The three-week stretch of Iowa, No. 12 Michigan and No. 11 USC was the tough assignment the Gophers football team faced, and losses to the Hawkeyes and Wolverines put them in a tough situation: a 2-3 record, an 0 -2 mark in the Big Ten and a team with many doubters.

But Saturday night, the Gophers all came together and rallied with two fourth-quarter touchdowns to defeat No. 11 USC in front of 50,913 at Huntington Bank Stadium.

It was Minnesota’s first win over a ranked team since last year’s 12-10 victory over No. 24 Iowa. And the Trojans were the highest-ranked team the Gophers (3-3, 1-2 Big Ten) have defeated since topping No. 9 Auburn 21-24 in the Outback Bowl after the 2019 season.

Koi Perich’s interception in the end zone with 9 seconds left sealed the victory, and fans stormed the field after a final kneel by quarterback Max Brosmer.

It was Brosmer who provided the late heroics, scoring his third push-push touchdown of the night on a plunge from inside the 1-yard line with 56 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

That fourth-and-goal play was originally ruled short of the field, but a replay review showed Brosmer had reached the end zone.

“It’s absolutely incredible for our team,” Brosmer said in a postgame interview on KFXN-FM.

During his halftime radio interview, Gophers coach PJ Fleck emphasized that Minnesota’s defense had to find a way to get off the field on third down. That was a problem most of the night. USC converted six of eight third-down chances in the first half, allowing the Trojans to put together 11- and 15-play drives. They picked up where they left off in the second half, marching 91 yards in 12 plays and taking a 17-10 lead on Marks’ 1-yard TD run. Marks had six carries for 41 yards on the drive and had a 7-yard reception.