Football

For members of the Minnesota football coaching staff, it's a chance to get in on the action while reinforcing an important lesson. For players, the lesson has been more beneficial than they could have ever thought. During fall practice in August, coach Glen Mason and his staff decided the best way to cut down on costly turnovers each Saturday was to force more fumbles during the week.

Any one of the 105 players on Minnesota's football roster might want to consider mailing Northwestern cornerback Jeff Backes a thank-you card this week. The sophomore's seemingly innocent misstep was just the break the 17th-ranked Gophers needed to keep its undefeated season from taking a major detour Saturday afternoon.

It hardly ever fails. When the name Jason Wright comes up in a conversation anywhere outside of Evanston, Ill., someone invariably asks the question - or at least thinks to himself - Jason who? For those who still haven't heard, Wright is a senior running back on Northwestern's football team. He gained 1,500 yards of total offense (1,234 rushing) and scored 12 touchdowns last year in his first full season playing the position.

Minnesota football coach Glen Mason was pleased with how his team played as a whole in Saturday's 20-14 win at Penn State. One of the only faults he saw was that the Gophers forced him to sweat a little more than he would have liked down the stretch. Leading 17-14, the Minnesota (5-0, 1-0 Big Ten) offense grinded the ball down the field after safety Justin Fraley picked off Michael Robinson's offering on the Gophers' 36.

Following Saturday's 20-14 loss to Minnesota, Penn State football coach Joe Paterno defended his decision to run a draw play on second down in the final minute of the game. The Lions had gone from their own 20-yard line to Minnesota's 15 in less than two minutes, mostly through the air. After quarterback Michael Robinson missed Gerald Smith in the end zone, Paterno called a draw for freshman tailback Austin Scott on the next play.

All week, Minnesota football players and coaches hinted there would be more to see from the Gophers' offense in Saturday's game against Penn State. This was supposed to be the game when coach Glen Mason turned over a new page in the playbook, employed new formations and threw the opposing defense a curveball.