Minnesota (3-3, 1-2 Big Ten) at UCLA (1-4, 0-3), Saturday 9 p.m. ET (BTN)
BetMGM College Football Odds: Minnesota by 5 1/2.
Series record: Minnesota leads 2-1.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
Minnesota is riding the high of a 24-17 upset of Southern California. The Gophers now enter a six-week stretch with three road games, two byes and only one home game, still three wins from ensuring bowl eligibility with games against Penn State and Wisconsin late in the season. The Bruins completed their run of three straight top 10 opponents by falling 27-11 at No. 4 Penn State. Even though there have been signs of improvement, first-year head coach DeShaun Foster needs a victory to really have something to sell to the team, recruits and fans.
KEY MATCHUP
UCLA’s run game vs. Minnesota run defense. The Gophers lead the FBS in pass defense, with just 114 yards allowed per game, but they’ve been vulnerable to breakdowns in their run defense whether by missed tackles or misalignments and have allowed four different opposing RBs to post 111 rushing yards or more. USC’s Woody Marks had 20 carries for 134 yards and a TD last week. The Bruins are 132nd out of the 134 FBS teams with 64.2 yards rushing per game.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Minnesota: RB Darius Taylor was a one-man wrecking ball, pummeling USC for 144 yards rushing on 25 carries and 56 yards receiving on five grabs. It was Taylor’s fourth career game with 200 all-purpose yards.
UCLA: QB Justyn Martin had some good moments in his first career start, going 22 of 30 passing for 167 yards and one touchdown. While it looks as if Ethan Garbers has recovered enough from an apparent foot injury to be on track to play, it might make sense to carve out something in the game plan for the more mobile Martin, a third-year sophomore.
FACTS & FIGURES
Only Washington (85.3) has a lower opponent pass efficiency rating in the FBS than Minnesota (86.7). The Gophers also lead the Big Ten and rank second nationally with 10 interceptions. … UCLA LB Carson Schwesinger has 40 tackles over the past three games, including 15 against Penn State. … Minnesota is 7 for 7 on fourth down this season. … Bruins P Brody Richter and the coverage unit are producing a net punting average of 41.9 yards, which ranks 22nd in the FBS. … Gophers freshman Koi Perich has six punt returns for 135 yards, most in a season for the program in 10 years. Perich’s average (22.5 yards) is on pace to break the single-season record set by Paul Giel (16.9 yards) in 1953. .. The Gophers last made the Rose Bowl after the 1961 season, a 21-3 victory over the Bruins (a road loss in 1978 came when UCLA was sharing the LA Memorial Coliseum with USC).
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