?HOUSTON, Texas - They've only met twice on the gridiron, but when Texas Tech and Minnesota get together, it has made for some scintillating finishes. In 2006 the teams met in the Insight Bowl in Phoenix, Arizona. Minnesota blew a big second half lead and lost 44-41 to the Red Raiders in overtime. Friday night at Reliant Stadium in Houston, the two teams met for the second time and again played it right down to the final whistle. Tech DB D.J. Johnson intercepted a pass thrown by Golden Gopher freshman QB Philip Nelson, returning the ball 39 yards, setting up a game-winning field goal by Tech place kicker Ryan Bustin to snatch another come-from-behind victory over Minnesota, 34-31. It was announced that 50,386 tickets were "distributed" but the actual attendance was quite a bit less for the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas. A national television audience on ESPN also witnessed the exciting but penalty-filled game, which took almost four hours to play.
You would have thought that these teams were arch rivals from different sides of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis - St. Paul the way they came out and got real ugly with each other. There were a lot of big hits and chippy play from both teams throughout the game. Texas Tech registered 13 penalties for 135 yards, many of the personal foul variety. In the third quarter, Red Raider TE Jace Amaro was ejected by the officials for throwing a punch at a Minnesota player after both had crashed to the ground in the end zone.
Minnesota struck first, hitting a 41-yard field goal by Jordan Wettstein to get things going for the Gophers, making their first bowl appearance since the 2009 season. Texas Tech responded quickly with a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and a 7-3 lead with 8:17 left in the first quarter. From there neither team ever led the game by more than seven points, and the lead flipped back and forth six more times.
Minnesota countered with a 6-play, 67-yard drive ending with a 2-yard TD run by tailback Rodrick Williams, Jr. Tech came right back with a 13-yard touchdown pass completion from second string QB Michael Brewer to wideout Derreck Edwards, giving the Red Raiders a 14-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Minnesota took advantage of a short field to go 48 yards on nine plays, with taiback Donnell Kirkwood going over from three yards out to give the Gophers a 17-14 lead early in the second quarter. A 28-yard field goal by Bustin knotted the score at 17 with 8:36 remaining until halftime.
Three penalties, including two personal fouls against Minnesota halted a promising drive. It's not often you see a third-and-49 play run by an offense. A poor 31-yard punt out of the end zone by Gopher punter Christian Eldred set Tech up on the Minnesota 42 yard line. QB Seth Doege finished off the drive with a 4-yard scamper to paydirt with only five seconds left in the first half, giving the Raiders a 24-17 advantage at the break.
Minnesota scored on a 17-yard touchdown pass from Nelson to wide receiver Devin Crawford-Tufts early in the third quarter, tying the score again at 24 all.
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The scrappy Gophers stiffened on defense and scored again on a 1-yard TD pass from Nelson to wideout Drew Goodger early in the fourth quarter, taking a 31-24 lead. Minnesota held Tech at bay for most of the remainder of the game, but a late 7-play, 82-yard scoring drive was engineered by Doege, culminating with a 35-yard touchdown pass completion over the middle to Eric Ward, tying the score yet again with only 1:10 left in regulation time. Minnesota then gave up the crucial turnover resulting in the game winning FG for Tech.
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The Red Raiders overcame some off-the-field distractions, as former head coach Tommy Tuberville left surprisingly for the head coaching job at Cincinnati in early December. Tech was coached by interim head coach Chris Thomsen. They have hired former Red Raider QB and offensive coordinator at Texas A&M, Kliff Kingsbury to pilot the program in 2013. Kingsbury attended the game.
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Thomsen heaped praise on Johnson and Doege, the two Tech players that made the decisive plays to win it. ''More than anything I credit those players. They really held it together ... to get to make those plays after they struggled. They kept their poise and confidence and continued to stay in there and battle.'' Regarding all the penalties, Thomsen said, ''There was really no excuse for it. We didn't play very smart.''
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Johnson reflected on the tough month the team had off the field. ''As a team we just continued to fight and have faith and work together. This is a huge win for us as a group.''
Doege was relieved that his team finally put it together at the end. ''That drive where we went and tied the game, we finally started clicking. It happened at the right time. It probably should have happened sooner.''
Minnesota head coach Jerry Kill was proud of his team's effort. ''I think our kids played hard tonight. They played their guts out, and I appreciate that. We just couldn't make a play at a critical time.''
Doege won game MVP honors with a 31-of-45 passing mark for 271 yards and one touchdown. He threw two interceptions. Kirkwood led all rushers with 77 yards gained on 19 carries for Minnesota. Darrin Moore caught a game-high 11 passes for 84 yards gained in the winning effort for Texas Tech.
Minnesota finished its Big Ten season with a 6-7 record. Texas Tech wraps its Big 12 campaign with an 8-5 mark.
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