The GoFars are going to open up the Big 10 season with a trip to visit a football juggernaut, Ohio State. Clearly, Ohio State and their rival Michigan have been in their own top tier of the Big Ten for decades. After those two clubs, we’ve seen the likes of Wisconsin, Penn State, Illinois and Purdue snag Big Ten titles over the years. Chronic bottom finishers of the Big Ten are Indiana and the Gophers, who both have been dragging along over the years with long droughts from seeing roses. Will these trends continue? Ohio State and Michigan have looked shaky this season while Penn State and Wisconsin look like they will be seeing life through rose colored glasses on New Year’s Day.
What about Minnesota?
The Gophers are enjoying a solid breakout this season with a 4-0 record in non-conference play. One stat, more than any other in particular, has made the biggest impact on their four wins: Turnovers. The Gophers are ranked fourth in the nation in turnover margin with an average of +2.75/game. The Gophers have turned the ball over two times in their four games but they have taken the ball away 13 times. Obviously, the defense needs to take a lot of the credit, as they have created eight interceptions and forced five fumbles. However, Adam Weber has been stellar for his squad, going 79-110-1. This means that Weber has been chucking up the ball an average 27.5 times per game and he has had only one taken away.
I don’t think it is fair that the Gophers are 17-point underdogs to Ohio State in this game. Even if RB Beanie Wells is healthy enough to play this weekend, it doesn’t take away from the fact that Ohio State is only averaging 14.8 points/game. In their first four games, OSU’s competition has not been very stiff, with the exception of USC. The only convincing win they’ve had was their 43-0 opener against DI-AA, Youngstown State. I think the Gophers are riding high on confidence to keep this game a lot closer than 17 points.
GAME OF INTEREST
University of Minnesota "Golden Gophers" (4-0) vs. #14/13 Ohio State University “Buckeyes” (3-1) – 11:03am Ohio Stadium “The Big Horseshoe” – Columbus, OH
Radio: WCCO – 830AM
TV: Big Ten Network
If you break down the early-season numbers on these two teams, you’ll find that this looks like a very good matchup on paper. The Gophers pass defense is ranked #94 in the nation while the Buckeyes pass offense has also struggled, being ranked #104. The biggest discrepancy is between Ohio State’s defense - ranked #15 overall – and the Gopher offense - ranked #45 overall. The Gophers will need to generate some modicum of a rush offense in order to keep the game in check. Hopefully, Minnesota native, James Laurinaitis, will go easy on his home state. Even if he doesn’t, I expect this game to be an enjoyable one to watch.
Carleton College "Knights” (2-0) vs. Macalester College “Scots” (1-0) – 1:00pm Laird Stadium– Northfield, MN
The “Brain Bowl”. Arguably the two best private colleges in Minnesota square off this week in Northfield. Just to let you know, these also happen to be the most expensive schools in VikingLand. To give you an idea, when two players line up across from each other in this matchup, their combined estimated tuition for 2007-08 academic year will be ($46,995 Carleton) + ($42,428 Mac) = $89,423. Regardless of the price or books the kids are reading…look for Carleton to dominate, as Kurt Ramler has his team off to a good 2-0 start.
Results from 9/20
Gophers 37
Florida Atlantic 3
Concordia 9
St. John’s 6
Carleton 17
Bethel 14
St. Olaf 29(6OT)
St. Thomas 23
Eric Fowler is in his fifth season as a freelance writer for vikings.com. He graduated from St. John’s University in 1998. He currently lives in St. Paul with his wife and 2 children and he works in Bloomington where he holds a position in personal finance. Eric was born and raised in Holdingford, MN. He can be reached via efowler57@hotmail.com