MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — It was a winter wonderland Saturday afternoon into Saturday night at Huntington Bank Stadium.
There were shovel races and snow angels.
There were maroon-and-gold-clad fans jumping around to the song that made red-and-white famous.
Then there was a football player sprinting from goal line to goal line, gripping a six-foot-long piece of wood affixed to a two-sided block shaped like an axe.
And in the end, P.J. Fleck celebrated his 45th birthday by crowd-surfing through the Minnesota locker room as players tossed him the air, finishing his ninth regular season with the program in jubilant fashion.
The second-longest tenured coach in the Big Ten, Fleck has helped infuse the Gophers with some welcomed stability, a model of consistency that now includes partying with Paul Bunyan’s Axe.
Drake Lindsey threw a touchdown pass to Jameson Geers for the only second-half score in snow-globe conditions, and John Nestor had two interceptions and a fumble recovery for Minnesota in a 17-7 victory over Wisconsin on Saturday to keep possession of the axe and overtake the all-time series lead at 64-63-8.
“That’s Gopher football,” Fleck said, “from the weather to the style we played with.”
The announced crowd of 46,038, for once, did not include large blocks of red-clad Badger fans, known for making their presence known during Border Battle games in Minneapolis.
This time, the few that decided to make the trek and sit in the swirling snow, had little to cheer about in one of their worst seasons in decades.
Minnesota (7-5, 5-4 Big Ten) has now won five of the last eight matchups with Wisconsin (4-8, 2-7) after a 14-game losing streak that was the longest for either side.
“That’s why you come to Minnesota, for games like this and the rivalries,” said Geers, who got to enjoy hoisting the axe in four of his five seasons.
The Badgers, who missed a second straight bowl season after making 22 in a row, finished with their most losses since a 1-10 record in 1990.
With snow whitening the field and wind whipping through the air all afternoon, Lindsey completed 18 of 24 passes in a safe diet of screen plays and out routes for 90 yards.
It was difficult at times to figure out how far those passes were going, but a grounds crew worked all four quarters to keep yard lines clear of snow.
By the end of the night, their work included uncovering both end zones and the big M at the center of the field.
Lindsey, a redshirt freshman, nailed his most important throw on third-and-7 from the 13 in the third quarter, floating a perfectly placed ball over the line so his trusty senior tight end could secure a jumping catch in traffic as he tumbled to the turf for a 10-point lead that might as well have been double that on this wintry day for a Badgers offense that entered the game with the second-fewest yards and points in the FBS.
Geers celebrated by flopping on his back and carving out a snow angel amid the flakes.
Carter Smith threw a fourth-and-goal touchdown pass to Jackson Acker with 21 seconds left in the first half, after Hunter Simmons set up the score with a 67-yard completion to Vinny Anthony. The Badgers despite the conditions broke their streak of six straight games under 100 passing yards.
But for the ninth time this season, they were held under 300 total yards.
“As a defense you kind of start to play a little tight and you start to feel like a touchdown is the end-all, be-all, and you’re playing on the ropes,” linebacker Mason Reiger said. “It’s tough when you’re put in some tough situations, but great defenses find a way, and I’m proud of the way our defense fought and played all year.”
Though they failed to capitalize on Nestor’s first two takeaways, the Gophers matched the plus-three turnover margin goal they set for themselves in practice during the week.
The transfer cornerback from Iowa delivered interceptions on consecutive third quarter drives, just as the Badgers were starting to find success in the passing game that eluded them all season.
Nestor darted in front of Trech Kekahuna for the pick and raced 68 yards before getting tackled by Simmons. Minnesota’s season leader with five interceptions in 10 games, Nestor had two of his team-high-tying nine tackles in the game for loss.
“He fits so well here,” Fleck said. “He’s the ultimate competitor.”
By going 7-0 at Huntington Bank Stadium, the Gophers went unbeaten at home for the first time since 1967 when they tied for first in the 10-team Big Ten with Indiana and Purdue.
Minnesota now awaits its bowl game invitation, with the Rate Bowl in Phoenix on Dec. 26 or the Pinstripe Bowl in New York on Dec. 27 as two of the most realistic possibilities.