Minnesota Football vs Northwestern Gameday Central: Keys to victory, predictions, and more
The Minnesota Golden Gophers (6-4, 4-3) take on the Northwestern Wildcats (5-5, 3-4) on Saturday afternoon at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Below, you can find game details, how to watch, keys to victory, predictions, and much more!
Game Details
Where: Chicago, Illinois
Stadium: Wrigley Field
Time:11:00 a.m. CT
Odds: Minnesota is a 3.5-point underdog for Saturday’s game with a total of 40.5 points according to BetMGM.
How to watch, stream Minnesota Football vs Northwestern
Saturday’s game will be televised on the Big Ten Network. Jack Kizer will be handling the play-by-play, Matt Millen will serve as the analyst, and Sydney Supple will be the sideline reporter. Fans can also listen to the game on KFAN 100.3 with Mike Grimm, Darrell Thompson, and Justin Gaard on the call.
Weather
It will be a beautiful November afternoon for football at Wrigley Field. Although it’s a cold one, with temperatures around 45 to start the game, the high for the day will be about 48. There will be wind, but most gusts should only be around 10 mph and should not have a huge effect on the game.
Minnesota’s Keys to Victory
KEY TO VICTORY #1: ESTABLISH THE RUN GAME
This will remain a key to victory until we’re blue in the face. The Gophers had some success on the ground last week, despite the final totals, but it was still far from a strong performance for the rushing attack. On Saturday, they’ll face a Northwestern defense that is allowing over 150 rushing yards per game and can be exploited on the ground. Only two regular-season games are remaining, including today, plus a bowl game, but the Gophers desperately need to find some success on the ground heading into the winter. It’s been 32 games of mostly a below-average rushing attack for Minnesota—something needs to get going.
KEY TO VICTORY #2: WIN ON THIRD DOWN
Offensively, the Gophers haven’t been great on third down this season, converting at just a 39.2% clip (74th in college football). However, Northwestern’s third-down defense has been terrible, allowing opponents to convert 45.9% of the time, which ranks 127th in the country. To win on Saturday, the Gophers will have to stay ahead of the sticks and find success on third down—without doing so, it could be a long day against a Wildcats defense that is otherwise strong and operates as a classic “bend but don’t break” unit.
KEY TO VICTORY #3: Turnovers, turnovers, turnovers
Last week was a rare instance of the Gophers winning the turnover battle and not winning the game. Otherwise, P.J. Fleck’s squad this season is 4-0. That being said, turnovers have still come at a premium for Minnesota this season. Last week’s fumble recovery against Oregon was their first turnover since recording four against Purdue back on October 11, and for their season, they’ve recorded turnovers in just five of 10 games. For Northwestern, one turnover is survivable this season, posting a 4-1 record with one or fewer turnovers, but if you can force them into multiple turnovers, their 1-4 this season, their lone win coming against Purdue. Overall, Danny Collins’s defense has been good at creating HAVOC in the backfield this season, but they need to find a way to force a turnover or two on Saturday afternoon.
Predictions
Dylan Callaghan-Croley (Gophers Nation): This has been a really tough game to gauge throughout the week. I believe the Gophers are the better team, but at the same time, Northwestern has been a more physical team this season, and the Gophers have really struggled with more physical teams throughout the season. Add in the road struggles for Minnesota this season and beyond (4-10 since 2023), and it gets harder and harder to pick the Gophers to win.
I’m going to pick Northwestern to win, though I don’t feel great about it either. Ultimately, I believe Darius Taylor will decide a lot about this game. If the Gophers can get Taylor going on Saturday, they’ll have a great chance of winning this one. But there are also very few reasons to believe that the run game will get going at this point in the season, even against a weaker Northwestern run defense. Northwestern 20 – Minnesota 17.
Louie Vaccher (Wildcat Report): Something has to give on Saturday. Either Minnesota wins on the road, where they are 0-4 this season, or Northwestern will finally get a win at Wrigley Field, where they are 0-3 under David Braun over the last two seasons. I think this will be a tight, low-scoring game between two teams who want to establish the running game and often struggle passing. This will be a defensive struggle, where field position, special teams, and turnovers will decide the outcome. I think Northwestern is a little more physical on the line of scrimmage and will grind out an ugly win.
Pick: Northwestern 20, Minnesota 17
Statistical Comparison
| Minnesota Offense | Northwestern Defense | ||
| Stat Category | # (National Rank) | Stat Category | # (National Rank) |
| Scoring Offense | 22.7 (104) | Scoring Defense | 19.6 (23) |
| Rushing Offense | 105.0 (126) | Rushing Defense | 150.1 (T-74) |
| Passing Offense | 196.8 (102) | Passing Defense | 191.0 (31) |
| Total Offense | 301.8 (128) | Total Defense | 341.1 (45) |
| Sacks Allowed | 19 (73) | Sacks | 16 (T-108) |
| 3rd Down % | 39.2 (T-74) | 3rd Down % | 45.9% (127) |
| 4th Down % | 35.7% (126) | 4th Down % | 46.6% (T-38) |
| Red Zone % | 86.1% (59) | Red Zone % | 86.6 (98) |
| Northwestern Offense | Minnesota Defense | ||
| Stat Category | # (National Rank) | Stat Category | # (National Rank) |
| Scoring Offense | 21.9 (109) | Scoring Defense | 23.6 (T-62) |
| Rushing Offense | 169.4 (51) | Rushing Defense | 115.2 (27) |
| Passing Offense | 171.3 (118) | Passing Defense | 216.2 (64) |
| Total Offense | 340.7 (T-107) | Total Defense | 331.4 (38) |
| Sacks Allowed | 12 (T-20) | Sacks | 33 (T-5) |
| 3rd Down % | 43.6% (39) | 3rd Down % | 38.8% (66) |
| 4th Down % | 61.1% (T-40) | 4th Down % | 50.0% (T-46) |
| Red Zone % | 91.4% (23) | Red Zone % | 87.8 (T-105) |
Reading Content
Offseason Lookahead: Gophers QB room looks steady, but decisions loom
How to watch Minnesota Football vs. Northwestern: Time, channel, stream, and more
Minnesota Football: Behind Enemy Lines – Northwestern Wildcats
Projecting the Minnesota Golden Gophers’ depth chart vs Northwestern
Darius Taylor’s return a much-needed boost for Gophers’ struggling offense
Calling my shot: Predictions on 2026 recruits ahead of National Signing Day
10 Northwestern Wildcats to know ahead of Saturday afternoon’s matchup
Offseason Lookahead: Gophers running back room faces several questions
Gophers Nation War Room: Flip Prediction, early enrollees, and more
Minnesota freshman RB Tre Berry no longer with program
Minnesota Football: First look at the Northwestern Wildcats
Minnesota football bowl projections following week 12
Everything P.J. Fleck said during his Monday press conference – Northwestern week
Minnesota and Wisconsin set for mid-afternoon kick in week 14
Rivals’ Director of Scouting and Rankings offers thoughts on Minnesota top commit EDGE Aaden Aytch
Where do Minnesota commits rank following latest Rivals300 update?
Minnesota opens as small underdog to Northwestern for week 13 road contest at Wrigley
Follow along with Gophers Nation
Gophers Nation will have live updates on the Gophers’ week 13 clash with the Wildcats throughout pregame, through P.J. Fleck and the players’ postgame press conference. Gophers Nation subscribers can chat with the staff and Gophers fans on the Inside Gophers Nation forum.
Stay Tuned
Stay tuned to Gophers Nation as we bring the latest updates on the Golden Gophers’ upcoming matchup against Northwestern.
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