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University of Minnesota Athletics
Thursday, September 3
Huntington Bank Stadium
7:00 PM
University of Minnesota
vs
Eastern Illinois
Players Mentioned
QB
/ Football
DL
/ Football
Photo by: Brad Rempel
Game 1 Preview: Minnesota vs. Eastern Illinois
8/31/2026 9:32:00 AM | Football
THE ESSENTIALS
Date/Time:Â Sept. 3, 2026 / 7 p.m. CT
Site:Â Minneapolis
Stadium:Â Huntington Bank Stadium
Surface:Â FieldTurf
Capacity:Â 50,805
Series Overall:Â Minnesota leads 1-0
Streak Overall:Â Minnesota won 1
Series in Minnesota:Â Minnesota leads 1-0
Streak in Minnesota:Â Minnesota won 1
First Meeting:Â Minnesota won 42-20 in Minneapolis (8/28/2014)
Television: Peacock // Jason Benetti (PXP), Yogi Roth (Analyst), Ashley ShahAhmadi (Reporter)
Gopher Radio: KFAN FM 100.3 | SiriusXM: 85; SXM App // Mike Grimm (PXP), Darrell Thompson (Analyst), Justin Gaard (Reporter), Tanner Hoops (Host), Dan Rowbotham (Engineer)
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. The University of Minnesota football program begins its 143rd season overall, and 10th under head coach P.J. Fleck, on Thursday, Sept. 3, as it hosts Eastern Illinois at Huntington Bank Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Peacock and the Gopher Radio Network.
2. Minnesota is 99-37-6 all-time in season openers, including wins in three of its last four openers (6-3 under Fleck). The Golden Gophers are 103-32-7 all-time in home openers with an identical stretch of three wins in their past four home openers (also 6-3 under Fleck). Minnesota, which is opening a season at home for the 14th straight year, is 11-6 in home openers since Huntington Bank Stadium opened in 2009.
3. Junior quarterback Drake Lindsey is back after a solid debut season as the starter for the Maroon and Gold. Last year, he was 246-of-389 (63.2 percent) for 2,382 yards with 18 touchdowns and six interceptions, good for an efficiency rating of 126.9. He also had a team-high four rushing scores last season. Lindsey's numbers put him second all-time among Gopher freshmen for passing yards and passing touchdowns, while his eight wins were the most ever by a Gopher freshman QB. In Gopher single-season history, Lindsey finished second in lowest interception percentage (.0154), third in TD-to-INT ratio (3.00), fourth in completions and completion percentage, fifth in passing attempts, eighth in passing touchdowns and touchdowns responsible for, and 14th in passing yards. One of Lindsey's strongest attributes is not putting the the ball in harm's way. With records dating to 1977, he has two of the five longest streaks of pass attempts without an interception at Minnesota. He had a stretch of 112 passes last year without a pick that ranks fifth, while he currently has gone 153 passes without throwing an interception. That's third best in program history and is only four passes away from tying for second. Max Brosmer holds the record at 206 passes without an interception during the 2024 season. More on Lindsey, who is on the watch list for the Manning Award, can be found on Pages 4-5 of the notes.
4. Defensive lineman Anthony Smith, a fifth-year senior who is on watch lists for the Nagurski Trophy and Lombardi Award and is a First Team Preseason All-American by Phil Steele, burst onto the scene last year with team highs in tackles for loss (17.5) and sacks (12.5), plus 38 tackles and three PBUs, earning First Team All-Big Ten honors as a result. He was one of four players in the country last year, and the only one returning this year, to reach those sack and TFL totals. Two of the others were Miami's Akheem Mesidor and Texas Tech's David Bailey, both of whom were first-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft. Smith's 17.5 TFLs ranked second in the Big Ten, fifth in the country and sixth all-time in Gopher history. His 121 TFL yards led the conference and were third in the FBS. Smith's 12.5 sacks led the Big Ten, tied for third in the country and were fourth in Gopher history. Last time he stepped on the field, Smith posted six tackles with a career-high 4.0 TFLs, 2.0 sacks, and a career-best two pass breakups in Minnesota's win over New Mexico in the 2025 Rate Bowl. No FBS player had posted that stat line in any game since 2018. Entering the 2026 season, Smith needs 12.5 TFLs and 9.5 sacks to tie program records in each category. More on Smith can be found on Page 8 of the notes.
5. The 2026 campaign is the 10th for P.J. Fleck at Minnesota. He is the tied for the fourth-longest tenured coach in program history, the second-longest active tenured coach in the Big Ten and 11th-longest tenured head coach overall in the FBS. Fleck's Minnesota record stands at 66-44, putting him fourth in program history in overall wins. He's also fourth at Minnesota in Big Ten wins (39) and fifth in games coached (110). Fleck's overall win percentage of .600 is third best among Minnesota coaches with more than 40 games under their helm behind only Henry L. Williams (.786, 1900-21) and Bernie Bierman (.716, 1932-41, '45-50). In his 14th season overall as a college head coach, Fleck is 96-66 (.593). He is four wins away from becoming the 18th active head coach to reach 100 wins at the FBS level.
You can read Minnesota's complete game notes here.
Date/Time:Â Sept. 3, 2026 / 7 p.m. CT
Site:Â Minneapolis
Stadium:Â Huntington Bank Stadium
Surface:Â FieldTurf
Capacity:Â 50,805
Series Overall:Â Minnesota leads 1-0
Streak Overall:Â Minnesota won 1
Series in Minnesota:Â Minnesota leads 1-0
Streak in Minnesota:Â Minnesota won 1
First Meeting:Â Minnesota won 42-20 in Minneapolis (8/28/2014)
Television: Peacock // Jason Benetti (PXP), Yogi Roth (Analyst), Ashley ShahAhmadi (Reporter)
Gopher Radio: KFAN FM 100.3 | SiriusXM: 85; SXM App // Mike Grimm (PXP), Darrell Thompson (Analyst), Justin Gaard (Reporter), Tanner Hoops (Host), Dan Rowbotham (Engineer)
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. The University of Minnesota football program begins its 143rd season overall, and 10th under head coach P.J. Fleck, on Thursday, Sept. 3, as it hosts Eastern Illinois at Huntington Bank Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Peacock and the Gopher Radio Network.
2. Minnesota is 99-37-6 all-time in season openers, including wins in three of its last four openers (6-3 under Fleck). The Golden Gophers are 103-32-7 all-time in home openers with an identical stretch of three wins in their past four home openers (also 6-3 under Fleck). Minnesota, which is opening a season at home for the 14th straight year, is 11-6 in home openers since Huntington Bank Stadium opened in 2009.
3. Junior quarterback Drake Lindsey is back after a solid debut season as the starter for the Maroon and Gold. Last year, he was 246-of-389 (63.2 percent) for 2,382 yards with 18 touchdowns and six interceptions, good for an efficiency rating of 126.9. He also had a team-high four rushing scores last season. Lindsey's numbers put him second all-time among Gopher freshmen for passing yards and passing touchdowns, while his eight wins were the most ever by a Gopher freshman QB. In Gopher single-season history, Lindsey finished second in lowest interception percentage (.0154), third in TD-to-INT ratio (3.00), fourth in completions and completion percentage, fifth in passing attempts, eighth in passing touchdowns and touchdowns responsible for, and 14th in passing yards. One of Lindsey's strongest attributes is not putting the the ball in harm's way. With records dating to 1977, he has two of the five longest streaks of pass attempts without an interception at Minnesota. He had a stretch of 112 passes last year without a pick that ranks fifth, while he currently has gone 153 passes without throwing an interception. That's third best in program history and is only four passes away from tying for second. Max Brosmer holds the record at 206 passes without an interception during the 2024 season. More on Lindsey, who is on the watch list for the Manning Award, can be found on Pages 4-5 of the notes.
4. Defensive lineman Anthony Smith, a fifth-year senior who is on watch lists for the Nagurski Trophy and Lombardi Award and is a First Team Preseason All-American by Phil Steele, burst onto the scene last year with team highs in tackles for loss (17.5) and sacks (12.5), plus 38 tackles and three PBUs, earning First Team All-Big Ten honors as a result. He was one of four players in the country last year, and the only one returning this year, to reach those sack and TFL totals. Two of the others were Miami's Akheem Mesidor and Texas Tech's David Bailey, both of whom were first-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft. Smith's 17.5 TFLs ranked second in the Big Ten, fifth in the country and sixth all-time in Gopher history. His 121 TFL yards led the conference and were third in the FBS. Smith's 12.5 sacks led the Big Ten, tied for third in the country and were fourth in Gopher history. Last time he stepped on the field, Smith posted six tackles with a career-high 4.0 TFLs, 2.0 sacks, and a career-best two pass breakups in Minnesota's win over New Mexico in the 2025 Rate Bowl. No FBS player had posted that stat line in any game since 2018. Entering the 2026 season, Smith needs 12.5 TFLs and 9.5 sacks to tie program records in each category. More on Smith can be found on Page 8 of the notes.
5. The 2026 campaign is the 10th for P.J. Fleck at Minnesota. He is the tied for the fourth-longest tenured coach in program history, the second-longest active tenured coach in the Big Ten and 11th-longest tenured head coach overall in the FBS. Fleck's Minnesota record stands at 66-44, putting him fourth in program history in overall wins. He's also fourth at Minnesota in Big Ten wins (39) and fifth in games coached (110). Fleck's overall win percentage of .600 is third best among Minnesota coaches with more than 40 games under their helm behind only Henry L. Williams (.786, 1900-21) and Bernie Bierman (.716, 1932-41, '45-50). In his 14th season overall as a college head coach, Fleck is 96-66 (.593). He is four wins away from becoming the 18th active head coach to reach 100 wins at the FBS level.
You can read Minnesota's complete game notes here.
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