No. 19 Iowa Survives Scare From Minnesota

By

Posted 4:00PM on Saturday, November 13, 2004

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Rhys Lloyd's 51-yard field goal try drifted left with 28 seconds remaining, allowing 19th-ranked Iowa to hold on for a 29-27 victory over Minnesota Saturday - the Hawkeyes' sixth straight win. Drew Tate completed 24 of 39 passes for 333 yards and two touchdowns for Iowa (8-2, 6-1), which began the weekend one game behind Wisconsin and Michigan in the Big Ten. Charles Solomon had nine receptions for 157 yards and a score. It wasn't pretty for the Hawkeyes, whose last four victories have come by a total of 16 points. They lost their fifth running back this year when Sam Brownlee left in the second quarter with an ankle injury, and the rushing defense - which entered with a conference-best average of 68.2 yards allowed per game - was trampled by the record-setting duo of Laurence Maroney and Marion Barber III. But Iowa did enough to retain Floyd of Rosedale - the bronze pig that goes to the annual winner of this rivalry - for the fourth straight time. The Hawkeyes, who got a school-record five field goals by Kyle Schlicher, host Wisconsin next week. After forcing a punt, the Gophers (6-5, 3-5) got the ball near midfield with 2:50 left. They ran six times, including on third-and-12 from the 35-yard line. Barber was stopped for a 1-yard gain, forcing Lloyd out for his kick. It had plenty of leg, but sailed well to the left. The Gophers finished the regular season by losing five of six, but they nearly pulled off the upset with a revived running game. Maroney rushed 19 times for 156 yards and a career-high three touchdowns, and Barber carried 29 times for 167 yards. Barber surpassed 1,000 yards for the second straight season, joining Maroney as the first pair of teammates to accomplish that in NCAA history. The Gophers committed only six turnovers in their first 10 games, but they gave the ball away three times in the first half. Bryan Cupito, who has slumped since starting strong in his first season as a starter, had an awful first half - twice throwing interceptions on balls intended for Jakari Wallace and going just 4-for-9 for 27 yards. Cupito finished 9-for-16 for 73 yards. Solomon and James Townsend each caught long touchdown tosses from Tate in the first half. Maroney's 79-yard sprint - his third score of 75 yards or more this season - cut the lead to 16-10 midway through the second quarter. But on the next possession, Townsend tacked on a 60-yard TD by blowing past Trumaine Banks - who let his man go as if he were playing zone coverage, without realizing there was no safety behind him. Lloyd's second field goal and Maroney's 37-yard touchdown run brought Minnesota within 23-20 midway through the third, but Schlicher added two more field goals to make it 29-20 with 9:11 left in the game. Maroney muscled his way up the middle for a 5-yard score on the next possession, cutting the lead to 29-27 with 4:48 remaining. Black-and-gold clad Hawkeyes fans made up about half the sellout crowd of 64,719, as usual, and security was stepped up in response to Iowa's celebration of the victory here in 2002. Energized by the Hawkeyes' first unbeaten Big Ten finish in 80 years, students stormed the field, tore down a goal post and tried to carry a piece of it out of the Metrodome. A few mini-footballs were thrown from the north end zone, where Iowa players sprinted to slap hands with their fans after the game was over.