BleedGopher
Well-known member
- Joined
- Nov 11, 2008
- Messages
- 60,866
- Reaction score
- 16,408
- Points
- 113
per Rand:
For so many reasons then, it is strange to think this let alone write this: Saturday’s matchup at TCF Bank Stadium between the Gophers and Badgers is the biggest home game for a Minnesota football team since that Vikings/Falcons game in terms of pregame anticipation and what’s at stake.
The Vikings have had some big ones since then — including a playoff game that produced the Minneapolis Miracle and a regular-season game pitting Brett Favre against his rival former team — but their biggest ones have been on the road: three NFC title game losses after the 2000, 2009 and 2017 seasons.
The stakes seem pretty clear: A win by the Gophers would give them the Big Ten West title, a berth in the conference championship against Ohio State and a prime opportunity to earn at least a Rose Bowl bid — the dream of a lot of people far older than me. Wins over Wisconsin and Ohio State would vault Minnesota into the College Football Playoff discussion.
A loss to Wisconsin — by the way, Minnesota’s biggest rival — would give the Badgers the West title and leave the Gophers at 10-2. That’s a dream season under most circumstances and would lead to a strong bowl game bid, but it would also fall short of redrawn fantasy expectations.
Add to the mix a first-ever visit from ESPN’s “College GameDay,” the traveling show that celebrates the biggest and best things in the sport.
www.startribune.com
Go Gophers!!
For so many reasons then, it is strange to think this let alone write this: Saturday’s matchup at TCF Bank Stadium between the Gophers and Badgers is the biggest home game for a Minnesota football team since that Vikings/Falcons game in terms of pregame anticipation and what’s at stake.
The Vikings have had some big ones since then — including a playoff game that produced the Minneapolis Miracle and a regular-season game pitting Brett Favre against his rival former team — but their biggest ones have been on the road: three NFC title game losses after the 2000, 2009 and 2017 seasons.
The stakes seem pretty clear: A win by the Gophers would give them the Big Ten West title, a berth in the conference championship against Ohio State and a prime opportunity to earn at least a Rose Bowl bid — the dream of a lot of people far older than me. Wins over Wisconsin and Ohio State would vault Minnesota into the College Football Playoff discussion.
A loss to Wisconsin — by the way, Minnesota’s biggest rival — would give the Badgers the West title and leave the Gophers at 10-2. That’s a dream season under most circumstances and would lead to a strong bowl game bid, but it would also fall short of redrawn fantasy expectations.
Add to the mix a first-ever visit from ESPN’s “College GameDay,” the traveling show that celebrates the biggest and best things in the sport.
Gophers vs. Badgers: It's finally time for Minnesotans to experience one of those once-in-a-decade kind of football games
Looking at what's at stake, the Gophers-Badgers game on Saturday afternoon will be the biggest football game for Minnesota fans in 20 years.
www.startribune.com
Go Gophers!!