The Minnesota Gophers capped off their 2025 season on Friday with a contest against the New Mexico Lobos. Playing in the Rate Bowl, head coach P.J. Fleck was defending his unbeaten (6-0) record in postseason games with Minnesota.
It certainly wasn’t easy, but Drake Lindsey found Jalen Smith twice on two perfect throws to put the good guys on top. Fleck now has seven-straight bowl wins for the MN Gophers, and the program (nine-straight bowl wins) is looking to ride that momentum into the future.
Drake Lindsey needs MN Gophers to let him eat
Last season, P.J. Fleck found out what it’s like to have a legitimate quarterback under center. Max Brosmer transferred in after five seasons with FCS New Hampshire. He showed out as the best quarterback the program has seen in decades, and the young Drake Lindsey stepped in, giving Fleck his first chance to develop a star.
Unfortunately, he has yet to stop limiting the talented young QB and just let him work. Minnesota’s offense was lethargic and uninspiring during the first half of the Rate Bowl, as it was during most of the season. Lindsey threw the ball 12 times (with six completions) but had just 56 yards. Plenty of play calls fell into the conservative category, and forced Lindsey into congested coverages.
When allowing his quarterback to air it out, Fleck watched the Fayetteville, Arkansas native drop a dime in the bucket as he found Jalen Smith for the Minnesota Gophers first touchdown.. The arm talent is more than evident, and the decision making will evolve with time and patience.
Fleck is supposedly keeping plenty of his current roster intact for next season, and he’s added the best recruiting class in school history for 2026. Lindsey should have a significant amount of talent around him, he just needs the head coach to lean in and for them both to unleash it all.
Thankfully, the quarterback saw his coach put more trust into his abilities in the second half of Friday’s contest. Lindsey finished with a stat line of 18/28 for 147 yards and two touchdowns. While the offense looked to get Koi Perich (two rushes, seven yards, four receptions 34 yards) involved to end the game, it was Smith in the end zone again, this time during overtime to end the game.
MN Gophers love a healthy Darius Taylor
After playing in 12 games for the Gophers last year, he only was healthy enough for 10 this year. Injuries have unfortunately become synonymous with his career, and that has robbed fans of seeing his true talent.
Next season it will presumably be the Taylor show again, and a clean bill of health could generate something special. Fame Ijeboi has entered the transfer portal, so depth behind Taylor has dwindled. He showed explosiveness in the Rate Bowl that Gophers fans would love to see for a full season in 2026.
Taylor wrapped up the regular season with just 554 yards and three touchdowns. His inability to stay healthy has always been a problem, but the talent on a per-play basis is undeniable. His 38-yard first half scamper was impressive, and he turned just eight carries into 60 yards.
Adding a five-yard touchdown in the 4th quarter, Taylor tried to put the game on ice. New Mexico struggled to move the ball on offense, but it was a big kick-six that resulted in an immediate answer. The Lobos pulled trickery on the two-point conversion to knot the game up at 14.
Taylor wound up with 116 yards on 24 carries. He looks every bit the part of an explosive bell-cow back when healthy and available. A dual-threat talent, Taylor also hauled in four receptions for 23 yards.
Anthony Smith is an absolute Gophers menace
New Mexico used a pair of quarterbacks, neither of which found much success against Danny Collins’ defense. Edge rusher Anthony Smith contributed a significant amount to that reality.
The junior came in with a career-best 10.5 sacks this season. He added two more sacks and four more tackles for loss to push his season total to 12.5 and 17.5 respectively.
Minnesota has had some notable offensive lineman of late, and they have always been a significant safety program, but Smith’s emergence this year on the edge was something to behold. If he returns to Dinkytown next season, the rest of the Big Ten will certainly be on notice. If he declares for the Draft, he could be the next Gophers success story.
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