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“People don’t understand that we worked all winter, all spring, all summer,” he said after the 27-20 road upset over Illinois that has the Gophers weighing their bowl options. “We studied the game and we did everything we could. It’s obviously showing that it’s paying off now.”
Understand, though, that was after the Gophers gave up 550 yards of offense, and after they let Williams throw for 462 yards and two touchdowns.
As crazy as it sounds, though, when you factor in some other numbers, VanDeSteeg’s right.
The Gophers (6-1, 2-1) sacked Williams five times — three of them by VanDeSteeg — forced three turnovers and had one big goal-line stop. VanDeSteeg was named the Walter Camp Football Foundation Defensive Player of the week for his effort.
It’s the kind of football Minnesota has played this season, coach Tim Brewster said.
“We’ve been very opportunistic,” Brewster said after his Gophers upset his alma mater. “Time after time our defense is stepping up to make plays.”
Through seven games, the Gophers have forced 20 turnovers this season, tops in the Big Ten and six more than they created all of last year, and are third in sacks with 17. The Minnesota defense had just 11 in 2007.
On Saturday’s goal-line stuff, the Gophers met Williams in the backfield as he tried to bootleg his way into the end zone, and linebacker Steve Davis dragged him down just shy of a touchdown. The play came late in the third quarter and preserved a 14-6 Minnesota lead.
And when Williams tried to bring the Illini from behind in the fourth quarter, VanDeSteeg forced him into turnovers that ended two possessions. Williams fumbled the ball after a VanDeSteeg hit on one possession — linebacker Simoni Lawrence grabbed that ball and ran it in for a touchdown — and threw the ball up for grabs on another after being whacked by the defensive end. That ball, thrown with the Illini down 27-20 but driving at the Minnesota 25, finally floated down to Minnesota’s Ryan Collado for an interception that ended Illinois’ last, best chance.
Illinois coach Ron Zook was left baffled by Saturday’s loss. He couldn’t explain just how his team could roll up more than 500 yards of offense, have better time of possession, and still lose.
“I’ve looked at everything,” he said Sunday. “We didn’t quit, we kept playing, we kept coming back.”
But the explanation he’s assembled so far focuses first on poor special teams play — Illinois’ kicking team gave Minnesota terrific field position early, while return-team mistakes forced the Illini to start its first drives from its 2-yard line, its 13, its 19 and its 27.
Then Zook, like Brewster, pointed to the Gophers’ big defensive plays, and the pressure Williams faced.
“Some of it is Juice’s fault and some of it is the offensive line’s fault,” Zook said, adding that Williams was sore Sunday but otherwise OK. “I think you (also) have to give Minnesota a lot of credit.”
That’s something, according to VanDeSteeg, opponents are just starting to realize.
The Gophers are giving up 382 yards passing a game, but that’s 136 yards less than last season. And, at 122, they’re giving up 107 fewer rushing yards a game.
They’re led by VanDeSteeg, whose seven sacks is second in the Big Ten. He gives much of the credit to first-year defensive coordinator Ted Roof.
“A lot of people don’t think, because we were ranked 116th in defense last year, that we can do a lot of things,” he said. “But I think with coach Roof, his plan, the way the kids are playing, that we are one of the best defenses in the country.”
