Minnesota 20, Northwestern 17: Philip Nelson threw for 112 yards and a touchdown to lead the Golden Gophers to a win over the host Wildcats.

Minnesota (5-2, 1-2 Big Ten) forced three turnovers and David Cobb rushed for 103 yards as the Gophers won the ground battle 176 to 94.

Northwestern (4-3, 0-3) got 234 passing yards and a touchdown from quarterback Trevor Siemian, making his first start of the year in place of the injured Kain Colter. The Wildcats, entering the game ranked No. 1 in the Big Ten and No. 5 in the nation in takeaways, failed to cause a turnover.

The Wildcats took the lead in the first quarter on Stephen Buckley's 3-yard touchdown run, but Nelson found Derrick Engel on a 29-yard scoring hookup with 6:48 to play in the second quarter to make it 7-7. James Manuel intercepted Siemian and returned it 24 yards for a touchdown to put the Gophers on top late in the third stanza.

Minnesota got field goals of 34 and 38 yards by Chris Hawthorne and led by 10 with 5:24 to play in the fourth quarter. Siemian connected with Tony Jones on a 10-yard touchdown with just over two minutes remaining, but the Wildcats couldn't get the ball back to try to tie the game.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Manuel's score was Minnesota's second interception return for a touchdown this season. … Northwestern's streak of 10 consecutive games with an interception came to and end - compiling 23 picks in those 10 contests. … Minnesota snapped a three-game losing streak against the Wildcats and is 2-5 against the Wildcats since 2008.