The bowl season is upon us and the kickoff for the Big Ten’s slate is an intriguing one as the rebuilding Gophers received an extremely difficult match-up thanks to Georgia Tech’s emotional desire to send Paul Johnson out a winner.
How did Minnesota get here?
P.J. Fleck’s second year wasn’t the massive breakthrough some fans were hoping for, especially when they were sitting at 3-4. A win over Indiana got the Gophers to 4-4 but a blowout loss to lowly Illinois had a lot of people write this club off. Those people were premature though as Minnesota rallied to go 2-1 in their final three. That streak of good play featured a 41-10 stomping of Purdue and a dominant performance over rival Wisconsin in the finale to get a sixth win. It was a bumpy road that saw the defensive coordinator fired, a switch at quarterback, tons of injuries, and a whole lot more but the final three weeks clearly showed that Minnesota had made plenty of strides this year.
In a season filled with youth the players I am most excited about watching in this bowl are junior wide out Tyler Johnson and freshman running back Mohamed Ibrahim. Between the two quarterbacks Minnesota only had 2,582 passing yards yet Johnson had almost half of that total with his 1,112 receiving yards. Johnson also accounted for 10 of UM’s 18 passing touchdowns. There are some articles floating around asking the question if Johnson will bolt for the NFL. If he does, great, get paid for your talents young man! If he doesn’t, great, Minnesota could win a wide open west division next year. It is literally a win-win for Johnson.
Now for that young gun tail back. Ibrahim had just 9 carries for 101 yards in the opener then acquired no stats for the next two weeks of the season. He also missed a game late in the year. So in his nine games he shined. He ended with 936 yards and 7 scores. Not a bad debut at all. He also put in a gem at Wisconsin to help win the Axe and get to a bowl with 121 yards and a score on 26 carries. He is just going to get better and better and better.
How did Georgia Tech get here?
Tech started a brutal 1-3 but a 6-1 stretch fueled by five league wins got them to a bowl. A disaster in their rivalry game against Georgia took some of the shine out of the season but Paul Johnson’s retirement announcement should give the Jackets some extra juice in an otherwise meaningless bowl game for a club that had aspirations of winning a weak coastal division.
Obviously Johnson’s triple option system creates a lot of stress for teams who aren’t used to it but he also has a very experienced quarterback handling things. Senior TaQuon Marshall has been the full time starter for the last two seasons and has plenty of experience to read a young, developing, and banged up Gopher defense. With Marshall and Johnson having their final games for their school, program, and teammates, expect a lot of emotions on that sideline. If the Yellow Jackets can channel that emotion in a good way, then they stand a very good shot at knocking off the Gophers.
Who will win…and why?
The Gophers’ rush defense was just 76th nationally and was still erratic at the end of the year. That gives Georgia Tech a great shot in this game even without the Johnson component. With the Johnson factor and you are faced with the fact that Paul Johnson is a lock for the college football hall of fame and I fully expect his players to come out fired up for his last game. The Gopher rebuild feels right on track with a bowl game in year two but Tech is an established program wanting to send a solid coach out on top.
How to watch
- Date: December 26
- Time: 4:15 pm, central
- TV: ESPN
- Location: Ford Field, Detroit
Gambling Guide
- Georgia Tech -5.5, Over / Under 55.5
First of all, love all the fives. Second of all, love that this game is played in a dome because both offenses should be able to get going indoors. Tech finished 21st in scoring (35.6 ppg) and Minnesota finished middle of the pack at 67th (28.5 ppg). Defensively UM finished 75th in points allowed (27.9 ppg) and the Rambling Wreck was even worse finishing at 80th (28.9 ppg). With two sub-par defenses going against competent offenses inside a dome, the smart thing to do is take that over.
Lightning Round for Non-Readers:
Minnesota/Georgia Tech – Over
Big Ten and Counting 