Know The Foe: Week One V.S. Minnesota

Matt Rhule doesn’t get an easy start to his first campaign in Lincoln. The Minnesota Golden Gophers get the honor of hosting Nebraska week one on Thursday Aug. 31. 

Minnesota has always given Nebraska an interesting challenge and this year will be the same. Here is a review of 2022 and a look into changes in Minneapolis. 

2022 Season Review

2022 season was solid for the Golden Gophers with nine wins and finishing 4th in the Big Ten West division. They started off strong with four straight wins including a road victory over Michigan State to start off conference play.

Unfortunately, the strong start would not last as they would drop three of four in October. The Gophers would rebound in November with winning three of four including a big win over Wisconsin.

Minnesota finished the season with a good win over Syracuse in New York City in the Pinstripe Bowl 28-20.

2022 Results

Record: 9-4, 5-4 B10

Sept. 1    New Mexico State   W   38-0

Sept. 10   Western Illinois       W   62-10

Sept. 17    Colorado                   W   49-7

Sept. 24    at Michigan St.       W   34-7   

Oct. 1       Purdue                         L    10-20

Oct. 15     at Illinois                     L    14-26

Oct. 22    at Penn State             L    17-45

Oct. 29    Rutgers                       W   31-0

Nov. 5     at Nebraska                 W   20-13

Nov. 12   Northwestern              W   31-3

Nov. 19   Iowa                                L    10-13

Nov. 26  at Wisconsin                W   23-16

Dec. 29  Syracuse                      W   28-20

Minnesota’s Changes on Offense

We all know the changes within the program here at Nebraska, but the Gophers have a decent amount of changes themselves. 

The offense in Minneapolis is going through its biggest change since Head Coach P.J. Fleck has been at the helm. Minnesota loses all three interior offensive linemen and six-year quarterback Tanner Morgan. The toughest loss of all is their all-time leading rusher, Mohamed Ibrahim who accumulated 4,668 yards and 53 touchdowns. 

Western Michigan tailback transfer Sean Tyler looks to be the best option for Fleck’s offense. Even though Fleck will keep prioritizing establishing the run, sophomore quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis is the new starter. Kaliakmanis offers a strong-arm and has a very good receiving core to throw to.

They added some potential high-impact wide receivers from Elijah Spencer (Charlotte) and Corey Crooms Jr. (Western Michigan). With all of that, the offense should be good to go come August. 

Minnesota’s Changes on Defense

The Gophers only return five starters on defense that ranked fourth nationally in scoring defense and ninth in yards allowed last season. The secondary position group took a big hit with losing safety Jordan Howden and cornerback Terell Smith to the NFL.

They also lost nickel back Michael Dixon, who transferred to Rutgers. Sophomore Darius Green looks to start at safety, who started for Minnesota in the Pinstripe Bowl against Syracuse last December. 

Junior linebacker Cody Lindenberg will take over fully at the position after Mariano Sori-Marin leaves for the NFL.  Minnesota will look to improve their pass rush after having a tough year, ranking 118th nationally in sacks. 

Even with all the changes within the program, Minnesota should be a contender in the West division race. It will come down to the Golden Gophers’ performance in its most important games.

2023 Matchup Preview

Meeting week one should bring challenges to both sides of the matchup. This game should be very competitive and is a very important early matchup in the Big Ten West division race.

According to ESPN’s FPI matchup predictor Nebraska has a 26.6% chance to win compared to Minnesota’s 73.4%.

Nebraska collides with Minnesota in week one at Huntington Bank Stadium on Thursday Aug. 31 at 7:00 p.m.