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Game Balls: Who were Minnesota’s top performers in 23-10 win over Buffalo?

The Minnesota Golden Gophers began their 2025 season on Thursday night on the right foot with a 23-10 victory over the Buffalo Bulls. Each week this season, Gophers Nation will hand out game balls to Minnesota’s top performers.

QB Drake Lindsey

The redshirt freshman out of Arkansas was highly impressive, completing 19-of-35 passing attempts for 290 yards and two touchdowns. He did have one interception in the game, but it was far from his fault. Several well-thrown passes were also dropped by their intended targets. His 60-yard touchdown pass to Jalen Smith late in the third quarter effectively put the game out of reach for Buffalo.

RB Darius Taylor

It was a terrific night for Taylor, who was the only Gophers running back to find consistent success. The junior tailback finished the day with 30 carries for 141 yards, as well as bringing in four receptions for 36 yards.

WR Jalen Smith

The redshirt freshman wide receiver didn’t have a perfect night. He had several missed opportunities early on, but when the lights were the brightest, Smith came through, getting wide open en route to a 60-yard touchdown reception. The Minnesota native was targeted a team-high nine times throughout the evening.

Entire Defensive Line

We have to give credit to the entirety of the Gophers’ defensive line, which was dominant in the trenches. The Buffalo offense was unable to muster anything on the ground with 24 carries for 44 yards. Deven Eastern and Jalen-Logan Redding were especially strong in clogging up the middle while combining for 1.5 tackles for loss. Anthony Smith had 1.5 tackles for loss and half a sack as well.

LB Maverick Baranowski

Baranowski, expected to be a leader of the Minnesota defense this fall, began his season with 10 tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss.

LB Devon Williams

Baranowski wasn’t the only Gophers linebacker with a strong performance as the veteran Devon Williams started his final season with eight tackles, including six solo tackles. He also had one sack in the win.

DC Danny Collins

It was a strong first game as Minnesota’s defensive coordinator. The Gophers’ defense kept Buffalo to just 151 total yards (107 passing yards, 44 rushing yards) as well as 1-for-11 on third down. Add in seven tackles for loss, two sacks, and one forced fumble/recovery, it’s safe to say it was a pretty strong debut for Collins.

STC Bob Ligashesky / Gophers Special Teams

Another game ball is going to a group. Bob Ligashesky’s special teams unit was nearly perfect on Thursday night. Starting kicker Brady Denaburg was 3-for-3 in field goal attempts from 25, 29, and 38 yards. Punter Tom Weston averaged 43.3 yards per punt across three attempts with a long of 50. Two of his three punts pinned the Bulls deep in their own territory, including one punt being down at the one-yard line. Both positions were major question marks coming into week one, and you couldn’t have asked for a better start through the team’s first 60 minutes of action.

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