Dein erstes Forum » nce in a 102-87 loss at No. 16 UCLA -- a game that fea

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- On a windy Illinois afternoon that made passing an adventure, Minnesota knew it would need to run the ball if it wanted to pocket a win.But the Golden Gophers figured they might have to run a little farther than they did to beat the Illinois.A pair of early Illinois turnovers and a short punt gave Minnesota the ball at the Illinois 49-, 20- and 9-yard lines, and the Gophers turned each into a touchdown on the way to a 40-17 win.Rodney Smith did the bulk of the damage, rushing for 100 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Shannon Brooks added 59 yards and a score on a dozen carries.Smiths first touchdown was a 20-yard burst up the middle with 2:16 left in the first quarter, giving Minnesota (6-2, 3-2 Big Ten) the lead for good at 14-7. It followed a fumbled punt by Illinois Darius Mosely, recovered by Antione Winfield Jr. at the 20.We love to see that because were pretty good in the red zone, said Brooks, who added that those turnovers built momentum for Minnesota and robbed Illinois of energy. Yeah, definitely. Thats a stab, a stab in the back. That hurts.The turnovers, Illinois coach Lovie Smith said, swung the game hard and early for Minnesota.Its hard to win the football game when you start like that, Smith said. Those turnovers put us in a hole.Jeff George Jr., Illinois (2-6, 1-4) third-string quarterback and the son of Illini legend and longtime NFL quarterback Jeff George, started his second straight game and went 16-34 for 156 yards and a touchdown.Illinois starter Wes Lunt suited up but sat out his third straight game with a back injury. Second-string quarterback Chayce Crouch, who injured a shoulder in a win over Rutgers two weeks ago, is out for the season after having surgery Monday, Smith confirmed.Illinois receiver Malik Turner left the field on a stretcher in the first half after a hit by Minnesota safety Duke McGhee. Turner was taken to a local hospital but was back in the locker room before the end of the game, Smith said, though further information about his injury was not available.It was terrifying. It was emotional, especially with a kid like that who works so hard, to see a tragic injury like that, Smith said.McGhee was flagged for targeting and ejected from the game.THE TAKEAWAYMinnesota: The Gophers get what in the end turned into a blowout win, a little payback for a loss at Illinois two years ago and guarantee themselves bowl eligibility. But they struggled for three quarters to put away a limited Illini team. While some players acknowledged celebrating a bit, Minnesota coach Tracy Claeys downplayed the significance of being bowl eligible. He said his team still hopes to find a way to the Big Ten title game. And he said he never worried that Illinois was hanging around longer than hed like.I never really felt uncomfortable as long as we had a lead, Claeys said.Illinois: Even if Lunt had played theres no guarantee Illinois would be better off with him than George. Turner has been Illinois only real receiving threat this season. Illinois needs its defense, which Smith has called the strength of the team, to create the kind of turnovers that gave the Gophers short fields Saturday.INTO THE WINDMinnesota quarterback Mitch Leidner and his receivers struggled with the wind. The senior was 10-19 for 112 yards, and the 20 mph gusts didnt help, Claeys said.It was big. It hurt the passes toward the sidelines, the coach said,McGHEES HITClaeys said after the game that hits like the one that led to McGhees ejection are difficult to avoid.When those guys are going down that low, its hard, he said. I hate to tell them to go down to the legs all the time. Weve got to stay below the shoulders.THANKFULLikely no one was happier to be spending Saturday in Champaign than Minnesota linebackers coach Mike Sherels. He tweeted Friday, his 32nd birthday, that this one is special because I almost didnt make it. Sherels spent much of August being treated for what has only been described as a serious digestive problem that required multiple surgeries. He rejoined the team in early October.UP NEXTMinnesota: Minnesota has a good shot at win No. 7 next Saturday when it faces Purdue at home.Illinois: The Illini get a second straight home game, hosting a Michigan State team thats down but still considerably stronger that Illinois.---Follow David Mercer on Twitter: (at)davidmercerAPAssociated Press college football coverage: http://collegefootball.ap.org/ Nail Yakupov Jersey . The Montreal Canadiens announced on Friday that the veteran forward will return to the teams line-up on Saturday night when the Habs visit the Nashville Predators. Peter Forsberg Jersey . Isner, ranked No. 14, won his eighth career singles title and took the title in New Zealand for the second time after his victory in 2010. The match was similar to Isners quarterfinal victory over fifth-seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber which went to three sets, all tiebreaks and contained no breaks of serve. http://www.cheapavalanchejerseys.com/?tag=adidas-matt-nieto-jersey . Third-seeded Murray had the easiest path to victory on New Years Eve, barely breaking a sweat during his 6-0, 6-0 win over 2,129th-ranked Qatari wildcard recipient Mousa Shanan Zayed. Wholesale Avalanche Jerseys . Neymar curled home a free kick from just outside the area to put the 2014 World Cup host ahead in the 44th minute. Three minutes after the break, a simple through pass from Paulinho freed Oscar and the Chelsea star rounded goalkeeper Jung Sung-ryong to extend Brazils lead. Cheap Adidas NHL Jerseys . Rinne played two periods in his first game since left hip surgery in early May. Gabriel Bourque scored 3:07 into the second period and Austin Watson tallied 5:15 later for Nashville. STANFORD, Calif. -- Reid Travis scored 15 of his 19 points in the first half and Stanford made coach Jerod Haase a winner in his home debut with a 96-69 victory over Cal State Northridge on Tuesday night.Haase, who began his college playing career at Bay Area rival Cal, came to Stanford after four seasons as coach at Alabama-Birmingham. He replaced Johnny Dawkins, who got Stanford to the NCAA Tournament just once in eight seasons.It means everything to give him a win, Travis said, especially all the work weve put in, just building that relationship with him and the coaching staff.Haase called the experience awesome.Had a blast. The thing that continues to stand out in my mind is how much I enjoy coaching these guys, he said. Theyre so willing to learn and do what we ask of them.Travis missed the final 22 games of last season with a stress fracture in his leg but has come out of the blocks fast. He had career highs of 24 points and 17 rebounds in the Cardinals opening win over Harvard on Friday in Shanghai, China.Against CSUN, the 6-foot-8 junior made 6 of 9 shots from the field and converted 7 of 10 free throws, a big improvement from his 10-for-19 effort at the foul line vs. Harvard.Travis also showed the kind of hustle Haase was known for during his playing days at Cal and Kansas when he knocked over a half-dozen seats on the baseline while scrambling for a loose ball.Its definitely what he tries to instill to us, Travis said of the hustle. Toughness is one of our standards. When we get on the court, its full speed ahead.Marcus Sheffield added 17 points, Josh Sharma scored a career-high 15 and Dorian Pickens had 14 for Stanford (2-0).CSUN coach Reggie Theus said 20 turnovers were more than his team could overcome.We did a poor job of handling the double teams early in the game. That really got us ooff in the wrong direction, said Theus, adding that the Matadors defense was sporadic.dddddddddddd A lot of times when things are not going well offensively, your defense suffers. Thats the mark of a team still trying to become a good team.Kendall Smith, who grew up an hour away from the Stanford campus, scored 17 points to lead CSUN (1-2).BIG PICTURECSUN: On the heels of an encouraging performance in a 102-87 loss at No. 16 UCLA -- a game that featured 14 lead changes -- the Matadors gave the ball away 20 times and were outscored 28-5 off turnovers.Stanford: The Cardinal made the long trek back from Shanghai, where it opened its season with an 80-70 win over Harvard, and showed little travel hangover. The Cardinal led by as many as 18 points in the first half and was up 31 points with less than 8 minutes left in the game.STAT OF THE NIGHT: Stanford was last in the Pac-12 last season in both 3-point percentage (.320) and 3-pointers made (.172) and was a quiet 1-for-6 from the arc against Harvard in its opener. But the Cardinal made eight of its first 12 shots from 3-point range and finished 9-for-16 against CSUN. Six different players made at least one, led by Sheffield, who was 3 for 4.UP NEXTCSUN returns home to play Saturday against Northern Illinois, which puts its 2-0 record on the line Wednesday against Idaho before heading to California.Stanford continues its three-game, weeklong home stand Thursday against Weber State, which dropped to 1-1 after a 69-68 loss at Pepperdine on Tuesday. Stanford better enjoy the home cooking while it can because it hits the road again for a Thanksgiving week tournament in Orlando, Florida beginning with a matchup vs. Miami on Nov. 24. ' ' '