EVANSTON, Illinois (Ticker) -- Minnesota shook off its first dose of adversity this season.
Asad Abdul-Khaliq and Jared Ellerson hooked up for touchdown passes of 96 and 82 yards as the 16th-ranked Golden Gophers rallied from a 14-point deficit to post a 42-17 Big Ten Conference victory over Northwestern.
Minnesota (6-0, 2-0) matched its best start since 1960, when it won the national championship and shared the Big Ten title.
Abdul-Khaliq's first TD pass to Ellerson was the longest in school history, topping Marquel Fleetwood's 94-yarder to John Lewis against Michigan on October 24, 1992.
"I was just glad we got a first down," Minnesota coach Glen Mason said of the long touchdown. "We didn't have any in the first quarter. (Plays like that) are about momentum. It puts a little confidence in your team and takes the wind away from them."
While Abdul-Khaliq threw four touchdown passes, running back Marion Barber III continued his stellar season with a pair of 31-yard touchdown runs. He already has rushed for 13 TDs this year, tying the school mark held by Jim Perkins and Darrell Thompson.
The Golden Gophers did not trail at any point during their first five games, but may have been guilty of looking ahead to next week's contest against Michigan.
Minnesota spotted Northwestern (2-4, 0-2) a 14-0 lead in the first 9 1/2 minutes before the Golden Gophers got their potent offense untracked.
"The first quarter was the worst quarter of football from my perspective I've ever been associated with as a coach," Mason said. "I was very pleased with the way the game turned out, but I wasn't very happy with the way it started. We got better during the course of the game. It's the biggest swing I've ever been around."
Abdul-Khaliq got things rolling with his 96-yard TD to Ellerson 6:20 into the second quarter that cut Northwestern's lead in half.
The Golden Gophers continued to hurt the Wildcats with their quick-strike ability, tying it on Barber's 31-yard romp with 5:16 left in the first half.
After Abdul-Khaliq's six-yard TD pass to Ben Utecht gave Minnesota a 21-14 lead, Slade Larscheid kicked a 39-yard field goal for Northwestern with four seconds left in the half. It was the Wildcats' first field goal of the season.
But Abdul-Khaliq and Ellerson combined again for an 82-yard TD in the first minute of the second half before Barber's second 31-yard scamper made it 35-17 with 7:06 left in the third period.
"I think this was a game lost by attitide, playing with a fire and passion," Northwestern coach Randy Walker said. "They made some big plays, and big plays are disheartening."
Abdul-Khaliq only completed 12-of-17 passes but threw for 331 yards, an average of 27.5 yards per completion. Ellerson finished with four receptions for 189 yards.
Minnesota wore down Northwestern in the second half, rolling up 572 yards of total offense. Thomas Tapeh rushed for 81 yards on 13 carries while Barber added 77 yards on 11 attempts.
The Golden Gophers have surpassed 40 points in five of their six games the season. The exception came in last week's 20-14 victory at Penn State.
Northwestern was held to just 76 yards on the ground. Brett Basenez completed 19-of-32 passes for 196 yards with two interceptions for the Wildcats.
"I felt like we gave this one away, and I think our kids felt that way," Walker added. "And our kids are fragile, and they just thought, 'Man, we gave this one away.'''
Northwestern scored on its first two possessions before Minnesota's defense. Jason Wright's 12-yard TD run capped a 10-play, 63-yard drive before Basenez completed a 13-play, 62-yard march with a two-yard keeper.
Minnesota went three-and-out on its first three possessions before Khaliq ignited the offense.
