I’m sure you’ve heard the rumor surrounding Minnesota’s quarterback situation ahead of the Quick Lane Bowl against Bowling Green.
If you haven’t, this pretty much sums it up:
It’s recently been reported by that same publication that Kramer has denied this to be true, but others have said that he is still receiving some sort of cash to play in the game. How much is anybody’s guess.
One thing is for sure, though, is that the Gophers really don’t seem like they want to lose to Bowling Green. College football betting odds have Minnesota as a four-point favorite.
The Gophers got into this quarterback dilemma because the other two QBs — Athan Kaliakmanis and Drew Viotto — on their roster entered the transfer portal. Kaliakmanis was the only player on the roster to complete a pass all season.
This bodes well for Bowling Green, as the Eagles’ defense is good against the run, and a heavy dose of running the ball is what we should expect from the Gophers.
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Minnesota only had 45 more passing yards than rushing yards this season, but their rushing attack wasn’t all that effective. They averaged 149.4 YPG and combined for just 11 rushing TDs on the season, which ranked second-to-last in the Big 10.
The Gophers’ leading rusher on the year, Darius Taylor, was having an excellent start to the season but was injured against Northwestern in Week 4 before getting injured again later in the season. In five games, he rushed for 591 yards and four TDs, which leads the team.
Minnesota’s second-string running back, Zach Evans, has also been plagued by injuries, which forced the Gophers to lean on Jordan Nubin, who has rushed for 535 in five starts in the final five games of the regular season.
Bowling Green allows 137.2 rushing YPG and has given up just 14 rushing touchdowns on the ground, which ranks third best in the MAC. It could be difficult for the Gophers to find a lot of success on the ground, especially because the Eagles will be expecting that.
The way this game looks like it’ll play out also fits well into Bowling Green’s defensive situation. The Eagles’ top cornerback Jalen Huskey entered the portal and committed to Maryland last week. Huskey was a first-team All-MAC selection after a season where he tallied 53 total tackles, six pass breakups, and four interceptions.
Much like the Gophers, the Eagles also won’t have a lot of its production from the running back room.
Running back Ta’ron Keith was Bowling Green’s second-leading rusher on the season, finishing with 390 yards and four TDs. He did a lot more damage in the passing game, however, leading the team with 44 receptions and turning that into 457 yards and three scores.
It’ll be interesting to see how the Eagles fill this production, and if they try to take advantage of Minnesota’s poor rush defense instead of using its outside weapons Odieu Hiliare and Abdul-Fatai Ibrahim.
This duo had lofty expectations entering the season, but have been quiet at times.
Bowling Green-Minnesota Prediction
Sitting on a 5-7 record, Minnesota barely squeaked into a bowl game because there weren’t enough qualifying teams. The Gophers probably weren’t even the best 5-7 squad, but were given the opportunity because of their Academic Progress Rate.
Especially with the loss of Kaliakmanis, I believe Bowling Green might be the better team here and will even be a little more fired up to play.
The Eagles shouldn’t have any issues with the Minnesota offense and should be able to move the ball. Give me the Eagles +4 and at +150 on the money line.
