SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 22, 2011
Minnesota had no answer for No. 11 Nebraska’s high-powered offense as the Golden Gophers were routed 41-14 Saturday at TCF Bank Stadium.
The Cornhuskers (6-1, 2-1 Big Ten), who won their second straight conference game, scored 24 second-quarter points en route to a 34-0 lead at the half. Nebraska scored on five of its six first-half possessions and rushed for 213 yards against the Gophers (1-6, 0-3 Big Ten), who managed just 9 yards passing.
Freshman Kenny Bell’s 82-yard touchdown run on a double reverse gave Nebraska a 17-0 advantage with 14:38 left in the second quarter. It was the longest run by a freshman in school history and was the longest by a Husker since 2004.
Taylor Martinez passed for 163 yards and a touchdown for Nebraska, and Rex Burkhead rushed for 116 yards and a score as the Huskers beat the Gophers for the 15th straight time.
With the loss, Minnesota fell to 28-22-2 all-time against Nebraska. The Gophers’ only points of the game came in the second half on 5- and 6-yard touchdown runs by Marqueis Gray and Duane Bennett, respectively. Minnesota, which has been outscored 156-31 over its last three games, was outgained 515-254, including 341-132 on the ground.
The Huskers improved to 21-0 under head coach Bo Pelini when scoring 35 or more points and 23-2 when a player rushes for at least 100 yards.
Gray finished with 183 total yards and a rushing touchdown for the Gophers.