Mar'Keise Irving rushed for 110 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries to lead Minnesota to a 41-14 win over Northwestern in a Big Ten contest on Saturday at Evanston, Ill.

With the win, Minnesota (6-2, 4-1 Big Ten) won its fourth straight and took over sole possession of first place in the West division.

Ky Thomas rushed for 106 yards on 21 carries and Tanner Morgan went 12-of-17 passing for 134 yards and one interception for Minnesota.

Andrew Marty went 10-of-16 passing for 93 yards and two touchdowns, and Evan Hull rushed for 107 yards on 15 carries in defeat for Northwestern (3-5, 1-4), which lost its second straight.

Minnesota got off to a strong start, taking a 13-0 lead after the first quarter.

Following a 26-yard field goal by Matt Trickett with 7:55 left in the first, the Golden Gophers took a 10-0 lead 11 seconds later on a 25-yard fumble return for a touchdown by Justin Walley.

Trickett then connected on a 30-yard field goal with 52 seconds left in the first quarter to make it 13-0 Minnesota.

Northwestern made it a 13-7 game with 11:51 left in the second quarter on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Marty to Evan Hull.

But Minnesota regained a 13-point lead at 20-7 with 4:47 remaining in the second quarter on a 3-yard touchdown run by Irving.

After a scoreless third quarter, Minnesota took a 27-7 lead with 14:54 remaining in the game on an 18-yard touchdown run by Morgan.

The Golden Gophers then took a 34-7 lead with 9:33 left on a 41-yard touchdown run by Irving.

Northwestern closed to within 34-14 on a 17-yard touchdown pass from Marty to Berkeley Holman with 6:37 remaining.

Minnesota went ahead 41-14 with 1:56 left on a 24-yard touchdown by Derik LeCaptain.

--Field Level Media