Michigan’s trip to Minnesota now has a time slot and a TV home.
The Wolverines and Golden Gophers will kick off Oct. 3 at Noon ET, and FOX will carry the game. It’s Michigan’s second appearance in the Big Noon Kickoff window this season, alongside the Sept. 12 matchup with Oklahoma.
This will be the third meeting between the programs in the last four seasons, and Michigan has owned the series for a long time. Minnesota dropped last year’s game in Ann Arbor, 27-24, even after outscoring Michigan 21-3 in the fourth quarter.
The broader numbers are even more lopsided. Minnesota has lost five straight to Michigan going back to 2014, and the Wolverines are 44-4 in the series since 1967.
Michigan has won the Battle for the Little Brown Jug 78 times, with 25 losses and three ties. The Wolverines haven’t lost in Minneapolis since 1977 and have taken 18 straight games on Minnesota’s home field, including a 52-10 win in 2023.
Minnesota enters with a mixed early resume. The Golden Gophers have beaten Eastern Illinois, 59-7, and Akron, 41-7, but their lone power-four test ended in a 38-13 home loss to Mississippi State. This weekend’s trip to Washington should provide a better gauge.
Michigan, meanwhile, is trying to shake off a non-conference slate that has been uneven despite remaining unbeaten before opening Big Ten play against Iowa this Saturday.
PJ Fleck is in his 10th straight season at Minnesota, and the Gophers are coming off consecutive 8-5 campaigns. Under Fleck, Minnesota is 4-15 against top-20 teams and 64-30 against everyone else. Second-year starting quarterback Drake Lindsey is trying to help close that gap, and the redshirt sophomore is averaging 249 passing yards per game, which ranks 39th nationally.
Michigan is expected to enter the matchup as the favorite. ESPN’s Football Power Index gives the Wolverines an 80.8-percent chance to win.
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Michigan Defense Showed Something Fans Will Care About In Big Ten Play
Michigans defense gave fans a reason to pay attention beyond the final score against UTEP, holding the Miners to 17 points while showing it could handle both sides of the game plan. The front was active, the coverage held up, and the unit looked like one that can carry real weight once Big Ten play starts to tighten the margins.
Jonah Lea'ea provided the headline play with a pick-six, while Tariq Boney added disruption off the edge with tackles for loss and a sack. The rotation also mattered, with players such as Shamari Earls and Jordan Young seeing meaningful snaps, a reminder that the Wolverines are building depth as well as production on a defense that will be asked to do more when the competition steps up. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan's Backfield Debate Just Got A Lot More Interesting
Savion Hiter keeps making the Michigan backfield discussion harder to settle. In the Wolverines 52-17 win over UTEP, the freshman turned 11 carries into 62 yards and two touchdowns, giving the offense another burst of energy while sharing work with Jordan Marshall, who remains the heavier-duty option in the rotation.
Head coach Kyle Whittingham praised Hiters running style and upside, and the comments only add to the sense that his role could keep growing if the opportunities follow. For now, Michigan has a useful one-two punch, but Hiters performance suggested the balance of carries may be worth watching closely in the weeks ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Michigans UTEP Win Exposed One Concern And One Rising Battle
Michigans win over UTEP offered the kind of second-half finish the Wolverines wanted, with the offense and defense tightening up after a sluggish stretch early on. The 35-3 edge after halftime also gave a clearer look at some of the younger players the staff has been eager to develop, with Tariq Boney and Savion Hiter among the underclassmen who flashed enough to stand out.
The more immediate takeaway, though, was less comfortable. Turnovers and penalties helped keep UTEP in the game longer than Michigan would have preferred, a reminder that the margin for error gets much thinner once conference play arrives. For a staff that has leaned on developmental growth from its younger talent, the challenge now is balancing that progress with cleaner football when the Wolverines start facing opponents that will punish those mistakes. [Read more 🡒]