5 things that stood out in the Gophers' surprise win over No. 11 USC

The Gophers defeated No. 11 USC 24-17 on Saturday night. It's their fifth win over a ranked opponent under PJ Fleck and arguably their biggest since the upset of No. 14 Wisconsin in 2021. Let's look at five things that stood out in the game…

This Gophers team is at its best when it plays Taylor. Last week, Max Brosmer proved they can move the ball through the air, but Taylor needs to have more than 20 throws a week. He opened Saturday night's game with an absolute truck stick run through a USC defender. A 40-yard run off a facemask penalty later in the first half was just further proof of how special he is.

The thing that stood out most against USC was his patience. A true sophomore, he has the patience of an NFL player. Running backs at the college level are truly game-changing players and Taylor transformed Minnesota's win over the Trojans. He finished the night with 30 touches for exactly 200 yards.

Perich slowly became more integrated into the Gophers' defense over the course of his actual freshman season. Last week against Michigan, the Esko, Minnesota native showed how special he can be as a returner, but this week against USC he showed he deserves to be an all-down player on defense.

Kerry Brown suffered an injury early in the game, which opened the door for Perich to get more work on early downs. He took the opportunity and ran away. He forced a fumble and had six total tackles, then finished the night with a game-winning interception. He's getting better and better every game.

“He's incredible. “He’s one of the best playmakers I’ve ever seen and he’s only 18 years old,” Fleck said of Perich.

Joyner, who believed he was the Gophers' first defensive player with double-digit sacks since 2013, had just one sack in the game. He still only has one sack, but he came up big when he hit the arm of USC quarterback Miller Moss to force an interception to stop a Trojans push that brought them into Minnesota territory and threatened to building a 17-10 lead in about 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

The Trojans ran for 173 yards on the ground. For the fourth straight game against a major conference opponent, Minnesota's front seven dominated the run game. This should be the strength of the Gophers defense. Through six games, both the Gophers' offensive and defensive lines are arguably the most disappointing units on their football team.

This Gophers team is just a few jumps away from being 5-1 and realistically ranked in the top 20. Close games are often due to special situations that usually come down to coaching. Minnesota was one kick away from beating North Carolina, an unwarranted offside call gave them a chance to beat Michigan, and they led Iowa 14-7 at halftime.

Hindsight is always 20/20, but the performance against USC showed once again that this team isn't far off.