Minnesota vs Buffalo Prediction: Gophers look to start 2025 fast
The Minnesota Golden Gophers return to action for the first time since January on Thursday night when they host the Buffalo Bulls at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
The game also marks the beginning of year nine of the P.J. Fleck era. The Gophers are coming off a fourth-straight postseason appearance in 2024, with an 8-5 overall record, including a 5-4 mark in Big Ten play. Entering this evening, the Gophers are 17.5 points over the Bulls according to BetMGM.
Will the Gophers start the season off strong on Thursday night, or will they be shocked by the Bulls? Gophers Nation makes our prediction below.
This is certainly an easier matchup than each of the last two seasons, as the Gophers began with Nebraska and North Carolina. While Buffalo is no pushover opponent, the Bulls are still several steps below Nebraska and North Carolina.
While the Bulls are coming off a 9-4 season, this is still a team that has struggled against stiffer competition in the past. Over their last four games against Big Ten competition, they’ve lost by an average of 24.75 points per game. They also suffered a 38-0 defeat to Missouri and a 47-3 loss to UConn last season.
That being said, this year’s Buffalo squad is an experienced one with 16 players returning from last year’s team with starting experience. It’s also a team that has played in Power Four stadiums each of the last two seasons, taking on Wisconsin in 2023 and Missouri last season. They’re going to come into Huntington Bank Stadium on Thursday ready to go.
While the Bulls return quite a bit of their talent on defense from last fall, it’s also hard to see them getting extensively better from their performance last year.
The Bulls’ defense in 2024 struggled quite a bit at times, allowing over 26 points and nearly 400 yards per contest. They were susceptible both on the ground and through the air, though their pass defense was especially weak, allowing 245.2 passing yards per game.
The offense last season was strong, averaging over 28 points per game, and while they return running back Al-Jay Henderson and wide receiver Victor Snow, they did see a change at quarterback. Gone is CJ Ogbonna, who completed 56.5% of his passes last season for 2,381 yards and 19 touchdowns. In steps Kansas State transfer Ta’Quan Roberson.
Can Roberson pick up where Ogbonna left off? That remains to be seen, but he’ll have a strong test on Thursday night with what should be another strong Gophers defense.
For the Golden Gophers, it’s simple. Play smart and clean football. If they can limit the penalties and turnovers, they have a good chance of not just winning but cruising to victory. The Gophers have one of the running back rooms in the country, and offensive coordinator Greg Harbaugh Jr shouldn’t overthink it.
Run, Run, Run. The Gophers’ offense, if they continuously feed the tailbacks on Thursday, should set itself up to have quite a bit of success offensively. Continuously pounding the rock will also make things easier on quarterback Drake Lindsey, which brings us to our next point.
Keep things simple for Drake Lindsey. For the Gophers to maximize their offensive success on Thursday night, they need to get Lindsey in a rhythm and build his confidence. That involves scripting easy completions, leaning on the ground game, and using the play action off that ground game. There will likely be a few hiccups on Thursday for Lindsey and in the early part of this season.
But for Lindsey and the Gophers, a week one matchup against one of the nation’s worst pass defenses a year ago is a great way to start building that confidence.
With all that being said, we expect the Golden Gophers to win this game. While I wouldn’t be surprised if it takes a quarter to really get momentum building in their favor, I expect this game to mostly be over by the end of the third quarter. The Gophers offense, while still a work in progress, should have plenty of firepower to beat the Buffalo defense at a quality rate on Saturday night.
Defensively, I don’t see Buffalo giving the Gophers too many problems. If Minnesota can focus on slowing down Al-Jay Henderson, it should set up nicely for the Minnesota defensive line to be aggressive in passing situations, both at the line of scrimmage and in the secondary.
Buffalo is a good team; they may have a chance to win the MAC this year, but this is not a team that should really be competitive with the Golden Gophers for four quarters. Expect Minnesota to build a strong lead by the end of the third quarter before Buffalo adds on points late.
Prediction: Minnesota 34 – Buffalo 16
Join Gophers Nation for inside access on the Golden Gophers!
Sign up here: https://www.on3.com/sites/gophers-nation/join/
GophersNation.com provides everything that passionate Minnesota fans need. Exclusive, wall-to-wall coverage of the Minnesota Golden Gophers athletes and recruiting.
Not a subscriber? That’s okay! It’s never too late to subscribe to Gophers Nation. Not only will you get access to each week’s full visitors list, but you’ll also have the following perks to go along with your subscription!
* Access to Inside Gophers Nation, our premium message board, where you can talk with fellow Minnesota fans as well as the Gophers Nation staff.
* In-depth breakdowns — Gophers Nation provides the latest analytics, stats, and more on the Golden Gophers, their opponents, and more. Each week, dive deeper into the Golden Gophers’ previous game and future opponents.
*Dedicated team coverage — Gophers Nation every week is ready to provide the latest scoops and coverage on Minnesota Golden Gophers football, basketball, and hockey.
* Complete recruiting coverage — We keep you up to speed on all of Minnesota’s efforts on the recruiting trail. Keep up to date with who the Gophers are targeting from the day they’re offered to the day they sign their letters of intent.
* Full network access — On top of our coverage at Gophers Nation, you’ll also receive FULL ACCESS to ALL On3 fan sites and national message boards, access to Rivals recruiting and high school coverage, featuring the biggest names in the recruiting inudstry, and access to On3’s national talent including some of the nation’s top college analysts in Andy Staples, Brett McMurphy, Pete Nakos, Ari Wasserman, and more.
If that’s not enough, there’s another benefit to signing up for Gophers Nation today!
Join Gophers Nation now for $1 your first week and enjoy a complimentary year of The Athletic – included with your membership.
Sign up here: https://www.on3.com/sites/gophers-nation/join/
