Some Minnesota Gopher fans think their favorite football team rightfully deserved their bowl game bid despite their losing record. Other Minnesota fans believe their team would have been better off just staying home. Regardless of where your opinions lie within the bowl game spectrum, one thing is certain: The Minnesota Golden Gophers (5-7) will end their 2015 season by facing the Central Michigan Chippewas (7-5) in the Quick Lane Bowl at Ford Field on Dec. 28. For more details on the bowl, fans can visit QuickLaneBowl.com and follow @QuickLaneBowl on Twitter.
Here are some Central Michigan and Quick Lane Bowl-related facts to get you primed for the game.
- Central Michigan faced three “Power 5” conference opponents this season: Oklahoma State, Michigan State and Syracuse. They lost to all three.
- Central Michigan junior quarterback Cooper Rush put up impressive statistics this season. In 12 games, Rush threw for 3,703 yards and 25 touchdowns. He averaged over 300 passing yards per game during the regular season. He also broke the school record for passing yards in a single season. In the 2014 Bahamas Bowl, Rush threw for seven (!) touchdowns, an NCAA bowl game record.
- Central Michigan relies heavily on their air-it-out style offense. The Chippewas ranked second in the 13-team Mid-American Conference (MAC) in passing offense (366.8 yards per game). They ranked last in the conference in rushing offense (101.08 yards per game).
- Senior defensive back Kavon Frazier leads the Central Michigan defense with 103 total tackles on the season. In comparison, senior defensive back Antonio Johnson leads the Gophers with 98 total tackles. Frazier, who usually wears #5, will wear #21 in the Quick Lane Bowl to honor fallen teammate Derrick Nash. Nash, a fellow defensive back, passed away in June 2015 after battling leukemia.
- This is only the second edition of the Quick Lane Bowl. Rutgers defeated North Carolina 40-21 on Dec. 26, 2014 in the inaugural game. Less than 24,000 spectators, uh, “packed” the cavernous, 65,000-seat Ford Field.
- Prior to last season, the Quick Lane Bowl was titled the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl. The Pizza Bowl was played each season in Ford Field from 2009-13. Before 2009, the game was titled the Motor City Bowl, which ran from 1997-08.
- Central Michigan is no stranger to Ford Field. The Chippewas played in the Motor City Bowl in 2006, 2007, 2008 and the Little Caesars Bowl in 2012.
- Central Michigan University is located just 155 miles from Ford Field. The University of Minnesota, on the other hand, is located 692 miles away.
- Quick Lane is supporting Disabled American Veterans (DAV) in building awareness and raising funds through the Quick Lane Bowl festivities. The Ford Motor Company Fund is leading the way with a contribution of $50,000 to DAV. • The Quick Lane Bowl will donate $10 for every ticket purchased through the DAV by going to www.helpkeepthepromise.org.
A lot of fans will likely be donning maroon and gold-colored apparel on Monday evening. In the gigantic confines on Ford Field, this game may resemble more of a Friday night-lights high school matchup. Hopefully more fans than not will be cheering for the Gophers, despite Central Michigan’s obvious geographical home-field advantage. Minnesota has not won a bowl game since December 31, 2004. After a disappointing second-half stretch to the 2015 season, Gopher players and fans are due for a victory.
I am currently a member of the Quick Lane Bowl Preferred Blogger Program and this post is part of my involvement. While Quick Lane provides me material and necessary resources to complete various activities, all statements and sentiment in GopherHole are my own.