake. “He's an ultimate playmaker. He's a very excitable player. That's what makes him special. He loves playing the game. He's always playing it with a smile on his face. He's very, very gifted.”

Welcome Freshman tight end Roman Voss scored his first touchdown as a Gopher on a pass from Lindsey in the first quarter. Voss was a consensus four-star recruit and the No. 2 player in the state during his senior year of high school in Jackson, Minn.

“Our depth is young, but they're very talented,” Fleck said. “I know that meant a lot to him, to score your first college touchdown at Minnesota, and you picked Minnesota, and you're a Minnesota kid.”

The Takeaway Akron: Penalties and turnovers killed the Zips. They committed seven infractions that cost them 74 yards. They also lost two fumbles and threw an interception.

Minnesota: Playing without leading rusher Darius Taylor, the Gophers ran the ball just nine times in the first half, compared to 23 passes by Lindsey. Though they ended up with 191 rushing yards on the day, 154 came in the fourth quarter as they were killing the clock. That includes a 71-yard touchdown scamper by TJ Thomas. The offense is going to have to find a way to strike a better balance as Minnesota heads into Big Ten action.

Up next Akron hosts UNLV next Saturday.

Minnesota opens Big Ten play with a trip to Washington next Saturday.

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