Gophers football 2022: 3 sneaky games on Minnesota’s schedule

BleedGopher

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WEEK 1: GOPHERS HOST NEW MEXICO STATE

The Gophers host New Mexico State under the lights at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 1 at Huntington Bank Stadium. On the surface, it’s a game Minnesota should run away with. The Gophers are 30-plus point favorites, but remember, they were four-touchdown favorites last year at home against Bowling Green. We all know how that ended.

It’s Jerry Kills return to Minnesota, and there’s no love lost with Fleck. Kill vowed after Tracy Claeys was fired, and replaced by Fleck, that he would never step foot on the Minnesota campus again. The Aggies won just two games last year, and will be playing just four days removed from their season opener against Nevada. Do not make this more interesting than it needs to be, send Kill home with a loss and a nice check for the athletic department.

WEEK 4: AT MICHIGAN STATE

The Gophers should be heading to East Lansing 3-0 after hosting New Mexico State, Western Illinois and Colorado in three straight non-conference games at Huntington Bank Stadium. They’ll be on the road for the first time on Sept. 24, against a Spartans’ program that won 11 games under Mel Tucker. They started 8-0, including an emotional 37-33 win over rival Michigan. Predictably, they laid an egg at Purdue the following week.

It’s Minnesota’s Big Ten opener, and it’s on the road in what will be a tough test four weeks into the season.

WEEK 6: AT ILLINOIS

The Gophers shouldn’t need any extra motivation heading to Champaign to face Illinois on Oct. 15. The Illini went 5-7 in Bret Bielema’s first season. One of those five wins came at Huntington Bank Stadium, 14-6 over Minnesota. It was a day where the Gophers ran for just 89 yards, and their only score came from Tanner Morgan with less than five minutes to play.

The Gophers will be coming off hosting Purdue for Homecoming the week before, and head to Penn State the week after for their "White Out" game in Happy Valley. The Illini will be coming off games at Wisconsin and against Iowa, with a road trip to Nebraska after hosting the Gophers. Minnesota should have the edge and talent, and it’s a game they simply have to win.

The Gophers’ Big Ten West fate, like it usually does, probably hinges on the last two games against Iowa and at Wisconsin. But these are three games they can’t just simply show up and expect to win, and Fleck will be the first one to say that.


Go Gophers!!
 


Gophers had a top 10 defense last year, have one of the best D coordinators in college football plus return lots of good players from a year ago and drop to 49th ?? Disregard this guy- very poorly researched.
 
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I really really think that I am ready to stop hearing references to the Bowling Green game.......
 

I really really think that I am ready to stop hearing references to the Bowling Green game.......

Sorry, but that game is now part of Gophers' history. and in the broader sense, it has become a metaphor for losing a game to a seemingly inferior opponent.

in 2007, Michigan was ranked #5 in the pre-season poll, and lost its season opener to Appalachian State.

after that, any potential upset for the next few years was compared to Michigan/App State.

Well, the Gophers now have their "Appalachian State" game. and it's not going to go away for a while.

I guarantee you that, if the Gophers find themselves in a close game this year against any underdog, the TV announcers will bring up Bowling Green. the only way to avoid it is to beat the crap out of any 'lesser' team on the schedule.
 



My Sioux friends will never let me forget the UND games in 2007 and 2011.
 

Beating the crap out of lesser teams is a resutl that I can get behind
 

this is our year. we have the experience, coaches and culture.
 












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