SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 10, 2011
New Mexico State defeated host Minnesota 28-21 in a game that was stopped for about 10 minutes late in the fourth quarter when Golden Gophers head coach Jerry Kill collapsed after suffering an apparent seizure on the sideline.
Kill, who took over Minnesota in the offseason after a three-year stint at Northern Illinois, was tended to by paramedics as the Gophers attempted to drive for a game-tying score with 20 seconds remaining.
Kill, who suffered a seizure while coach at Southern Illinois in 2005, was taken off the field in a golf cart. He appeared to be moving his hands when exiting the field.
When play resumed, the Golden Gophers faced a fourth-and-10 at the Aggiesกฏ 25-yard line, but quarterback Marqueis Grayกฏs pass sailed incomplete.
The win was the first against a Big Ten opponent in seven tries for the Aggies, who lost 44-24 against Ohio in their season opener.
Andrew Manley completed 20-of-31 passes for 288 yards and three touchdowns, all of them coming in the first half as the Aggies built a 21-14 lead.
Minnesota (0-2), which had lost its previous two games against non-BCS opponents, pulled within 28-21 on Grayกฏs 4-yard touchdown pass to DaกฏJon McKnight with 11:47 left in the fourth quarter. But the Gophers turned the ball over on downs in their last two possessions, including the final drive.
In the Gophersกฏ second-to-last possession midway through the fourth quarter, they were stopped on a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line when the Aggies stopped Lamonte Edwards at the line of scrimmage.
Gray went 16-of-32 for 211 yards, two touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. He also added 110 yards and a TD on 17 carries. McKnight had a game-high nine catches for 146 yards.