University of Minnesota Athletics
Saturday, September 27
Huntington Bank Stadium
11:00 AM
University of Minnesota
vs
Rutgers
Photo by: Jerod Ringwald
Game 4: Minnesota vs. Rutgers
9/23/2025 10:24:00 AM | Football
THE ESSENTIALS
Date/Time: Sept. 27, 2025 / 11 a.m.
Site: Minneapolis
Stadium: Huntington Bank Stadium
Surface: FieldTurf
Capacity: 50,805
Series Overall: Minnesota leads 3-1
Streak Overall: Minnesota lost 1
Series in Minnesota: Minnesota leads 2-0
Streak in Minnesota: Minnesota won 2
First Meeting: Minnesota won 34-32 in Minneapolis (10/22/2016)
Last Meeting: Minnesota lost 26-19 in Piscataway (11/9/2024)
Television: BTN // Guy Haberman (PXP), Yogi Roth (Analyst), Rhett Lewis (Reporter)
Gopher Radio: KFAN FM 100.3 | SiriusXM: 138 or 195; SXM App // Mike Grimm (PXP), Darrell Thompson (Analyst), Justin Gaard (Reporter), Tanner Hoops (Host), Dan Rowbotham (Engineer)
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. Minnesota (2-1, 0-0 B1G) opens up conference play Saturday when it welcomes Rutgers (3-1, 0-1) to Huntington Bank Stadium. Kickoff for the Golden Gophers' Big Ten opener is set for 11 a.m. on Big Ten Network and the Gopher Radio Network.
2. Minnesota is 65-56-8 all-time in Big Ten openers (3-5 under head coach P.J. Fleck) and 72-52-5 in conference openers at home. The Gophers have won two of their past three conference openers, winning at Michigan State in 2022 and opening 2023 with a victory over Nebraska before losing last season at home to Iowa. Saturday will be the first time that Minnesota opens its conference slate with Rutgers.
3. Minnesota is coming off the first of its two bye weeks this season. Excluding the 2020 season that was disrupted due to COVID, the Golden Gophers are 5-4 under P.J. Fleck when coming off a regular season bye. The Golden Gophers lost to Maryland in 2017 (31-24) and Iowa in 2018 (48-31) but then won three in a row by posting wins in 2019 at Purdue (38-31) and Penn State (31-26), and against Nebraska in 2021 (30-23). The 2022 season saw the team lose at Illinois (26-14) but it bounced back the next year to win at Iowa (12-10). Last season, the Gophers had two bye weeks, defeating Maryland (48-23) after the first, and dropping a game to then-No. 4 Penn State (26-25) after the second. This Saturday will be the first time that Minnesota has played Rutgers when coming off a bye.
4. The Golden Gophers enter Saturday's game with the top-ranked defense in the country, allowing just 177.7 yards per game. For context, the next closest team is BYU at 205.3 yards per contest. In addition, Minnesota also leads the country in rushing yards allowed (41.3 per game) and rushing touchdowns given up (0). Other categories where the Gophers rank in the top 10 in the FBS include yards per rush given up (2nd at 1.77), first downs allowed (2nd at 9.7), defensive touchdowns scored (2nd with 2), yards per play allowed (6th at 3.70) and total touchdowns yielded (9th with 4).
5. The 2025 campaign is the ninth for P.J. Fleck at Minnesota, making him the fifth-longest tenured coach in program history. His record stands at 60-40, putting him fifth in program history in overall wins and games coached (100), in addition to ranking fourth in Big Ten wins (34). Fleck's .600 win percentage is third best among Minnesota coaches with at least 45 games under their helm behind only Henry L. Williams (.786, 1900-21) and Bernie Bierman (.716, 1932-41, '45-50). In his 13th season overall as a college head coach, Fleck is 90-62 (.592).
You can read Minnesota's complete game notes here.
Date/Time: Sept. 27, 2025 / 11 a.m.
Site: Minneapolis
Stadium: Huntington Bank Stadium
Surface: FieldTurf
Capacity: 50,805
Series Overall: Minnesota leads 3-1
Streak Overall: Minnesota lost 1
Series in Minnesota: Minnesota leads 2-0
Streak in Minnesota: Minnesota won 2
First Meeting: Minnesota won 34-32 in Minneapolis (10/22/2016)
Last Meeting: Minnesota lost 26-19 in Piscataway (11/9/2024)
Television: BTN // Guy Haberman (PXP), Yogi Roth (Analyst), Rhett Lewis (Reporter)
Gopher Radio: KFAN FM 100.3 | SiriusXM: 138 or 195; SXM App // Mike Grimm (PXP), Darrell Thompson (Analyst), Justin Gaard (Reporter), Tanner Hoops (Host), Dan Rowbotham (Engineer)
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. Minnesota (2-1, 0-0 B1G) opens up conference play Saturday when it welcomes Rutgers (3-1, 0-1) to Huntington Bank Stadium. Kickoff for the Golden Gophers' Big Ten opener is set for 11 a.m. on Big Ten Network and the Gopher Radio Network.
2. Minnesota is 65-56-8 all-time in Big Ten openers (3-5 under head coach P.J. Fleck) and 72-52-5 in conference openers at home. The Gophers have won two of their past three conference openers, winning at Michigan State in 2022 and opening 2023 with a victory over Nebraska before losing last season at home to Iowa. Saturday will be the first time that Minnesota opens its conference slate with Rutgers.
3. Minnesota is coming off the first of its two bye weeks this season. Excluding the 2020 season that was disrupted due to COVID, the Golden Gophers are 5-4 under P.J. Fleck when coming off a regular season bye. The Golden Gophers lost to Maryland in 2017 (31-24) and Iowa in 2018 (48-31) but then won three in a row by posting wins in 2019 at Purdue (38-31) and Penn State (31-26), and against Nebraska in 2021 (30-23). The 2022 season saw the team lose at Illinois (26-14) but it bounced back the next year to win at Iowa (12-10). Last season, the Gophers had two bye weeks, defeating Maryland (48-23) after the first, and dropping a game to then-No. 4 Penn State (26-25) after the second. This Saturday will be the first time that Minnesota has played Rutgers when coming off a bye.
4. The Golden Gophers enter Saturday's game with the top-ranked defense in the country, allowing just 177.7 yards per game. For context, the next closest team is BYU at 205.3 yards per contest. In addition, Minnesota also leads the country in rushing yards allowed (41.3 per game) and rushing touchdowns given up (0). Other categories where the Gophers rank in the top 10 in the FBS include yards per rush given up (2nd at 1.77), first downs allowed (2nd at 9.7), defensive touchdowns scored (2nd with 2), yards per play allowed (6th at 3.70) and total touchdowns yielded (9th with 4).
5. The 2025 campaign is the ninth for P.J. Fleck at Minnesota, making him the fifth-longest tenured coach in program history. His record stands at 60-40, putting him fifth in program history in overall wins and games coached (100), in addition to ranking fourth in Big Ten wins (34). Fleck's .600 win percentage is third best among Minnesota coaches with at least 45 games under their helm behind only Henry L. Williams (.786, 1900-21) and Bernie Bierman (.716, 1932-41, '45-50). In his 13th season overall as a college head coach, Fleck is 90-62 (.592).
You can read Minnesota's complete game notes here.
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