New MN Gophers Freshman QB Looks Special

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Drake Lindsey, Minnesota Gophers
Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

Max Brosmer was in attendance on Thursday night as the Minnesota Gophers kicked off their 2025 season against the Buffalo Bulls. He was was watching from the sidelines though. The former starter under P.J. Fleck is now employed by the Minnesota Vikings. That didn’t stop him from supporting his former backup.

Drake Lindsey takes the reins this season and the expectations are high. He has early supporters that expect him to thrive. A lighter test against the Bulls was a perfect place to start.

While Lindsey will have to do it against top Big Ten competition, he came out and delivered a statement in his first starting action.

Lindsey slings it early for MN Gophers

Arguably the two most important traits to key in on for a quarterback are arm strength and accuracy. If you can do both of those things well, you’ve got a chance.

Minnesota saw their freshman quarterback come out and brandish the howitzer right away. His first completion of the night was a deep out route to do-it-all talent Koi Perich. A couple of plays later he went to the opposite sideline and hit Jalen Smith in the hands on a pass that the wideout dropped.

Both throws showed just how quickly Lindsey can get the ball out. He had no problems pushing past the hash marks either. That velocity and accuracy didn’t change as the night went on either.

Had a fluke play by a tumbling Jameson Geers not put a damper on the first half, it would have been hard not to look at the drives with an assessment of perfection. Taking the ball over with 1:17 left in the half, Lindsey had 70 yards to drive in order to double up the score.

As he had done earlier in the contest, Lindsey remained poised as the time ticked down. He connected with Logan Loya then found Le’Meke Brockington and Javon Tracy to get within the 15 yard line. The was also a well-laced dart to Geers that resulted in a pass interference penalty and brought the Gophers closer.

With 15 seconds left in the half, Lindsey mad his first mistake. Geers was open in the left flat but the young QB threw into double coverage in the end zone. Thankfully Smith broke up the pass, but Lindsey followed with a sack and needed to simply cash the half and play for another down.

There will be some acclimation time as Lindsey continues to settle in. The first half as the new starting quarterback was definitely a hard launch though.

Related: CFB Sleeping on Future 1st Round Pick Gophers QB…?

Gophers spread the ball around despite drops

Plenty has been made about the intention for Minnesota to use Koi Perich on both sides of the ball. He made an impact, but wasn’t forced into a prominent wide receiver role early. Instead, Lindsey utilized the entirety of his pass catchers but they didn’t all produce.

Lindsey targeted Jalen Smith multiple times only for the wide receiver to drop the ball. He got into the box score with a 16 yard reception on his seventh target of the evening. Purdue transfer tight end Drew Biber struggled to haul in a swing pass in the flat as well.

Tight end Jameson Geers was a clear security blanket for the young quarterback. That didn’t keep him from contributing to the butter finger brigade though. He failed to catch a wide open target in the middle of the season later in third third quarter.

Javon Tracy hauled in a deep ball for 35 yards, and Le’Meke Brockington found space to exploit the defense and get in on the action. The hope was that this wide receiver room would be pretty talented. It took time for Smith to settle in, but Lindsey continued to feed him targets. His ninth of the evening went for a 60-yard score.

It was perfect execution by the youngster on the touchdown as well. He avoided pressure in the pocket, climbed the field, and delivered the strike in stride.

The eyes have it for Lindsey

You can’t win a Heisman trophy in the first game of the season. You also can’t be drafted into the NFL as a redshirt freshman. That doesn’t mean Drake Lindsey didn’t come out and immediately turn heads for the Golden Gophers.

Max Brosmer put up one of the best seasons in program history for the Gophers last year. Minnesota reaching new heights this season and beyond will be a byproduct of Lindsey following his lead. So far, he’s doing just fine.

Despite the drops, Lindsey finished with 290 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 19-of-35 passing. He won’t see a test next weekend against Northwestern State, but the hype train can keep rolling down the tracks.

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