From bowl games to the Big Apple, Tony Nelson has had plenty of memorable, selfieworthy moments since stepping onto the campus of the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities as a freshman for the Golden Gophers football team.
But nothing compares to last weekend.
Nelson, who graduated from Tracy Area High School in 2022 after winning two straight Class A state shot-put titles, is a redshirt junior offensive guard for the Gophers. On Saturday, the former Panther started his second-ever game on the right side of the Gophers’ line … on senior night in his team’s final home game of the season against the much-hated Wisconsin Badgers — a neighboring rival they have now played against 134 times.
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And in a setting that all young kids with football in their blood love to take advantage of in their back yard.
To cap it off, the Gophers won 17-7, keeping the coveted Axe trophy at home — to close out a perfect season at home.
“It was very special, obviously extra special because it was ‘Axe Week,’ along with playing in the snow,” Nelson said. “It’s what dreams are made of, really. It’s very special being with the team and helping out whenever you can, but it’s extra special when you’re starting and playing the whole game.
Some three hours after kickoff in the snow globe known as Huntington Bank Stadium, Nelson — number 59 on the field and number one in Tracy’s heart — and the Gophers ran through the snow to one of the end zones and grabbed Axe to begin celebrating with the U of M student body and the rest of the thousands of Gopher faithful.
“With the weather how it was with the snow … as a team, we talk about this being ‘our north,’ and it was that night for sure,” said Nelson. “It was a blizzard, and it was a lot of fun. The only way to describe it was I got caught up in the moment with emotions after the final whistle blew.”
Nelson’s only other start came last year in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in North Carolina — a game that the Gophers won, meaning they are 2-0 in games Nelson starts. He said he had a notion leading up to the game that he might get the call to start, and he was told before the game he would start to help anchor the line that controlled the line of scrimmage from start the finish.
One example of that came in the second quarter with the Gophers up 3-0. Darius Taylor took a handoff and cut to Nelson’s side of the line of scrimmage. Tony and his linemates created a gaping hole that Taylor burst through on his way to a 49-yard touchdown run.
“The center, Ashton Beers — we’ve been roommates for all four years I’ve been here — and I had a combination to the second level and we both put our guys to the ground,” Nelson recalled. “I looked up after rolling off my guy and (Taylor) was almost to the end zone. It was really cool.”
Gophers’ head coach P.J. Fleck gave both Beers and Nelson props for the big play during his segment on KFAN on Monday morning.
“I think Tony Nelson did a really good job at right guard,” Fleck said. “I love how he’s playing; he’s earned the opportunity to play a lot more. I think it was a good play call. We were able to get them in a certain defense, get them to not check. We kind of caught ‘em a little bit, got them on the double-team, and Darius took care of the rest.”
Off the field, Nelson earned an Ag Business Degree last spring and is now pursing his Master’s in Applied Economics with an emphasis on agriculture.
