University of Minnesota Golden Gophers: Brief Game by Game Preview

The college football season is just around the corner and that means season previews galore! The Minnesota Golden Gophers may not be too popular on the national stage, but their first season under Jerry Kill will be a fun one to watch. Throw in the dynamic QB MarQueis Gray playing in his first season as the number QB this season will be one to remember.

So buckle up and get ready for very brief game previews. If you’re a Gopher fan maybe grab the tissues too, it’s going to be a long season.

GAME 1: @ USC

Unless a lot more of the Trojans talk to TMZ, I don’t think the Jerry Kill era will start with a win. USC is a college football powerhouse and even if you’re just a house you usually have a good shot against the Golden Gophers… LOSS

GAME 2: Vs. New Mexico State

A non-conference home game against a bottom feeder in the WAC, Jerry Kill won’t wait long for his first win in maroon and gold. The Aggies were 115^th in defense last year, expect a coming out party for QB MarQueis Gray…  WIN

GAME 3: Vs. Miami (OH)

This game looks like a breeze for the Gophers on paper, but it should be a close game. Miami was the second best team in the MAC behind Jerry Kill’s Northern Illinois team and beat #25 NIU by five in last year’s season finale. Kill and his staff upgraded teams and this time Jerry Kill will have five or more points than Miami does at the end of the game… WIN

GAME 4: Vs. North Dakota State

Only Tim Brewster could lose to NDSU and he isn’t here anymore. Kill will have his Gopher team ready and they will have a hay-day against them… WIN

 #FireBrewster

GAME 5: @ Michigan

It’s the start of the Big Ten season and the Gophers get to start it on the road at Michigan. The U of M will also start conference play with a loss and the lack of a little brown jug… LOSS

GAME 6: @ Purdue

Brewster’s stock last year was already slipping by game six and he got fired after game seven against Purdue. It was a relatively close loss last year by Gopher standards and now they actually have a coach.  Purdue is a very low scoring team (average 19.7 points per game last year) and a real coach will figure out how to beat the Boilermakers… WIN

GAME 7: Vs. Nebraska

First Big Ten game of the season at TCF Bank Stadium and it’s a special one being the first game against division rival Nebraska. It’s not much of a rivalry if one team will never win, right? The Cornhuskers will show the Gophers what rough and tough football looks like… LOSS

GAME 8: Vs. Iowa

The Gophers currently posses the Floyd of Rosedale and with the shocker over Iowa last year the Hawkeyes are looking for some revenge. Anything can happen, the maroon and gold won under interim head coach Jeff Horton, but in every sport there are flukes and last year was probably a good fluke for the U of M… LOSS

GAME 9: @ Michigan State

Some people are sleeping on the Spartans, including Las Vegas, but I’m not. They killed the Gophers 31-8 last year and the Gophers didn’t improve enough to think it would be a different result… LOSS

GAME 10: Vs. Wisconsin

The Gophers haven’t had Paul Bunyan’s Axe since 2003 and it won’t be changing anytime soon. Wisconsin is heavily favored in the Big Ten this year and the Gophers frankly are not. Someday the Axe will be in its rightful home, but it’s not going to be this year… LOSS

GAME 11: @ Northwestern

The Gophers lost to the Wildcats by a single point last year. This game is usually a tossup and usually depends on who came to play, I have faith (maybe too much faith) that Jerry Kill will have his boys ready to play every week… WIN

GAME 12: Vs. Illinois

My theory is if you could beat them last year with an interim head coach (Jeff Horton, who was loved by every Minnesotan, but looks like a kitten compared to the panther Jerry Kill), you can beat them this year…  WIN

REVIEW

By my count the Gophers will finish 6-6, not bad for a team that finished 3-9 last year. Jerry Kill’s track record shows that he turns around failing programs and makes them contenders and by the end of the season MarQueis Gray will be known around the country. There is only so much you can ask for as a University of Golden Gopher fan and 6-6 is just about right.