If you’re a Minnesota sports fan, Monday probably felt a lot better than most.
The Vikings kept the only perfect record left in the NFL, the Gophers took down Iowa, the Wild won in Vancouver, the Timberwolves rolled again and both Gophers hockey teams put together sweeps. It was the kind of weekend that keeps fans checking scores all day and smiling at every update.
The biggest one may have come in Minneapolis, where the Gophers football team beat No. 15 Iowa 13-10 to reclaim Floyd of Rosedale.
Luke Drzewiecki drilled a 47-yard field goal as time expired, sending a sellout crowd of more than 50,000 into a field rush at Huntington Bank Stadium. It was P.J.
Fleck’s first home win over the Hawkeyes and his second win in the series. For the first time since 1978, the Gophers’ football program now holds the Little Brown Jug, Paul Bunyan’s Axe and Floyd of Rosedale at the same time.
Minnesota’s next test comes with a bigger spotlight. The Gophers travel to No.
4 Indiana, which needed overtime to beat Michigan on Saturday. College Gameday will be there for the Hoosiers’ home game against Minnesota.
The Vikings, meanwhile, handled the Colts 16-10 to move to 6-0. Harrison Smith’s 40th career interception sealed it, while Kyler Murray connected with T.J.
Hockenson for the go-ahead touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Will Reichard added three field goals, and Blake Cashman turned in what might have been the best game of his career at linebacker.
Now comes the hard part. Minnesota’s next four games are a gauntlet: at Detroit next Sunday, then home for Buffalo on Monday Night Football, then a trip to Lambeau Field to face Green Bay before a home date with San Francisco.
The good news for the Vikings? They’re the NFL’s lone unbeaten team after both the 49ers and Chiefs lost Sunday.
The Wild took care of business, too, beating Vancouver 4-2 on Sunday night in Quinn Hughes’ first game against his former team since last year’s trade. Hughes scored in the return, as did Kirill Kaprizov, and Minnesota improved to 8-3-2 to sit atop the Western Conference standings.
Hughes had already stirred plenty of attention before the puck dropped. After Saturday’s practice, he spoke to reporters about how much he loves Minnesota, playing for the Wild and the possibility of a new contract soon. He’s in the final year of a six-year, $47.1 million deal, and the Wild want to keep him on an extension.
The Timberwolves are off to a loud start, too. After changing their identity in the offseason by moving on from Julius Randle and Naz Reid to get smaller and play faster, they’re 3-0 with all three wins coming by 20 points or more. On Sunday night, they opened at Target Center with a 117-94 win over the Toronto Raptors.
LaMelo Ball provided one of the night’s most memorable moments, leaving a Raptors defender off balance before stepping back for a 3-pointer. The Wolves bench loved it.
And then there was hockey. The Gophers’ men’s and women’s teams each delivered sweeps over the weekend.
The men beat the Fighting Hawks twice, 5-3 and 5-3, after leading 4-1 Thursday night before finishing that game with an empty-net goal against No. 3 North Dakota.
On Friday, Wyatt Cullen had a hat trick. Jim Rich and Pat Micheletti were on the call.
The women are now 7-1 after sweeping Lindenwood 11-0 and 5-2 at Ridder Arena.
In Other News...
Anthony Edwards Has The Wolves Drawing Real Attention Already
Before the home opener, the Timberwolves were already drawing attention from the other sideline, with Raptors coach Darko Rajakovi making it clear he sees Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball as part of a young backcourt that can grab a leaguewide audience. He also pointed to the overall talent on Minnesotas roster, a sign the Wolves are starting to look like a team opponents are studying closely instead of simply preparing for.
Toronto arrives shorthanded, too, after ruling out Kawhi Leonard because of knee swelling, which only sharpens the backdrop for a game that has a little more weight than a typical early-season matchup. For Minnesota, this is the kind of night that can help confirm the growing buzz around Edwards and the group around him, especially when an opposing coach is already talking about the matchup in flattering terms. [Read more 🡒]
Timberwolves Showed Off A New Strength In A Blowout Win
The Timberwolves first home game of the season came with the kind of cushion teams usually earn only after theyve built a real identity. Minnesota rolled past Toronto by 23 points, making it three straight wins by 20 or more and offering another reminder that this group can now overwhelm opponents in stretches even when the rotation is forced to shift around. With LaMelo Ball limited by foul trouble, the Wolves leaned deeper into the bench, and players like Ayo Dosunmu and Terrence Shannon Jr. helped keep the pressure on.
There was still a flaw tucked inside the blowout, though, and its one Minnesota will want to clean up as the schedule tightens. The offense kept humming, but the defensive rebounding lagged, especially in minutes when Rudy Gobert sat, allowing Toronto extra chances it probably never should have had in a game that lopsided. For a team playing this well, those empty possessions are the kind of detail that can matter a lot more when the margin shrinks. [Read more 🡒]
Timberwolves 3-0 Start Is Fueling Real Belief In Their Depth
Three games into the season, the Timberwolves have already shown why depth can matter as much as star power in the grind of an NBA schedule. Minnesotas 3-0 start came against playoff-caliber Eastern Conference teams, and the common thread has been a bench that keeps producing instead of just surviving minutes before the stars return. Role players have looked comfortable in real rotation roles, giving the Wolves a more layered feel than a team still trying to find its footing.
Ayo Dosunmu, Terrence Shannon Jr. and Trey Lyles have all given Minnesota useful minutes, the kind that can change the tone of a game when the first unit needs a breather. Jonathan Kuminga has fit that same mold as a complementary starter, giving the Wolves efficient offense without needing the ball to dominate possession, and that kind of balance is exactly what makes this early run feel meaningful. The real question now is how long this level of contribution can hold, because if the supporting cast stays this reliable, Minnesotas early belief might be grounded in something real. [Read more 🡒]