me.THE TAKEAWAYMinnesota: The Gophers get what in the end turned into a blowout win, a little payback for a loss at Illinois two years ago and guarantee themselves bowl eligibility. But the

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- On a windy Illinois afternoon that made passing an adventure, Minnesota knew it would need to run the ball if it wanted to pocket a win.But the Golden Gophers figured they might have to run a little farther than they did to beat the Illinois.A pair of early Illinois turnovers and a short punt gave Minnesota the ball at the Illinois 49-, 20- and 9-yard lines, and the Gophers turned each into a touchdown on the way to a 40-17 win.Rodney Smith did the bulk of the damage, rushing for 100 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Shannon Brooks added 59 yards and a score on a dozen carries.Smiths first touchdown was a 20-yard burst up the middle with 2:16 left in the first quarter, giving Minnesota (6-2, 3-2 Big Ten) the lead for good at 14-7. It followed a fumbled punt by Illinois Darius Mosely, recovered by Antione Winfield Jr. at the 20.We love to see that because were pretty good in the red zone, said Brooks, who added that those turnovers built momentum for Minnesota and robbed Illinois of energy. Yeah, definitely. Thats a stab, a stab in the back. That hurts.The turnovers, Illinois coach Lovie Smith said, swung the game hard and early for Minnesota.Its hard to win the football game when you start like that, Smith said. Those turnovers put us in a hole.Jeff George Jr., Illinois (2-6, 1-4) third-string quarterback and the son of Illini legend and longtime NFL quarterback Jeff George, started his second straight game and went 16-34 for 156 yards and a touchdown.Illinois starter Wes Lunt suited up but sat out his third straight game with a back injury. Second-string quarterback Chayce Crouch, who injured a shoulder in a win over Rutgers two weeks ago, is out for the season after having surgery Monday, Smith confirmed.Illinois receiver Malik Turner left the field on a stretcher in the first half after a hit by Minnesota safety Duke McGhee. Turner was taken to a local hospital but was back in the locker room before the end of the game, Smith said, though further information about his injury was not available.It was terrifying. It was emotional, especially with a kid like that who works so hard, to see a tragic injury like that, Smith said.McGhee was flagged for targeting and ejected from the game.THE TAKEAWAYMinnesota: The Gophers get what in the end turned into a blowout win, a little payback for a loss at Illinois two years ago and guarantee themselves bowl eligibility. But they struggled for three quarters to put away a limited Illini team. While some players acknowledged celebrating a bit, Minnesota coach Tracy Claeys downplayed the significance of being bowl eligible. He said his team still hopes to find a way to the Big Ten title game. And he said he never worried that Illinois was hanging around longer than hed like.I never really felt uncomfortable as long as we had a lead, Claeys said.Illinois: Even if Lunt had played theres no guarantee Illinois would be better off with him than George. Turner has been Illinois only real receiving threat this season. Illinois needs its defense, which Smith has called the strength of the team, to create the kind of turnovers that gave the Gophers short fields Saturday.INTO THE WINDMinnesota quarterback Mitch Leidner and his receivers struggled with the wind. The senior was 10-19 for 112 yards, and the 20 mph gusts didnt help, Claeys said.It was big. It hurt the passes toward the sidelines, the coach said,McGHEES HITClaeys said after the game that hits like the one that led to McGhees ejection are difficult to avoid.When those guys are going down that low, its hard, he said. I hate to tell them to go down to the legs all the time. Weve got to stay below the shoulders.THANKFULLikely no one was happier to be spending Saturday in Champaign than Minnesota linebackers coach Mike Sherels. He tweeted Friday, his 32nd birthday, that this one is special because I almost didnt make it. Sherels spent much of August being treated for what has only been described as a serious digestive problem that required multiple surgeries. He rejoined the team in early October.UP NEXTMinnesota: Minnesota has a good shot at win No. 7 next Saturday when it faces Purdue at home.Illinois: The Illini get a second straight home game, hosting a Michigan State team thats down but still considerably stronger that Illinois.---Follow David Mercer on Twitter: (at)davidmercerAPAssociated Press college football coverage: http://collegefootball.ap.org/ Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists. Cheap Football Jerseys China . PAUL, Minn. http://www.cheapfootballjerseysoutlet.com/ . Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee? Green had bounced around the NBA when he wasnt playing overseas. The Pacers gave up on Plumlee after just one season. Now Green and Plumlee are key cogs in the Suns surprising breakout season. Wholesale Football Jerseys Authentic .B. -- The Baie-Comeau Drakkar took over sole possession of first place atop the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League on Thursday with their sixth straight win. Wholesale Football Jerseys . Then the Pacers gave Oladipo and his Orlando teammates the cold shoulder. Paul Georges buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter spurred a 21-4 run, finally sending Indiana past the Magic 97-87 in a tougher-than-expected opening night matchup. LAS CRUCES, N.M. -- Jemerrio Jones scored 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting and Sidy NDir was 6-for-8 shooting and scored 15 points as New Mexico State beat Air Force 78-70 on Wednesday night.Jones also had seven rebounds and seven assists.Joe Garzas 3 with 1:51 gave the Aggies a 72-68 cushion and they held off Air Force down the stretch.Air Force led 31-27 at the half and the lead went to seven on Frank Tooheys 3-pointer 57 seconds into the second half. New Mexico (6-2) went on a 10-2 run, which included 3s by Ian Baker and NDir, and the Aggies led 37-36 and never trailed again.ddddddddddddHayden Graham led Air Force with 20 points, Jacob Van had 15, Ryan Manning added 12, and Toohey finished with 10.Garza had 11 points for the Aggies and Eli Chuha had 10 points and six rebounds. cheap falcons jerseys cheap ravens jerseys cheap bills jerseys cheap bears jerseys cheap bengals jerseys cheap cowboys jerseys cheap lions jerseys cheap texans jerseys cheap colts jerseys cheap jaguars jerseys cheap chiefs jerseys cheap rams jerseys cheap dolphins jerseys cheap vikings jerseys cheap saints jerseys cheap giants jerseys cheap jets jerseys cheap eagles jerseys cheap steelers jerseys cheap 49ers jerseys ' ' '