P.J. Fleck keeps confidence in Dragan Kesich after North Carolina loss

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – The University of Minnesota football team is 0-1 after a 19-17 loss to North Carolina last Thursday night at Huntington Bank Stadium.

P.J. Fleck opened his Monday news conference wishing well to Tar Heels’ quarterback Max Johnson, who had to be carted off in the second half after suffering a broken leg. His dad, former Vikings’ quarterback Brad Johnson, and mom were seen on the TV broadcast visibly emotional.

‘I will always believe in him’

The Gophers had a chance for a walk-off win to start the season for the second straight year. But this time, Dragan Kesich didn’t make the kick. He beat Nebraska last year, but his kick from 47 yards out Thursday as time expired drifted wide right. In the first quarter, he also missed a 27-yard chip shot off the right upright. Kesich is the reigning Big Ten Kicker of the Year, and is likely headed to the NFL next season.

“I thought he hit the first one incredibly clean. That thing almost went over the near upright. I have 100 percent confidence in Dragan. I’ve always believed in him and I always will believe in him,” Fleck said. “I think he’s one of the best kickers in the country. Unfortunately it came at some really tough times for us. He was devastated after the game. It wasn’t that kick that lost us the game.”

Minnesota was lone Big Ten loss in Week 1

The Big Ten had all 18 teams play over the past week, and the conference went 17-1 overall. Yup, the Gophers were the only loss. Among the new teams to enter the league, USC beat LSU Sunday night, UCLA got a late field goal to beat Hawaii, Washington beat Weber State and Oregon handled Iowa.

As Fleck said Monday, there are 67 coaches this week who are excited, and 67 who are scratching their heads.

“Every single team, 67 of the 134 are either really excited today, or they’re really upset today. You’re 0-1, some are 1-0, that’s college football,” Fleck said. “Our guys competed their tail ends off, it’s unfortunate how it played out.”

Costly mistakes at critical times

The Gophers made plenty of mistakes in their first game, and still had a chance to win it at the end. They got flagged twice for an illegal formation on a punt. Fleck had to burn a timeout with 12 defenders on the field. They had a potential pick-6 dropped. They had a fumble recovery negated by a defensive penalty. Kesich’s last second field goal got pushed back because of a holding penalty. Max Brosmer lost a fumble that led to points for North Carolina.

Fleck settled for field goals at times when more aggressive play-calling could’ve gotten touchdowns.

“It’s not like I enjoy field goals more than touchdowns, nobody does. We just had some really key mistakes in critical situations, and I know our guys are eager to get those changed,” Fleck said.

Darius Taylor update

Fleck didn’t have much of an update on Darius Taylor Monday. Arguably the Gophers’ top offensive player, Taylor didn’t play Thursday after suffering a reported hamstring injury during fall camp. There’s a theory that they should be able to beat Rhode Island and Nevada at home without Taylor, so he may not see the field until Iowa on Sept. 21.

Fleck said he’ll play when he’s cleared. Without Taylor, the Gophers ran for just 79 of their 244 total yards.

“I don’t make any of those decisions. I don’t decide whether a player plays and when he comes back. Our guys get cleared, and when they get cleared by the medical staff, then they’re ready to play,” Fleck said. “Darius is one of our best football players, when he’s ready and he’s healthy, he’ll be on the football field.”

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