No. 5 Minnesota Golden Gophers (4-8 overall, 3-6 B1G)
- Prediction
Minnesota ended the 2022 campaign on a high note, winning four out of the final five games to finish 8-4. I think they come back down to Earth this season, though.
I have the Golden Gophers starting okay, at 3-2, but they will lose six out of the final seven games to finish the season 4-8 overall and 3-6 in the Big Ten. Their wins would come against Nebraska, Northwestern, Louisiana, and Michigan State.
- Reasoning
I think Minnesota has one of the toughest schedules in the country. They take on a talented No. 21 North Carolina team early in the season on the road. The Golden Gophers then have games against No. 2 Michigan, at No. 25 Iowa, at No. 3 Ohio State, and against No. 19 Wisconsin. This is a tough schedule and contributes to the rough outlook.
It looks like Athan Kaliakmanis is going to be the starter heading into the 2023 campaign. He threw for 946 yards, three touchdowns, and four interceptions last year. He also had a 54.1% completion percentage, which isn’t good.
The strength of the Minnesota offense, the running game, lost its top two running backs. Mo Ibrahim is in the NFL and Trey Potts transferred to Penn State. That is over 2,000 rushing yards gone. The Golden Gophers do have some talented pass catchers, like Breyvn Spann-Ford, but they don’t have a quarterback to get them the ball.
Defensively, Minnesota was great last season. They gave up 14.2 points per game, which ranked No. 3 in the nation. The Golden Gophers do return three out of the top five players in tackles and four out of the seven players who had an interception from 2022. Four out of the top five players in sacks all departed the program, though.
Minnesota’s ability to run the ball helped their defense last season. They don’t have that talent anymore, though. I think their defense takes a step back because the offense can’t move the ball. Minnesota struggles in 2023.