What P.J. Fleck said after Minnesota's loss to Ohio State
Minnesota put up quite a fight on Thursday. The Golden Gophers found themselves in a seesaw battle with No. 4 Ohio State in their B1G opener at Huntington Bank Stadium.
The Gophers owned a halftime lead and even had a 3rd quarter advantage but Ohio State flexed its muscle and took over late in the contest. The Buckeyes proved to be too much, overcoming the deficit and posting a 45-31 victory in Minneapolis.
That wasn’t the only bad news for the Gophers. Star running back Mohamed Ibrahim went down in the second half and suffered a lower-leg injury. He exited the field in a walking boot and did not return to action.
Ibrahim ended the night with 163 yards and 2 touchdowns on 30 carries.
Quarterback Tanner Morgan completed 14-of-25 passes for 205 yards and a touchdown. Daniel Jackson and Dylan Wright were the top receivers, totaling 58 and 57 yards, respectively. Wright had the only touchdown reception for the Gophers.
After the game, Fleck met with reporters. Here’s what he had to say:
P.J. Fleck opens w/ heartfelt message: "This city has been through an awful lot. Our state has been through an awful lot in the last 1 1/2 to 2 years. That's the power of football. Results aside for 1 minute. That's the power of football. That's what the world should look like.
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteCFB) September 3, 2021
P.J. Fleck: That atmosphere was special. Thank you.
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteCFB) September 3, 2021
P.J. Fleck: They made you pick. Their receivers get down the field really quickly. They can roll. They're very well coached. They ran the ball a lot more effectively than we hoped.
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteCFB) September 3, 2021
P.J. Fleck on Ohio State: That's one of the best offenses I've ever coached against. They make you cover the entire field. They're all 1st round draft picks.
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteCFB) September 3, 2021
P.J. Fleck has no update on Mo Ibrahim.
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteCFB) September 3, 2021
P.J. Fleck is hopeful to have Chris Autman-Bell back next week. Says he was a game-time decision tonight.
Thought other wide receivers stepped up in a big way in his CAB's absence.
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteCFB) September 3, 2021
P.J. Fleck: "We knew we were going to have to play pretty perfect to win that football game. And we were going to have to make sure they didn't play perfect."
Harps on the critical strip sack and scoop-and-score. Said they had to go play action. "You can only run so much."
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteCFB) September 3, 2021
P.J. Fleck on 4th down call: We're going to be aggressive. I love this football team.
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteCFB) September 3, 2021
Fleck drops NASCAR reference: The Daytona 500, that's the first race of the year. We got a flat tire on the backstretch. Still found a way to come in second. But, at the end of the day, there's a long season ahead of us. There's still a race for the cup.
(I laughed out loud)
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteCFB) September 3, 2021
