Drake Lindsey’s three TD passes lead Minnesota past Akron 41-7

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Drake Lindsey threw for 204 yards and three touchdowns on Saturday as Minnesota defeated Akron 41-7

Lindsey completed 17 of 31 passes as Minnesota bounced back from a 38-13 loss to Mississippi State last week.

Two of Lindsey’s touchdown passes were NFL caliber. In the second quarter, he hit Noah Jennings on a short post pattern, zipping the ball just past the fingertips of a defender for a 6-yard touchdown pass. Then in the third quarter, Jalen Smith hauled in an 18-yard scoring strike when Lindsey put the perfect touch on a fade route in the corner of the end zone.

Akron got on the board in the fourth quarter when Marcellus Williams scored on a 10-yard run, making it 41-7.

The Zips, who used a fan to call plays on its first drive last week as part of a promotion, didn’t fare much better with their regular coaches running the show. Starting quarterback Cibastian Broughton ...