Dragan Kesich missed two field goals and the Gophers offense waited too long to find their passing attack in a 19-17 loss to North Carolina on Thursday night at Huntington Bank Stadium.
From the get-go it was a sloppy performance for the Gophers, marked by inconsistent quarterback play, poor blocking from the offensive line, undisciplined play on both sides of the ball and uncharacteristic miscues.
The Gophers in the loss allowed five sacks and seven tackles for loss, while also committing six penalties resulting in 50 penalty yards while of course also missing a pair of field goals.
In the first quarter, the Gophers totaled 48 yards but averaged just a mere 2.7 yards per play.
Quarterback Max Brosmer struggled with his footwork and accuracy completing just 3-of-7 passing attempts. The only sustained drive of the quarter resulted in Dragan Kesich, the defending Big Ten Kicker of the Year missing a 27-yard attempt.
The Tar Heels would take advantage of the Kesich missed field goal on their very next drive, going 80-yards on nine plays with the drive capped off by starting quarterback Max Johnson scrambling for a touchdown to take a 7-0 lead.
Near the midway part of the second quarter, veteran cornerback Justin Walley would give the Gophers life picking off a poorly thrown Max Johnson pass and returning it all the way to the North Carolina six-yard line.
A few plays later, Oklahoma transfer Marcus Majors would punch it in from five yards out, allowing the Gophers to tie the game at 7-7. The veteran running back had a strong Gophers debut totaling 100 yards in the contest including 73 rushing yards.
The Gophers' defense carried the momentum from Walley's interception into their next series, forcing North Carolina into a quick three-and-out.
Following the defensive stand, the Gophers' offense orchestrated their most effective drive of the first half going 65-yards on nine plays while draining over five minutes off the clock.
The drive was finished by Max Brosmer picking up his first touchdown as a Gopher with an assist from Nick Kallerup on a tush push, giving the Gophers a 14-7 lead heading into halftime.
Coming out of the break, North Carolina's offense in desperate need of positive momentum of their own after a rather lackluster first half of their own put together a 70-yard drive across 17 plays and almost eight and half minutes of action.
That being said, the Gophers defense while bending, wouldn't break on the drive, forcing the Tar Heels to settle for a 29-yard field goal, making it a 14-10 game.
Late in the third quarter, North Carolina quarterback Max Johnson was carted off the field after suffering a severe leg injury when he was caught between two Gophers pass rushers. Sophomore quarterback Connor Harrell stepped in to replace Johnson, taking over mid-series.
Harrell would successfully continue the Tar Heels drive, moving the ball into Gophers territory. The drive ended with Tar Heels place kicker Noah Burnette nailing a 52-yard field goal, narrowing the score to 14-13.
It was a day that Burnette will not soon forget, as he made all four of his attempts in the game.
Despite coming out of the third quarter with the lead, it was a completely forgettable 15 minutes of action for the Gophers who were outgained in the quarter 109-1 while North Carolina dominated the time of possession with their offense on the field for 13:34 of 15 minutes.
The fourth quarter would not get off to a much better start for the Gophers.
A Max Brosmer fumble in Minnesota territory would give the Tar Heels possession at the Gophers 13-yard line. However, Corey Hetherman’s defense managed to limit the damage from the fumble, forcing the Tar Heels to settle for their third field goal of the game but in result, giving the Tar Heels a 16-14 lead.
On the ensuing drive, the Gophers finally found some success offensively in the second half, albeit in an unconventional manner. After an impressive scramble from Brosmer that picked up a first down, redshirt junior wide receiver LeMke Brockington fumbled while being tackled, but the ball would find its way right into the hands of Marcus Major.
Major then carried the fumble an additional 16 yards to the North Carolina 10-yard line. Although the Gophers couldn't move the ball further, Dragan Kesich redeemed himself from his earlier miss by converting a 30-yard field goal, giving the Gophers a 17-16 lead with under four minutes remaining.
The lead would not be for long as North Carolina immediately answered on their next possession with their fourth field goal of the contest to make it a 19-17 North Carolina lead with under two minutes to play.
Looking to have a second-straight season opening walk-off win, the Golden Gophers would quickly move into North Carolina territory with Max Brosmer looking the sharpest he had all night.
The Gophers would set up Dragan Kesich for a 47-yard field goal, however, unlike a year ago, the fan favorite nicknamed the Serbian Hammer was unable to save the day, narrowly missing the game winning kick as time expired.
Overall, despite the close final score it was a game that revealed Minnesota has plenty to work on in the coming weeks. The silver lining for the Gophers is the schedule gets a bit easier with Rhode Island and Nevada over the course of the next two weeks before they enter Big Ten play on September 21 against the Iowa Hawkeyes.
NEXT UP
The Golden Gophers will now turn their attention to the Rhode Island Rams next Saturday with kickoff scheduled for 11:00 a.m.
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