Minnesota
Hidden Gems: Penn State-Minnesota Football 2016
We’re bringing back Hidden Gems! Some of you longtime BSD readers may remember this series where we reflect on the games that we’ve enjoyed over the years that haven’t quite lived on in Penn State lore. We’ll be giving these games their due, as we reflect on a variety of memorable (but not too memorable) games from different Nittany Lions teams over the years.
Next up…Penn State rebounds from a devastating (and controversial) defeat at Michigan by taking care of Illinois on the road.
The 2016 season does not want for notable games. The 24-21 upset of Ohio State. The 38-31 come-from-behind Big Ten Championship over Wisconsin. The 52-49 shootout in the Rose Bowl against USC.
But does any of that season happen without the overtime victory over Minnesota?
The 2016 season was the first with Trace McSorley at the helm, and a new offensive coordinator in Joe Moorhead. With rising star Saquon Barkley, could the Lions find a new gear offensively? How about the defense, which was normally stout, but had key roster turnover. Could the team, still recovering from sanctions, start to make some noise for themselves?
Well, to start the season, no.
The Lions opened with a 33-13 win over Kent State, then went on the field and laid a dud against Pitt, losing 42-39. That game ended with an interception in the Pitt endzone with the Lions trying to come back from an early 28-7 deficit.
A 34-27 nailbiter over Temple a week later did nothing to quell concerns, especially when it was followed by a 49-10 thrashing at the hands of Michigan in week 4.
Sitting at 2-2, 0-1 in Big Ten play, it was a wounded team when Minnesota came to town.
Unlike the Lions, the Golden Gophers were undefeated to start the season, with wins over Oregon State, Indiana State, and Colorado State.
The game was a back-and-forth affair in rainy, blustery conditions, with Minnesota striking first, going up 3-0 near the end of the first quarter.
The Lions tied it at 3 early in the second, but the Gophers executed their ground-and-pound game with startling efficiency. Heading into the half, Penn State trailed 13-3.
Then in the second half, we got to see Penn State’s offensive penchant under Joe Moorhead: explosive offense.
Following a run for no gain by Barkley, and an incomplete pass by McSorley, Irvin Charles broke off an 80-yard catch-and-run, making it 13-10. The Lions would add 10 more points on the next two possessions, capped by a Trace McSorley touchdown run to take a 20-13 lead.
Then on the ensuing kickoff, Joey Julius got leveled by linebacker Jaylen Waters, resulting in the latter’s ejection from the game. Julius had a penchant for big hits on kick returners, and Minnesota was having none of it.
Unfortunately, despite the penalty, the Gophers were able to go 85 yards in just 8 plays, including 6 running plays, to tie the game at 20 early in the fourth quarter.
Things looked most bleak when the offense stalled out (again, as it was wont to do in 2016) for most of the fourth quarter, and with 54 seconds left, Minnesota kicker Emmit Carpenter nailed a 37-yard field goal to take a 23-20 lead.
Not so fast, my friends.
Trace McSorley took the field, and led the team from the 25 yard line to the Minnesota 22 yard line in just 19 seconds of game play, and with 2 seconds to go in the game, Tyler Davis punched a 40-yard field goal through the uprights.
The teams headed to overtime, knotted at 23 apiece.
The defense came alive in overtime as Minnesota first took possession of the ball. A rushing gain of 1 yard followed by an Evan Schwan sack, and then an incomplete pass by Mitch Leidner left the Gophers with a 4th and 13.
Naturally, Emmit Carpenter nailed the 46-yard field goal attempt, putting the Gophers up 26-23.
Then the season turned on a single play.
Saquon Barkley, who had been utterly shut down by Minnesota (just 38 yards on 19 carries, with no touchdowns and -3 receiving yards on a single catch), took the handoff from Trace McSorley. In his signature style, Saquon accelerated quickly through the left side of the line, evading a tackle from defensive lineman Gaelin Elmore, then juking DB Adekunle Ayinde out of his shoes. However the juke let Elmore catch up to Barkley, who sped up quickly once again and used his powerful lower body to escape a diving tackle attempt, and leapt into the endzone to secure the 29-26 win.
The rest, as they say, is history. The Lions would go on to topple Ohio State, upend Iowa, defeat Wisconsin, and claim their first Big Ten Championship in the post-sanction era.
But were it not for the gritty win over Minnesota, the kicking heroics of Tyler Davis, and the explosive overtime run by Saquon Barkley, all may have been for naught.
Minnesota
Shorthanded Clippers can’t keep pace with Anthony Edwards and Minnesota
Anthony Edwards scored 31 points, Donte DiVincenzo added 18 and the surging Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Clippers 94-88 on Thursday night.
Jaden McDaniels and Ayo Dosunmu each scored 12 points and Rudy Gobert had 13 rebounds to help the Timberwolves improve to 5-1 since Feb. 9 and 3-1 since the All-Star break.
Edwards, returning to the site of the All-Star Game, where he was the MVP, was 12 for 24 from the floor and sealed the victory with a step-back three-pointer over two defenders for a 92-88 lead with 42.9 seconds left.
Minnesota improved to 2-0 on a three-game trip.
Derrick Jones Jr. scored 18 points and Bennedict Mathurin added 14 for the Clippers, who struggled from the outset with a season-low 38 points in the first half. Kris Dunn had 11 points for the Clippers (27-31), who have lost three consecutive games for the first time since December.
The Clippers struggled on offense without star Kawhi Leonard, out because of ankle soreness. The Clippers shot 40.5% from the floor, including 18.2% (four for 22) in the second quarter. Minnesota shot 43.4% in the game.
The Timberwolves (37-23) scored just 15 points in the second quarter and still topped the Clippers, who had 11. Minnesota led 44-38 at halftime behind 12 points from DiVincenzo and 11 from Edwards.
The Clippers led by six in the third quarter and were up 68-63 heading into the fourth. Edwards’ drive and reverse layup put the Timberwolves up for good at 76-74 with 7:40 remaining.
The Clippers pulled within one three times in the last 2½ minutes, but Edwards answered each time. He scored the Timberwolves’ last nine points.
Up next for Clippers: vs. New Orleans on Sunday night.
Minnesota
Church congregant filed lawsuit against alleged Minnesota church protesters
A St. Paul church member has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that a group of individuals, including journalist Don Lemon and activist Nekima Levy Armstrong, unlawfully disrupted service last month as part of a coordinated political demonstration.
The complaint, filed by Ann Doucette in the U.S. District Court of Minnesota, alleges that a Jan. 18 demonstration at Cities Church interfered with her ability to worship and caused her to suffer damages, including emotional distress and trauma.
In addition to the former CNN anchor and Armstrong, the complaint names journalist Georgia Fort and activists Will Kelly, Jerome Richardson, Trahern Crews and Jamael Lundy. It also names St. Paul school board member Chauntyll Allen.
Doucette and seven of the defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Doucette filed the complaint without the representation of an attorney. In an emailed statement to NBC News, Crews denied the lawsuit’s allegations “with empathy and compassion.”
The lawsuit accuses the group of civil conspiracy, aiding and abetting, intentional infliction of emotional distress, interference with religious exercise and trespassing.
“As a result of Defendants’ actions, the worship service was disrupted, congregants experienced fear and distress, and Plaintiff’s ability to freely exercise her religion in a private place of worship was unlawfully interfered with,” the lawsuit states.
All eight defendants are also facing federal charges for conspiracy against the rights of religious freedom at a place of worship and for interfering with the exercise of the right of religious freedom. Lemon has pleaded not guilty to all charges, saying outside the court, “I wanted to say this isn’t just about me, this is about all journalists, especially in the United States.”
Fort, Crews and Lundy were released on bond and entered not guilty pleas, according to The Associated Press.
This is the latest legal action tied to protests in the Twin Cities, where tensions remain over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
According to the lawsuit, the demonstrators engaged in “coordinated conduct” by organizing meetings ahead of the “Operation Pullup” protest and promoting it on social media.
The lawsuit alleges that on the morning of Jan. 18, a coordinated group of individuals entered Cities Church, halting the worship service, and chanting “‘ICE Out!’ and ‘Hands Up, Don’t Shoot!’” while obstructing aisles. Protesters could allegedly be seen “confronting the pastor and congregants in a menacing manner,” the lawsuit says, noting that their chanting and “aggressive gestures” caused “severe emotional distress, fear, anxiety, and trauma” and caused children “terror.”
Demonstrators gathered at the church because they said its pastor, David Easterwood, was the acting director of an ICE field office in the city, the lawsuit says.
Lemon was arrested in January in California and accused of violating federal civil rights law after covering the protest on Jan. 18. He was released on a personal recognizance bond before a federal grand jury in Minnesota returned the indictment against Lemon and eight co-defendants, all of whom are also named in Doucette’s lawsuit.
In the lawsuit, Doucette alleges that Lemon specifically livestreamed the protest, “noting congregants’ fear and distress, and appeared to take satisfaction in the disruption.”
Levy Armstrong, a Minneapolis-based civil rights attorney and activist, was also arrested for her participation in the St. Paul protest. Her arrest drew national attention after the White House shared on social media doctored photos where she appeared to be crying.
Minnesota
Man arrested, charged with threatening to kill a state senator
A Hubbard County man was arrested and charged after threatening to kill a Minnesota state senator on Facebook.
Court documents filed on Wednesday state the Minnesota State Patrol were investigating a threat posted by John Tobias saying that he would “kill every one of you treasonous [expletive] immediately” if he did not get money back that he claims he lost during the 2020 COVID shutdown.
Court documents go on to say that Tobias then called the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office asking for something to be done about “Minnesota Governor Tim Walz ‘unconstitutionally’ shutting down the state due to COVID-19.
The Minnesota State Patrol contacted Hubbard County deputies regarding Tobias. Court documents state Hubbard County investigators were already familiar with Tobais after speaking with him regarding similar threats he made in Jan.
The charging documents state that investigators searched Tobias’ residence on Tuesday and found an arsenal of guns and 45 boxes of ammunition.
Tobias was taken into custody. During an interview with law enforcement, Tobias admitted to making the threat on Facebook. He also told investigators that “he did not have any intention of killing anyone, but admitted he was trying to get people’s attention,” according to court records.
In late 2025, Lt. Col. Jeremy Geiger of the Minnesota State Patrol, who oversees Capitol security, told a panel of lawmakers that threats to lawmakers had doubled between 2024 and 2025.
Tobias made his first court appearance Wednesday morning and is expected back in court early next month.
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