Michigan rallies to beat Gophers
The Wolverines have not lost to Minnesota since 1986.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Michigan beat Minnesota with a dramatic comeback for the second straight year.
Tyler Ecker caught a short pass from Chad Henne over the middle, eluded two tackles and lumbered down the sideline for a 31-yard touchdown with 1:57 left to give the 14th-ranked Wolverines a 27-24 victory over the No. 13 Golden Gophers on Saturday.
Minnesota led 24-17 early in the fourth quarter after scoring 17 straight points.
Garrett Rivas' 29-yard field goal with 9:36 remaining pulled Michigan to 24-20 and started the comeback.
The Wolverines forced the Gophers to punt on their next two possessions to set up the winning drive.
Long way to go
Henne, a freshman, directed a drive that started at Michigan's 13 with 3:04 to play.
After four passes for first downs, he found Ecker over the middle and the tight end broke away from Brandon Owens and got past Mike Wojciechowski for the TD.
The defending Big Ten champion Wolverines (5-1, 3-0) have not lost to the Gophers since 1986.
If Minnesota (5-1, 2-1) could have held off Michigan, it would've had a better opportunity to win its first conference championship since 1967 because it doesn't play Purdue or Ohio State.
Henne was 33-of-49 for 328 yards with two TDs and two interceptions. Michael Hart ran for 160 yards -- a record for a Michigan freshman -- and a score on 35 carries and had six receptions for 53 yards.
Braylon Edwards caught 10 passes for 98 yards and a TD.
Michigan St. 38, Illinois 25
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Drew Stanton threw three touchdown passes and caught another to lead Michigan State (3-3, 2-1 Big Ten), which has beaten the Illini (2-4, 0-3) eight straight times.
Pierre Thomas had 188 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries for Illinois, but it wasn't enough to prevent his team's 11th consecutive Big Ten loss.
Illinois scored on a blocked punt to cut a once-commanding Michigan State lead to five at 30-25 with 14:13 remaining.
But, DeAndra Cobb capped a 62-yard drive with a 12-yard TD run, and a two-point conversion gave Michigan State a 38-25 lead with 5:47 remaining.
The Spartans put together their most impressive offensive showing of the season, gaining 253 yards rushing and 234 passing.
Northwestern 31, Indiana 24, 2OT
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Noah Herron ran for a career-high 197 yards and three touchdowns, including a 16-yard scoring run in the second overtime that gave Northwestern (3-3, 2-1) the victory.
Demetrius Eaton sacked Matt LoVecchio on fourth down to end Indiana's (2-4, 0-3) hopes of forcing a third overtime.
Courtney Roby became Indiana's career receptions leader with eight catches for 150 yards.
Copyright 2004 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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