Gophers coach Fleck expects RB Ibrahim to play this week, previews game vs. Illinois

Gophers coach P.J. Fleck met with reporters on Monday. The Gophers come off their bye week for a game Saturday at Illinois. They should get back the services of running back Mo Ibrahim. He was out with a foot injury in their last game vs. Purdue.

Fleck is happy with how the team has responded since falling to the Boilermakers.

“This team’s got incredible resolve,” Fleck said. “And we’re not perfect. I think some people think that just because you win your first four games, everything should be perfect. Nobody’s perfect. Watch college football, watch any game in college football. It’s hard. But these they came back to work right away. They respond. What I learned about them as a response is exactly what you want to see in the team that we have. We’re really proud of the response that they had.”

***Click the video box above to watch Fleck’s Monday news conference***

Illinois senior quarterback Tommy DeVito’s status for Saturday is still unknown. DeVito, who transferred from Syracuse in the offseason, had his left ankle rolled up in the first quarter of Illinois’ 9-6 victory over Iowa Saturday. If he can’t play, the Gophers would catch a huge break. DeVito was among several starters injured against Iowa, including sophomore wide receiver Isaiah Williams, sophomore defensive back Taz Nicholson and senior linebacker Isaac Darkangelo.

The Gophers are a 6.5 point favorite, indicating that the oddsmakers expect Illinois to be short-handed. The Illini have a bye week after the Gophers game.

The Gophers are 1-1 in Big Ten games, Illinois is 2-1.