SportsDirect Inc. staff
Nov 29, 2014
No. 14 Wisconsin 34, No. 22 Minnesota 24: Melvin Gordon ran for 151 yards and finished with two touchdowns as the host Badgers erased a 14-point deficit to win the Big Ten West Division title.
Joel Stave went 11-of-18 for 215 yards and two touchdowns for Wisconsin (10-2, 7-1), which will play No. 7 Ohio State in the conference championship game on Dec. 6. Alex Erickson caught five passes for a career-high 160 yards while Corey Clement and Robert Wheelwright added a touchdown apiece for the Badgers, who lifted Paul Bunyan's Axe for the 11th straight time.
Mitch Leidner completed only five passes and finished with 149 total yards and two rushing scores for Minnesota (8-4, 5-3), which hasn't won a Big Ten title in 47 years. David Cobb - who was a big question mark with a sore hamstring - ran for 118 yards and a touchdown for the Golden Gophers, who managed just 95 yards passing.
Minnesota jumped out to a 14-3 lead when Leidner ran 10 yards for a touchdown and Cobb sprinted 40 yards for a score. The Golden Gophers led 17-3 before Gordon caught a 4-yard touchdown pass and Rafael Gaglianone kicked a 38-yard field goal just before halftime to cut the deficit to 17-13.
The Badgers jumped in front 20-17 when Clement sprinted 28 yards for a touchdown and they extended their advantage to 10 after Gordon's 1-yard TD plunge. Minnesota closed within 27-24 before Wisconsin pulled ahead for good when Wheelwright caught a 17-yard touchdown pass with 4:41 remaining to help the Badgers secure their seventh consecutive victory.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Wisconsin has won 18 of the last 20 meetings with Minnesota, including the last nine games in Madison. กญ Gordon has rushed for more than 120 yards in each of his last 10 outings กญ Cobb recorded the 13th 100-yard rushing game of his career.