Minnesota Golden Gophers defeat Michigan State Spartans, 42-34

The Gophers had played four games in their new stadium and not turned it into an obvious advantage.

They had two victories that were anticipated, over Air Force and Purdue, and losses to California, overrated at the time, and Wisconsin, which was underrated.

On Saturday night, the Gophers were back home after two dreadful Saturdays on the road against strong teams, and this would be a chance to find some magic inside the modern brickyard and to give coach Tim Brewster a...

The temptation now is to look ahead. But don't.

A week ago, the Gophers were coming off consecutive losses at Penn State and Ohio State, two of the Big Ten's top defensive teams. A three-game homestand was upcoming with Michigan State, followed by slumping Illinois and nonconference foe South Dakota State, an NCAA Division I-AA school.

It appeared that, if the Gophers could get past the Spartans, it would be a downhill rush to a seventh victory before the regular sea...