5 Minnesota players to watch against Iowa football in 2024

IOWA CITY — Minnesota football’s 2024 season did not exactly start with a bang. Or at least not the bang the Gophers were hoping for.

Huntington Bank Stadium lit some fireworks after the Gophers’ Week 1 game, which surely would have been more apropos if Minnesota hadn’t just lost to North Carolina after missing a potential game-winning field goal.

Minnesota has recovered from its last-second Week 1 loss (and apparent fireworks snafu), though. Iowa’s Big Ten rival to the north is coming off back-to-back shutouts — a 48-0 win over Rhode Island and a 27-0 win over Nevada — ahead of Saturday’s Floyd of Rosedale game.

Here are five Minnesota players to watch as Iowa tries to reclaim the bronze pig:

RB Darius Taylor

Darius Taylor quickly emerged as threat in the Big Ten as a true freshman in 2023.

The 6-foot running back rushed for 799 rushing yards — the fifth-most by a freshman in program history — while averaging 5.8 yards per carry. The high level of production was despite Taylor only appearing in five games.

Taylor was the Big Ten Freshman of the Week three times and ended the year as an all-Big Ten honorable mention. He was the Quick Lane Bowl MVP after rushing for 208 yards on 35 carries against Bowling Green.

After missing Minnesota’s 2024 season opener against North Carolina, Taylor rushed for 64 yards against Rhode Island and 124 yards against Nevada. He also has been a factor in the Gophers’ passing game, ranking third on the team with nine receptions and 85 receiving yards.

K Dragan Kesich

Dragan Kesich had an ideal season last year for a kicker as he went 23-of-27 on field goals.

Of the 12 kickers across the country who attempted 27-plus attempts last year, Kesich was one of two to be successful on 85 percent or more of his attempts. (The other was Graham Nicholson, who transferred to Alabama after the season.)

Kesich unsurprisingly was the Big Ten Kicker of the Year, which Minnesota Coach P.J. Fleck did not seem to entirely appreciate this summer at Big Ten media days.

“If you have the Big Ten Kicker of the Year, you're probably not very good on offense,” Fleck said in July. “That's part of it — you're kicking way too many field goals — and I think that's where we were last year.”

This year has been a much different story, though, for the kicker from Oak Creek, Wis.

Kesich is 5-of-9 so far this year, which includes a 27-yard miss in Minnesota’s season opener against North Carolina. His other three misses were from more respectable distances — 47, 55 and 50 yards.

QB Max Brosmer

Max Brosmer has taken over the Gophers’ quarterback duties this season after transferring from New Hampshire.

Brosmer’s results as a Gopher have been mostly positive through three games. He has completed 68.8 percent of his passes while throwing three touchdowns and one interception.

His short passing game has been particularly strong in 2024. When throwing to a receiver either behind the line of scrimmage or fewer than 10 yards away, he is 38-of-45 (84.4 percent), according to Pro Football Focus.

The pass protection has not always been there for Brosmer, though. He took five sacks in Minnesota’s loss to North Carolina.

The sixth-year quarterback is coming off back-to-back seasons at New Hampshire where he completed more than 60 percent of his passes and threw more than 25 touchdown passes. He was an Associated Press second-team FCS All-American in 2023.

DL Jah Joyner

Jah Joyner emerged as a capable playmaker on the defensive line in the 11 months since Iowa last faced Minnesota.

Joyner led the Gophers in 2023 with 7.5 sacks (and 7.5 tackles for loss) despite only starting in their bowl game against Bowling Green. Six of those 7.5 sacks happened after Minnesota’s Oct. 21 trip to Kinnick.

The Danbury, Conn., native also forced two fumbles in Minnesota’s six-game stretch after the Iowa game.

Joyner, now a starter, has 11 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and 0.5 sacks through the first three games of the 2024 season.

DB Kerry Brown

Kerry Brown only took 19 snaps last week against Nevada, per PFF. But he was quite productive in those 19 snaps.

The redshirt freshman safety had two interceptions, and both picks set up Minnesota scoring drives. He became the first Minnesota freshman to have multiple interceptions in one game since at least 1990. He also had four tackles in Minnesota’s 27-0 win.

The Naples, Fla., native received Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors after the big performance.

This is his first season with substantial in-game opportunities on defense. Brown’s college football debut was last year at Iowa. He had one tackle against the Hawkeyes.

Comments: john.steppe@thegazette.com

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