It's not the Rose Bowl but once more, PJ Fleck and the Gophers are off to a bowl game. At least this time, it won't be in Detroit. Leave the parka at home Gopher fans - you're off to Phoenix.
It'll be the Gophers and New Mexico Lobos in the Rate Bowl which is played at Chase Field, the usual home of MLB's Arizona Diamondbacks. This will be the first-ever meeting between Minnesota and New Mexico.
"We look forward to finding a way to be 1-0 and preparing, and we got practice today," Gopher coach PJ Fleck said. "And I know our guys were having a big team meeting to kind of celebrate where we're headed. And, I know a lot of them under their breath were like, 'are we going to Arizona? Are we going to go to Arizona?' I think that they were really excited that the Rate Bowl picked us."
The game has been played under several names since 1989, making it the 14th-oldest bowl game in college football. The Gophers most recently played in the Rate Bowl in 2021 when they beat West Virginia 18-6 on Dec. 28.
The Gophers have won eight straight bowl games dating back to the 2015 Quick Lane Bowl. That is the longest active streak in the nation, the longest in Big Ten history and tied for the fourth longest in college football history.
No matter what success Minnesota has had in bowl games, or playing a lower conference team as a Big Ten squad, Fleck is not overlooking New Mexico who he says played extremely well against two other Big Ten opponents this season.
"Playing an elite opponent. I have a lot of respect for what Coach (Jason) Eck has done in a very short amount of time, going 9-3 this year, playing Michigan tough, and then blowing out UCLA, another Big 10 opponent," Fleck says about the Lobos. "I know they had a historic season, so congratulations to New Mexico, and Coach Eck, on a fantastic season."
Playing New Mexico is also a bit of a surprise, and it comes as college football is seemingly facing a reckoning with an expanded playoff making traditional bowl games less relevant. That is leading to some teams "opting out" of even participating in those games. That includes Notre Dame which was likely the first team on the outside of the playoff bubble looking in at 10-2.
But two Big 12 opponents the Gophers could have faced in Phoenix also opted out. They are southern neighbor Iowa State, which finished 8-4, and Kansas State which finished 6-6. Both of those programs lost their head coach recently, putting them in a difficult spot heading into bowl season and in search of new leadership.
But for Fleck, bowl games have perhaps been his greatest achievement since coming to Minnesota. His Gophers are 6-0 in his previous eight seasons, nearly half of all of Minnesota's bowl game victories (13).
For Fleck and Minnesota, they'll head to Arizona seeking his seventh bowl win, but in the meantime, they'll be fired up for the weather too.
"We cannot wait to get out to Arizona," he adds. "We have a lot of Minnesotans out there. There are a lot of snowbirds out there in Arizona as well."
New Mexico (9-3) vs. Minnesota (7-5), Dec. 26 at 3:30 p.m.
BetMGM College Football Odds Opening Line: Minnesota by 3. Against the spread: Minnesota 4-7, New Mexico 7-5.
How to watch: ESPN
Key stats
Minnesota Offense
Overall: 296.6 yards per game (128th in FBS)
Passing: 193.5 yards per game (104th)
Rushing: 103.1 yards per game (129th)
Scoring: 23.3 points per game (98th)
Minnesota Defense
Overall: 342.3 yards per game (41st in FBS)
Passing: 220.8 yards per game (66th)
Rushing: 121.5 yards per game (31st)
Scoring: 23.4 points per game (58th)
New Mexico Offense
Overall: 369.6 yards per game (85th in FBS)
Passing: 214.5 yards per game (86th)
Rushing: 155.1 yards per game (74th)
Scoring: 27.9 points per game (68th)
New Mexico Defense
Overall: 350 yards per game (49th in FBS)
Passing: 236.6 yards per game (100th)
Rushing: 113.4 yards per game (25th)
Scoring: 22.5 points per game (47th)
New Mexico ranks 110th in the FBS with a -6 turnover margin, compared to Minnesota's 24th-ranked +7 margin.
Minnesota ranks 2nd in the FBS averaging 26.3 penalty yards per game.
New Mexico ranks 113th in FBS in red zone offense, scoring on 77.3% of trips.
Team leaders
Minnesota
Passing: Drake Lindsey, 2,235 yards, 16 TDs, 6 INTs, 63.2 completion percentage
Rushing: Darius Taylor, 554 yards on 119 carries, 3 TDs
Receiving: Lemeke Brockington, 484 yards on 46 catches, 4 TDs
New Mexico
Passing: Jack Layne, 2,398 yards, 13 TDs, 9 INTs, 65.9 completion percentage
Rushing: Damon Bankston, 578 yards on 104 carries, 5 TDs
Receiving: Keagan Johnson, 730 yards on 57 catches, 3 TDs
Last game
Minnesota beat Wisconsin 17-7 on Saturday, Nov. 29. Lindsey passed for 90 yards on 18-of-24 attempts (75.0%) with one touchdown and no interceptions. Taylor carried the ball 19 times for 100 yards and scored one touchdown, adding four receptions for 11 yards. Jameson Geers put up 27 yards on four catches with one touchdown.
New Mexico won 23-17 over San Diego State on Friday, Nov. 28. Layne passed for 127 yards on 14-of-25 attempts (56.0%) with one touchdown and no interceptions. James Laubstein carried the ball 10 times for 70 yards and scored one touchdown. Johnson had three receptions for 37 yards.