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P.J. Fleck reflects on gut-wrenching Indiana loss: 'Sports are not kind'
Gophers football coach P.J. Fleck spoke with reporters on Monday from Athletes Village after Saturday's overtime loss at No. 4-ranked Indiana. Minnesota hosts No. 5-ranked UCLA this Saturday at Huntington Bank Stadium. The Gophers had a 16-13 lead over the Hoosiers with 19 seconds to play, but couldn't finish it off for one of the toughest losses in Fleck's tenure.
EAGAN, Minn. (FOX 9) - The University of Minnesota football team couldn’t finish off a golden opportunity for what would’ve been one of the biggest wins for the program under P.J. Fleck.
‘Sports are not kind’
The backstory:
A 16-13 lead for the Gophers at No. 4-ranked Indiana with just 19 seconds to play was too much time. The Hoosiers got into field goal range with two seconds left, tied the game and eventually beat the Gophers in overtime, 23-16. P.J. Fleck and the Gophers were one play away from the program’s biggest win since they beat a then top-10 Penn State team in 2019, on the way to an 11-2 season.
Instead, the Gophers are 5-3 and host No. 5-ranked UCLA on Saturday.
"Sports are not kind. They’re worth it, sports are amazing, sports are elite, sports teach you so much about life but they are not kind," Fleck said Monday. "The mentality is what’s next, who’s next, that’s it. They made one more play than us."
A tale of matching 60-yard field goals
Why you should care:
There’s a good chance we’ll never again see what transpired in the final 24 seconds between the Gophers and Hoosiers on Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
After being the hero in a 13-10 win over Iowa, Gophers’ kicker Luke Drzewiecki did it again. With 19 seconds left in regulation, Drzewiecki was dead center with room to spare on a 60-yard field goal that gave Minnesota a 16-13 lead.
The Gophers were about to celebrate a road win over a top-4 team, enter the college football rankings and probably get a mention in the College Football Playoff conversation. Then, the Hoosiers said "Hold my beer."
They got a long completion to star receiver Charlie Becker. It set up a matching 60-yard field goal from Paddy McAteer to force overtime. Becker scored for Indiana on the first play of the extra session. The Gophers got to the Indiana 4-yard line before Drake Lindsey was sacked on fourth down to end the game.
"Just think about how that last 24 seconds unfolded, just in college football how rare that is. You see it in the NFL. When you’ve got kickers that can kick it from 60 yards and make it, they both make one from 60 within a matter of 24 seconds, you gotta take your cap off to them," Fleck said. "There’s a reason I kicked it, I believe in him 100%. That’s the reason we brought him here."
Is Drake Lindsey regressing?
Dig deeper:
Drake Lindsey entered the season with the potential to enter the 2027 NFL Draft as a first-round pick. The reality of the numbers hasn’t matched the preseason projections. Lindsey is averaging 265 passing yards per game, he doesn’t have a 300-yard game yet this season and he has 10 touchdowns with six interceptions.
Lindsey looks rushed at times behind a makeshift offensive line, he’s missing routine throws and throwing off his back foot. Fleck says it’s on everybody to get better.
"It takes everybody, it’s not one player. The trust in the pocket, standing in the pocket, trusting your fundamentals, trusting your reads, trusting the people in front of you," Fleck said. "It just needs to be better. You’ve got to be able to stand in the pocket and deliver."
What's next:
The Gophers host No. 5-ranked UCLA at 11 a.m. Saturday, and it’s a game you can watch on FOX 9. It’s FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff national game, with the Burins undefeated at 8-0.