MINNEAPOLIS — – Max Brosmer drove into the end zone for Minnesota on a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line with 56 seconds left, breaking a tie with his third rushing touchdown of the game, making a 24-17 upset of 11th yielded – Ranked in Southern California Saturday night.

Brosmer, who went 15 for 19 for 169 yards passing, buried himself in a crowd of blockers and found enough creases to cross the goal line. The on-field statement fell short of Brosmer, but the replay review resulted in a turnaround that the entire stadium knew was coming.

With the Trojans (3-2, 1-2 Big Ten) out of timeouts, Miller Moss moved them into striking range before his jump from the 28 into double coverage was picked off by Koi Perich in the end zone for his second interception of the game.

Darius Taylor had 200 yards from scrimmage for the Gophers (3-3, 1-2), including 144 yards on 25 rushes to lead a two-touchdown rally in the fourth quarter.

With USC leading 17-10, Moss was pushed off the rim by Jah Joyner and grabbed by Devin Williams with 10:11 left when his follow-through was disrupted and the ball floated forward.

Minnesota went 65 yards in six plays before Brosmer’s second rushing touchdown, a keeper-off tackle that tied the game with 7:08 to go. The defense forced a three-and-out, setting the Gophers up for the game-sealing drive.

Moss, who eclipsed the 300-yard mark twice in the first four games, went 23 for 38 for 200 yards and one touchdown against a Minnesota team that entered the week leading the FBS in pass defense.

Woody Marks had 20 carries for 134 yards and a touchdown for USC.

Taylor lost a fumble at midfield when Kamari Ramsey threw the ball in the air with 27 seconds left before halftime. The Trojans had just enough time for the game-tying 54-yard field goal by Michael Lantz, who started his career at Minnesota in 2019 before a back injury temporarily halted it in 2021. He resurfaced at Georgia Southern and transferred to USC.

USC started slowly on offense for the third week in a row. They trailed Michigan 14-3 at halftime after losing 27-24 and fell behind Wisconsin 21-10 at the break before rallying to win 38-21.

Lantz missed a 47-yard field goal at the end of the first drive, right after Zachariah Branch dropped a catch that would have been a first-down catch at the 22. Late in the second quarter, Quinten Joyner lost a fumble on the Minnesota 38 when Perich cleared the ball.

Part of the problem for the Trojans, however, was simply a Gophers defense that was consistently tough to counter this season and had a well-planned and well-executed mix of rushing and coverage to keep Moss and his receivers from doing much damage. .

Duce Robinson’s 3-yard touchdown catch with 7:13 to go before halftime put USC on the board, just the second passing score against Minnesota this season.

Just like at home?

Minnesota welcomed USC with a starting temperature of 71 degrees, the warmest October game for the Gophers in 16 seasons. This was also a night game, surpassing the afternoon start against Rutgers (66 degrees) on October 29, 2022, which was the previous high of the month.

Survey implications

The Trojans will undoubtedly fall in the next round of the AP rankings released Sunday. The question is how many places.

The takeaway

USC: Awareness and discipline will likely be on the to-do list for coach Lincoln Riley and his staff this week. The Trojans took eight penalties for 59 yards, including an unnecessary roughness call on Easton Mascarenas-Arnold for hitting Perich with his body on a punt return in the fourth quarter, starting Minnesota’s winning drive by an additional 15 yards.

Minnesota: Coach P.J. Fleck ended his postgame press conference two weeks ago after a disheartening loss to rival Iowa following a second-half collapse by imploring fans not to give up on this team. The Gophers nearly rallied to beat Michigan last week with a 21-point fourth quarter, but an onside kick recovery with 1:37 remaining was negated by a questionable offside penalty in a 27-24 loss.

Next

USC: Hosts Penn State this Saturday. The Trojans and Nittany Lions, ranked seventh in the latest AP poll, last met in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 2, 2017, in a 52-49 win against USC.

Minnesota: Plays at UCLA next Saturday night. The Gophers last played the Bruins in 1978.

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